JetBlue Airways is taking an ax to its network as it works to cut costs and improve on-time performance.
In an internal memo sent to employees on Wednesday and shared with Business Insider, JetBlue’s VP of network planning and airline partnerships, Dave Jehn, revealed the airline would leave five cities effective June 13. He also listed an additional 16 route cuts.
The changes will allow a shuffling of aircraft to serve better-performing routes from JetBlue focus cities, as well as increase its planes’ time on the ground to reduce the chance for delays, he explained.
The five market exits include:
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Bogota, Colombia
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Quito, Ecuador
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Lima, Peru
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Kansas City, Missouri
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Newburgh, New York, which JetBlue suspended service to during the pandemic and has decided not to return.
The airline currently flies to Bogota, Lima, and Quito from Fort Lauderdale, Florida, and serves Kansas City, Missouri, from New York-JFK, according to the aviation data provider Cirium.
“These markets are unprofitable, and our aircraft time can be better utilized elsewhere,” Jehn wrote in the memo.
Among the 16 extra cuts, Los Angeles and Fort Lauderdale are the most impacted, according to the memo. Both are losing eight routes.
The losses in Fort Lauderdale, however, will be made up for with additional frequencies to “top-performing” destinations in the Northeast and across the Caribbean, like Buffalo, San Juan, Cancun, Montego Bay, and Punta Cana, Jehn said.
Meanwhile, he explained that instead of operating underperforming shorter flights that hop around the West Coast, he said the focus in the “very crowded” LA market would shift to cross-country and Mint routes.
According to Jehn, the reduction in LA is mostly due to JetBlue’s failed $3.8 billion merger with low-cost giant Spirit Airlines, which a judge ruled in January would hurt customers due to decreased competition.
“Without Spirit, and without aircraft time and gates available to grow organically, we need to refocus,” he wrote in the memo.
The failure to combine with Spirit is not the only reason JetBlue has found itself in this position.
Yet another failed partnership JetBlue formed with American Airlines in July 2020, which the two dubbed the Northeast Alliance, ended last year. Similar anti-trust laws that derailed the Spirit merger also led to the NEA’s demise.
“We were counting on the merger with Spirit and the NEA to help us be relevant and support growth,” Jehn wrote, noting changes in demand in certain markets post-COVID also hurt performance.
Another factor plaguing the airline is the ongoing issues with the Pratt & Whitney GTF engines equipped on seven of the airline’s near-all-Airbus fleet, causing a shortage of planes. That number is expected to impact up to 15 A320neos by the end of this year, Reuters reported.
Moreover, JetBlue, which just appointed its new CEO, Joanna Geraghty, in February, has had historically poor punctuality that has negatively impacted its operational costs and brand reputation.
JetBlue ranked last for on-time performance in 2023, according to data from The Wall Street Journal.
Here’s the list of 20 route cuts customers can expect this summer, according to JetBlue:
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Between Fort Lauderdale and Bogota, Lima, Quito, Atlanta, Austin, Nashville, New Orleans, and Salt Lake City
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Between Los Angeles and Cancun, Las Vegas, Miami, Puerto Vallarta, Reno, San Francisco, Seattle, and Liberia, Costa Rica
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Between New York-JFK and Detroit
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Between Orlando and Salt Lake City
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Between Tampa and Aguadilla, Puerto Rico
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Between Kansas City and New York-JFK
