lowecur
Well-known member
- Joined
- Sep 14, 2003
- Posts
- 2,317
Welp, the rich get richer. 7 flights per day to FL vs 4 for Song. Looks like they will share a gate with Air Canada until either UAIR or DL are decide to give up some.
June 23, 2004
JetBlue Is to Announce Plans to Add LaGuardia Service
[size=-1]By MICHELINE MAYNARD[/size]
http://www.nytimes.com/redirect/mar...tom/nyt-com/html-companyprofile.asp&symb=JBLU
JetBlue Airways said today that it would begin service from LaGuardia Airport in September with seven daily flights to Fort Lauderdale, giving it operations at two of New York's three major airports.
The low-fare airline, which will announce the new flights Thursday, also said it would expand service to a number of Florida cities from Kennedy Airport, its primary hub.
The new flights, plus its expanded service, means JetBlue will have as many as 71 flights a day this winter between New York and Florida. The airline's chief executive, David Neeleman, joked that the new service in effect made Florida the city's "sixth borough."
Overall, the increase in service brings JetBlue's daily flights to 320 per day. The airline began flying in February 2000 with two trips a day between J.F.K. and Fort Lauderdale.
Service between LaGuardia and Fort Lauderdale will begin Sept. 17. Jet Blue plans introductory fares of $79 each way, good for travel through November 18. Tickets must be booked by July 8.
In addition, JetBlue is adding daily flights between J.F.K. and Orlando, Fort Myers, West Palm Beach and Tampa.
JetBlue is starting service at LaGuardia with only one gate, which it will share with Air Canada. Nonetheless, its service there marks a milestone for the four-year-old airline, one of the most consistently profitable and with some of the lowest costs in the industry.
JetBlue, which now flies Airbus A320 jets, will soon take delivery on the first of 100 Embraer regional jets. They seat 100 passengers, compared with about 150 for the Airbus but double the size of the typical regional jet.
The airline has options to buy 100 more Embraers, and has ordered another 30 Airbuses.
Analysts said the orders signal aggressive expansion plans at JetBlue, the nation's 10th-biggest airline.
In an interview today, Mr. Neeleman said there were two reasons the airline is launching service from LaGuardia: first, passengers have asked it to do so. Second, JetBlue wants to be in place at LaGuardia in case one of its competitors stumbles. "It's good to get a little toe in there if something happens," Mr. Neeleman said.
By that, he meant US Airways and Delta Air Lines, both of which have a major presence at LaGuardia, US Airways with its hourly shuttle to Boston and Washington as well as other flights, and Delta with flights to Florida through its low-fare carrier, Song.
Both airlines are seeking wage and benefit concessions from their employees, with both warning they may have to seek Chapter 11 protection if they fail. In US Airways' case, that would be its second stint in bankruptcy.
In Delta's case, the airline is conducting a strategic review of its entire operations, including Song, which it started in 2003 in a bid to hang on to Florida-bound customers.
However, Delta has cut back on a planned expansion of Song flights from New York, and is trimming its schedules for the month of September, reflecting a drop in demand after summer vacation season.
Delta's Song has four flights per day between LaGuardia and Fort Lauderdale. A spokeswoman said the airline was not daunted by JetBlue's arrival at LaGuardia.
"Rumors of our demise are greatly exaggerated," said Meghan Glynn.
A spokesman for US Airways, David Castelveter, said, "It's clear by market activity that some carriers would like to see us gone and we're just not going to allow to happen.
LaGuardia has long been a key airport for business travelers, while Florida has traditionally been a leisure destination. But Kevin P. Mitchell, chairman of the Business Travel Coalition, said the new service would benefit JetBlue.
"JetBlue now has a beachhead" at LaGuardia, Mr. Mitchell said.
June 23, 2004
JetBlue Is to Announce Plans to Add LaGuardia Service
[size=-1]By MICHELINE MAYNARD[/size]
http://www.nytimes.com/redirect/mar...tom/nyt-com/html-companyprofile.asp&symb=JBLU
JetBlue Airways said today that it would begin service from LaGuardia Airport in September with seven daily flights to Fort Lauderdale, giving it operations at two of New York's three major airports.
The low-fare airline, which will announce the new flights Thursday, also said it would expand service to a number of Florida cities from Kennedy Airport, its primary hub.
The new flights, plus its expanded service, means JetBlue will have as many as 71 flights a day this winter between New York and Florida. The airline's chief executive, David Neeleman, joked that the new service in effect made Florida the city's "sixth borough."
Overall, the increase in service brings JetBlue's daily flights to 320 per day. The airline began flying in February 2000 with two trips a day between J.F.K. and Fort Lauderdale.
Service between LaGuardia and Fort Lauderdale will begin Sept. 17. Jet Blue plans introductory fares of $79 each way, good for travel through November 18. Tickets must be booked by July 8.
In addition, JetBlue is adding daily flights between J.F.K. and Orlando, Fort Myers, West Palm Beach and Tampa.
JetBlue is starting service at LaGuardia with only one gate, which it will share with Air Canada. Nonetheless, its service there marks a milestone for the four-year-old airline, one of the most consistently profitable and with some of the lowest costs in the industry.
JetBlue, which now flies Airbus A320 jets, will soon take delivery on the first of 100 Embraer regional jets. They seat 100 passengers, compared with about 150 for the Airbus but double the size of the typical regional jet.
The airline has options to buy 100 more Embraers, and has ordered another 30 Airbuses.
Analysts said the orders signal aggressive expansion plans at JetBlue, the nation's 10th-biggest airline.
In an interview today, Mr. Neeleman said there were two reasons the airline is launching service from LaGuardia: first, passengers have asked it to do so. Second, JetBlue wants to be in place at LaGuardia in case one of its competitors stumbles. "It's good to get a little toe in there if something happens," Mr. Neeleman said.
By that, he meant US Airways and Delta Air Lines, both of which have a major presence at LaGuardia, US Airways with its hourly shuttle to Boston and Washington as well as other flights, and Delta with flights to Florida through its low-fare carrier, Song.
Both airlines are seeking wage and benefit concessions from their employees, with both warning they may have to seek Chapter 11 protection if they fail. In US Airways' case, that would be its second stint in bankruptcy.
In Delta's case, the airline is conducting a strategic review of its entire operations, including Song, which it started in 2003 in a bid to hang on to Florida-bound customers.
However, Delta has cut back on a planned expansion of Song flights from New York, and is trimming its schedules for the month of September, reflecting a drop in demand after summer vacation season.
Delta's Song has four flights per day between LaGuardia and Fort Lauderdale. A spokeswoman said the airline was not daunted by JetBlue's arrival at LaGuardia.
"Rumors of our demise are greatly exaggerated," said Meghan Glynn.
A spokesman for US Airways, David Castelveter, said, "It's clear by market activity that some carriers would like to see us gone and we're just not going to allow to happen.
LaGuardia has long been a key airport for business travelers, while Florida has traditionally been a leisure destination. But Kevin P. Mitchell, chairman of the Business Travel Coalition, said the new service would benefit JetBlue.
"JetBlue now has a beachhead" at LaGuardia, Mr. Mitchell said.
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