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NEW YORK, March 13 (Reuters) - U.S. airlines hedge their expectedjet fuel purchases to protect themselves from rising fuel costs. A hedge typically involves buying a financial contract in a relatedproduct such as crude oil CLc1 or heating oil HOV7. The financial gainsfrom those contracts, when the price rises, can help offset higher costs forjet fuel, which vies with labor as an airline's largest expense. Other hedging strategies include so-called "collars," which arecombinations of put and call options. They generally cost less to put inplace. Below is a table outlining the hedging positions at major U.S. airlines,arranged by size of the airline (For story, please double click on[ID:nN10602896]): PERCENTAIRLINE PERIOD HEDGED DESCRIPTIONAmerican Airlines FY 08 24 capped at an average price of(AMR.N: Quote, Profile, Research) approximately $2.31/gallon of jet fuelUnited Airlines Q1 08 15 mostly using three-way collars: upside(UAUA.O: Quote, Profile, Research) protection starting at $91/barrel and capped at $101/barrel; payment obligations start if oil drops below $86/barrel FY 08 16 mostly using three-way collars: upside protection starting at $89/barrel and capped at $101/barrel; payment obligations start if oil drops below $83/barrel; Q1 fuel cost forecast $2.74/gallonDelta Air Lines Q1 08 26 jet fuel equivalent cap $2.77/gallon;(DAL.N: Quote, Profile, Research) forecast jet fuel price $2.74/gallon Q2 08 31 jet fuel equivalent cap $2.72/gallon Q3 08 15 jet fuel equivalent cap $2.70/gallon Q4 08 10 jet fuel equivalent cap $2.69/gallon FY 09 9 crude oil call options avg strike price $2.05/gallon FY 10 2 crude oil call options avg strike price $2.04/gallonContinental Airlines Q1 08 20 heating oil collars: avg put price(CAL.N: Quote, Profile, Research) $2.25/gallon, avg call price $2.41/gallon Q2 08 5 heating oil collars: avg put price $2.39/gallon, avg call price $2.55/gallonNorthwest Airlines* Q1 08 45 no details(NWA.N: Quote, Profile, Research) FY 08 18 no detailsSouthwest Airlines Q1 08 75 capped at avg crude equivalent price(LUV.N: Quote, Profile, Research) of $51/barrel; Q1 fuel cost forecast $2.00/gallon FY 08 70 at avg crude oil-equivalent price of $51/barrel FY 09 55 at avg crude oil-equivalent price of $51/barrel FY 10 30 at avg crude oil-equivalent price of $63/barrel FY 11 +15 at avg crude oil-equivalent price of $64/barrel FY 12 +15 at avg crude oil-equivalent price of $63/barrelUS Airways Group Q1 08 50 heating oil collars: weighted avg(LCC.N: Quote, Profile, Research) range $1.98 to $2.18/gallon (or $68.79 to $77.19/barrel of crude oil); forecast jet fuel price $2.74-$2.79/gallon FY 08 22 collars: weighted avg heating oil range $2.05 to $2.25/gallon; weighted avg crude oil equivalent range $72.04 to $80.44/gallonSOURCE: Company filings. (Reporting by Chris Reiter and Kyle Peterson; Editing by Steve Orlofs