Jet fuel is expensive—which is one reason why it's tough to make an airline profitable

Nearly 3 million people fly in and out of US airports every day

However, not all of those passengers generate revenue for the airlines they purchase their tickets from. One business class traveler typically pays for five to six economy travelers. That's partly because airlines measure profit by the square foot, and although a business class seat is usually roughly 30% roomier than economy seats, the business class traveler usually pays about three times as much as someone sitting in economy.

The price of gas is a composite made up of several different factors, with the federal gas tax making up less than 20% of what drivers pay at the pump.

The price of crude oil accounts for roughly half of the price displayed at the gas pump

While the price of crude oil has the largest impact on the price of gas, the cost of refinement, taxes, and distribution jointly make up nearly half of how gas is priced. Because of the many factors that influence the price of gas, eliminating taxes during expensive periods might not effectively lower prices.

Beyond oil, the Iran war is pushing up costs on fertilizer, prescriptions, and mortgages, too

Gas is up 27% since fighting began, but the Strait of Hormuz also carries a third of the world's fertilizer, petrochemicals used in generic drugs, and helium for semiconductor manufacturing. Mortgage rates have climbed back above 6.4%, and economists warn $130 oil could tip the U.S. into recession.

Find out how airlines quietly became banks

Some experts suggest airlines lose money on every flight. This video dives into how airlines have leveraged their loyalty programs to make billions of dollars, effectively evolving into banks.

Unless prices of fossil fuels rise significantly, their production is expected to slow

US oil and natural gas production skyrocketed from 2000 to 2020, largely due to advances in fracking. However, weak global energy prices have prevented this boom from translating into increased profits for fossil fuel companies.

Budget airline Spirit announced its shutdown on May 2, 2026

After filing for bankruptcy twice, there were a multitude of reasons for the airline's shutdown, including an increase in jet fuel prices due to the conflict in Iran in the first half of 2026.

Commercial air travel's early days: Flights were short, cold, depressurized, and generally comfortable

After World War II, airlines competed for their high-end passengers by offering cocktails, meals, and plush seats, cultivating the image of the elite "Jet Set." By the 1960s, air transport was completely changing global trade and offering big profits to companies able to ship via plane.

Learn how budget airlines provide customer savings

No-frills airlines, like Frontier and Spirit, are popular for providing customers with a much cheaper alternative to flying. However, many budget airlines rely on baggage charges and extra fees, which can sometimes make it just as expensive as flying on a mainstream airline.

F1 is a billion-dollar industry

...but that money doesn't come easily. Team principals have to constantly ensure money is coming in to fund their million-dollar cars every weekend. This CNBC video explores all the costs of running a team. It also shows how team principals woo sponsors and find ways to maximize their technology with a cost cap.

The incredibly advanced engineering of the B-2 Bomber

B-2 Bombers are the world's most expensive plane, coming in at a cost of $2B per aircraft. There are roughly 20 in the world, all in use by the United States Air Force. They are known for their single-wing profile, allowing for stealth and the ability to transport some of the world's largest bombs.

Airbus is a rare European industrial success story that overtook a rival American firm

After World War II, the US dominated aviation, particularly Boeing. To compete, Europe's major industrial nations pooled resources to form Airbus, a customer-centric airplane manufacturer. Its A320 family of planes became the most popular in airliner history, leading to profitability in the 1990s. Amid Boeing's major hurdles in recent years, Airbus remains the industry leader.

Famously frugal Warren Buffett owns a private jet

Buffett still lives in the same house he bought in 1958 for $31.5K. He has pledged to donate 99% of his fortune to charity. Yet he owns a private jet called "The Indispensable" (formerly called "The Indefensible" because he had no defense for buying it).

College football generates over $11B annually—but many programs run at a loss

Despite total revenues surpassing $11.5B in 2024, college football’s high operating costs—$14.5B in the same year—mean only a handful of top programs turn large profits, while most run at a loss.

Crude oil is the type of oil used to create fuel like gasoline, heating oil, and more

Technically speaking, crude oil is unrefined petroleum. This article dives into the different ways it’s categorized (by density, sulfur content, and origin), and how the combinations of these types of oil are used.

How fighter jet ejections work

One of the most complex pieces of equipment in a fighter jet is the pilot's ejection apparatus, and the process of ejecting is far more challenging and violent than its depicted in film. This six-minute video breaks down the protocol step-by-step.

Hydrogen vehicle adoption has struggled due to high costs and stiff EV competition

Despite features like fast refueling and zero emissions, hydrogen vehicles face significant hurdles in affordability and infrastructure. As of 2025, there are about 200,000 electric vehicle charging stations compared to fewer than 100 hydrogen fuel ones.

Full-time employees can cost up to 1.4 times as much as an independent worker

While gig work jobs often have a low barrier to entry and flexible work hours, there are a few downsides to the sector, too. For instance, gig work platforms like Airbnb likely won’t pay for an Airbnb host’s health insurance or paid time off.

