Delta Air Lines is benefiting from its unusual refinery investment as soaring jet fuel prices put pressure on airline profits. In its latest summer-quarter results, the airline reported that adjusted jet fuel costs reached $3.61 per gallon, up 60% from a year earlier. Its adjusted fuel bill rose 62% to $4.1 billion.
Despite the higher expenses, Delta recorded approximately $1.5 billion in adjusted pre-tax profit for the quarter. However, the airline lowered its profit outlook as rising fuel costs offset strong travel demand and higher fares. Delta expects its annual fuel expenses to be around $6 billion higher than last year.
Delta’s refinery strategy dates back to 2012, when it acquired the idled Trainer refinery near Philadelphia from Phillips 66 for $150 million after state assistance. The airline also planned further investment to increase jet fuel production, becoming the first major airline to own a refinery.
The investment’s benefits have varied over the years, but rising fuel prices have made it more valuable. The refinery generated $311 million in operating income during the first half of 2026 and reduced Delta’s fuel cost by 13 cents per gallon in the latest quarter.
Delta expects the refinery to deliver a benefit of around 40 cents per gallon next quarter and more than $700 million for the full year. Although the refinery cannot shield Delta completely from rising fuel prices, it provides a financial advantage that competing major U.S. airlines without refinery ownership do not have.