Growing demand for air travel could see the cost of airfares soaring this spring and summer, according to some of the leading airline executives in the United States. Bosses for some of the biggest carriers, including Delta Air Lines and American Airlines, said at a JPMorgan Chase investor conference on March 15 that they had witnessed an unprecedented demand for passenger bookings the previous week. The surge in demand comes amid rising fuel expenses, which have been further exacerbated following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Airline bosses warned investors that the average price for a gallon of jet fuel is expected to rise between 17 percent and 33 percent in the current quarter compared to the final three months of 2021, and between 47 percent and 72 percent compared to what they paid a year ago, CNN reported. After labor costs, fuel is an airline’s second-largest expense. The majority of U.S. airlines do not hedge the cost of …