See where Americans spend the most on gas

Drivers in Wyoming spend the most on gas per month at about $279, while New York drivers pay the least at $132. Longer driving distances have a significant impact on how much American drivers spend on gas.

See how SpaceX has impacted costs throughout spaceflight history

The cost of one SpaceX launch today is estimated to cost 97% less than the price of a Russian Soyuz rocket in the 1960s, a price reduction providing access to many smaller manufacturers and transforming the industry.

Here's why weddings are so expensive

Anyone who has planned a wedding knows firsthand how shockingly expensive things like flowers or a live band can be. This article from the wedding experts at The Knot breaks down why, exactly, weddings cost so much. Plus, it explains the truth behind the so-called “wedding tax.” Read the article to learn more.

Ranking the most expensive appliances on your electricity bill

Energy costs have gone up amid war and inflation. Here's a breakdown on the cheapest and most expensive appliances in your home to help you lower your bill.

During flights, cell phones can act like signal jammers as they search for service

When farther from cell towers, these devices expend more energy to emit more powerful signals, which can overwhelm any ground-based tower or radio telescope they fly past. Rather than protecting the flight, airplane mode conserves a cell phone's battery.

Amazon's largest profit engine is the cloud-computing platform Amazon Web Services

Also known as AWS, Amazon Web Services is a suite of IT resources such as storage, databases, and more. While Amazon owns AWS, lots of other tech companies—including Slack and Pinterest—use it to help run their IT operations. In 2023, AWS brought in $25B in profit—outpacing Amazon's entire North American retail division.

An expense ratio represents the cost to own an ETF over the course of the year

For instance, an expense ratio of 0.5% would add a cost of $50 on an investment of $10K. And while expense ratios have on average decreased in recent years, a particularly hefty fee can still eat into total profits.

Why American Express charges merchants more than other card companies to accept AmEx

Each card network charges merchants a discount rate, which is a fee merchants pay to accept cards. American Express charges higher discount fees than competitors like Visa and Mastercard as the business is more reliant on fees for operation.

Hedge funds, the private investment firms that trade a wide swath of financial assets, make money by imposing steep fees on investors and from the fund's investment performance.

How fusion—which releases energy when two lighter atoms combine to form a heavier atom—differs from fission

How Amazon operates a 'flywheel' business model, a self-reinforcing cycle that drives continuous growth

Roughly 43 million US borrowers owe roughly $1.7T in student debt, the second-largest source of consumer debt behind mortgages.

SpaceX's S-1 or 'prospectus' revealed many previously unknown details about the company, including its unprofitability despite doing $18.7B in revenue in 2025, exactly how many voting shares Elon Musk will have in the company (roughly 85%), and more.

The most expensive ad of all time was for Chanel No. 5 perfume and cost roughly $33M to produce in 2004—about $57M in today's dollars.

Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps is independent of Iran's regular army and is one of the most powerful and influential military-political organizations in the Middle East.

Louisiana's 'Cancer Alley' is infamous for having some of the highest industrial pollution, toxic air emissions, and cancer risks in the US.

Some renewable energy sources may weaken the resiliency of electric grids by removing outage buffers provided by coal- and natural gas-fired plants, which provide the system with more time to find a new power source if a plant goes down.

Art theft is the third-largest source of criminal revenues worldwide, thanks in part to the subjective nature of valuing a work of art.

About 2,000 US babies are born annually without some portion of their limbs, potentially leading to a lifetime of pricey prosthetics.

Fast-casual restaurant Chili's is experiencing a resurgence, with its parent company recently reporting a nearly 32% increase in sales, thanks to passionate Gen Z fans on TikTok.

Power lines are dotted with large, brightly colored balls to improve the visibility of these thin wires to helicopters and small planes and help prevent potential crashes.

The deadliest aspect of volcanic eruptions is often not lava, but pyroclastic flows—avalanches of ash, gas, and rock that can move more than half the speed of sound.

Hurricanes, which rely on air consistently spinning in the same direction, cannot cross the equator because air curves in opposite directions north and south of it.

The United States has had a tumultuous relationship with Cuba since its 1959 revolution, highlighted by a nuclear crisis and a decades-long trade embargo.

The word 'jazz' evolved from 'jasm,' 19th-century American slang for 'energy'

Stanford built a Google Maps for the Roman Empire, revealing how much it cost to travel in the ancient world

Frank Lloyd Wright's houses are historically hard to sell because they're old, subject to local landmark commissions, and often unfashionable

The Russia-Ukraine conflict is the largest ground war in Europe since World War II in terms of casualties, forces mobilized, and displacement of civilians.

Animal phobias are likely the most common type of phobias, followed by an extreme fear of heights.

The rivalry between Alexander Hamilton and Thomas Jefferson centered on federalism—the question of how much power the federal government should hold relative to the states.

Take a 3D tour of the Hajj, Islam's annual pilgrimage to Mecca, undertaken by over 1.5 million Muslims.

The Beatles' US label rejected the band's first two singles, 'Please Please Me' and 'From Me to You,' with one executive calling the band 'dead in the water.'