Skift Take
Airlines are highly competitive businesses. Usually, the routes announced Thursday would engender a massive competitive response. But is there an appetite for that now? Hard to say.
JetBlue Airways published a simple press release Thursday announcing 30 new routes starting this summer and fall, mainly for leisure customers, to leverage a nascent recovery. But to insiders, it was more — a manifesto showing that JetBlue, now in survival mode, no longer plans to play by the industry's unwritten rules.
First, some background. Larger U.S. airlines have defined lanes, with each working from geographic areas of strength. JetBlue mainly flies from four focus cities — Boston, New York JFK, Fort Lauderdale, and Orlando. It can launch nearly any route from one of those four cities — except perhaps to a competitor's hub — and while another airline might be irritated, JetBlue likely would not engender a response.
But like all U.S. airlines, JetBlue, which recently said it may cut up to 300 airport workers this fall, is hemorrhaging cash, and it needs revenue. So on Thursday it signaled it will flout these norms, adding new flying in other airline's spheres of influence. In some cases, it is more of a short-term strategy to take advantage of current market conditions, while in others, it is more of a long-term strategic play.
"The markets we announced today are designed to take advantage of leisure demand we are beginning to see return and to more quickly generate cash," Scott Laurence, JetBlue's head of revenue and planning, said in an email. "Some of the point-to-point flying is a little unusual for us, but we saw the opportunity and wanted to take advantage quickly becaus
