JetBlue Expects More Soft Demand, Cuts Capacity

JetBlue said Tuesday it is anticipating more softened demand in the second quarter and plans to cut capacity. 

Marty St, George, JetBlue’s president, said in a statement that the carrier had seen strong booking trends in January, but that strength started to deteriorate in February and March. 

“We expect softened demand for off-peak travel to continue into the second quarter, where the booking curve is more exposed to macro uncertainty and deteriorating consumer confidence,” St. George said. 

JetBlue also pulled its 2025 forecast, which most U.S. airlines have done in response to economic uncertainty. 

“If we could read the tea leaves and tell you things will get better fast if tariffs go away, I think we'd be in a different industry,” said CEO Joanna Geraghty during a call with analysts on Tuesday. 

However, St. George noted that the carrier saw some encouraging trends in premium and international travel, along with loyalty. 

Premium and international travel have become increasingly important for airlines as domestic travel demand weakens. United chief commercial officer Andrew Nocella said during a call with analysts on April 16 that the airline had not seen a “deterioration in high-end consumers' willingness to purchase a premium experience.”

JetBlue reported a net loss of $208 million for the first quarter, which was an improvement from its $716 million loss in 2024. The carrier also netted $2.1 billion in revenue, a 3.1% decrease from the same period last year. 

For the second quarter, JetBlue forecasts capacity to be down 0.5% to 3.5%. 

The carrier said it was “well positioned to manage through a range of economic outcomes,” pointing to its deferral of $3 billion worth of aircraft and its decision to raise $3.2 billion of capital. 

A New Partnership for JetBlue?

JetBlue executives said during a call with analysts that they are expecting to make an announcement on a new partnership during the second quarter. 

St. George said during the call that the partnership would provide JetBlue customers with greater connectivity. 

“If you are a customer in the Northeast and you love JetBlue for leisure, but twice a year, you have to go to Omaha or Boise, these are places that you can't earn TrueBlue points on now. And when this partnership goes forward, you will be able to," St. George said. 

So far, United Airlines said in regulatory filing that it wasn’t in talks with any airlines about a merger or partnership. American Airlines said Monday that it ended partnership talks with JetBlue and planned to sue the carrier over the collapse of the Northeast Alliance. 

Geraghty said JetBlue had not been served with the lawsuit yet and that the carrier had been working with American to wind down the NEA. 

“This is not an unexpected turn and it's part of just truing up any money owed between the parties,” Geraghty said. 

Executives at the airline have repeatedly said they want to revive a partnership similar to that of the NEA, which was struck down in federal court on the grounds it was anticompetitive. 

The Northeast Alliance was JetBlue’s partnership with American Airlines, where the two carriers shared routes, codeshares, loyalty benefits, revenue and joint corporate customer benefits out of the New York and Boston markets. 

Curated by Meghna Maharishi

Airline Reporter

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