Airline Shares Rally as Oil Slides After Midterms; Air Taxis Fly Over Tampa Bay

US airline shares jumped on Wednesday as crude oil tumbled, giving some relief to carriers that have spent months absorbing soaring fuel bills tied to the war with Iran.

JetBlue Airways Corp. rose as much as 14% in afternoon trading. United Airlines Holdings Inc. climbed 8%, and Delta Air Lines Inc. and American Airlines Group Inc. each gained 7%. West Texas Intermediate crude fell about 8.5% over 24 hours to roughly $88 a barrel.

Traders bet that the outcome of Tuesday’s US midterm elections could hasten an end to the conflict, according to reports by Reuters and the Wall Street Journal. Reports earlier in the week of possible US-Iran peace talks had also weighed on oil.

Fuel has become the industry’s biggest headache this autumn. Alaska Air Group Inc. last week warned of a possible full-year loss and cut about 200 jobs. JetBlue Chief Executive Officer Joanna Geraghty told analysts last month that “the fuel challenges the industry faces are real, but so is our progress.”

Electric air taxis, meanwhile, moved a step closer to US commercial service. Joby Aviation Inc. and Beta Technologies flew demonstration flights across Tampa Bay last Friday under the Federal Aviation Administration’s eVTOL Integration Pilot Program. The flights retraced the world’s first scheduled passenger airline route, which opened between St. Petersburg and Tampa in 1914.

Joby followed with flights at Orlando International Airport and Kennedy Space Center. Florida is the seventh location to launch under the federal program, and Joby says it is in the final stages of FAA type certification. “Each flight provides crucial data and lessons learned that will help establish safety standards for everyday operations,” FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford said.