Bavarian Chef
Registered jetBluser
- Joined
- Feb 8, 2006
- Posts
- 1,743
JetBlue looks at options for international flights
JetBlue doesn’t plan to be flying overseas anytime soon, but that doesn’t necessarily mean that the New York-based discounter won’t be able to offer you an international flight. "We are actually in the very early stages of figuring out a way for customers to [fly] with any international airline that wants to partner with us," spokeswoman Jenny Dervin tells the Richmond Times-Dispatch. The paper writes that Dervin’s “comments appeared to be the first remarks about JetBlue's partnering plans since late January, when the airline's top executive commented on the topic.” CEO David Neeleman said then that JetBlue “could have something by the end of 2006." Could JetBlue be trying to speed up that timetable given Delta’s recent announcement that it would create a large international hub at JFK by September? "That's definitely a date on the calendar that's interesting to us," Dervin says.As for any possible deal, JetBlue’s Dervin said that any possible alliance would likely operate different than the typical code-share deals many U.S. airlines have with international partners, where they place their flight numbers and sell seats on each other's flights. Airline expert Darryl Jenkins seemed to agree that was the most likely scenario, saying: “The term in use is 'marketing alliance.' You do things to increase traffic but not increase cost." He adds that JetBlue is "the 800-pound gorilla" at JFK, so "anything they do beyond that on international flights is really gravy to them." What potential partners could be in the mix? Jenkins mentioned Virgin Atlantic, MAXjet and Air India.
http://blogs.usatoday.com/sky/
Last edited: