JetBlue believes that joining forces with Spirit Airlines in a planned merger is the best approach to take on major national carriers like Delta Air Lines, Southwest Airlines, United Airlines, and even its Northeast partner American Airlines.
Joanna Geraghty, chief operational officer of JetBlue, said on Tuesday, "JetBlue just wants to compete."
We aspire to become a major national challenger brand.
She did admit, though, that the merger might take longer to complete than ones facilitated by JetBlue's competitors during the previous two decades.
The Northeast alliance between JetBlue and American is already under investigation by the US Department of Justice.
Additionally, some authorities are pondering how previous mergers have benefited consumers, particularly in light of the record-high summer airfares and operational failures.
JetBlue has a history of "disrupting" the market, according to Geraghty, who was speaking at the Skift Global Forum in New York.
She continued by saying that JetBlue will argue to the government that its development into a real national carrier will displace the four largest airlines in the country from their current positions of market dominance.
Currently, more over 80% of all domestic passengers are transported by American, Delta, Southwest, and United.
The majority of JetBlue's route network is in the Caribbean, Florida, Boston, and New York.
Geraghty observed that there are several states that JetBlue does not now serve but that she would dearly desire it to.
The Midwest and many of the states we fly over are frequently asked about, she added.
Spirit will permit us to fly there.
It has been questioned whether regulators will make JetBlue pick between its alliance with American or the acquisition of Spirit.
We believe you can accomplish both, Geraghty stated.
JetBlue is thrilled by the fact that the spirit is particularly strong in Latin America.
JetBlue added a new nonstop flight between Cancun International Airport (CUN) and Raleigh-Durham International Airport (RDU) during the pandemic, and the airline sees benefits in merging those networks.
In terms of any expansion, Geraghty doesn't anticipate JetBlue going back to Mexico City, a place it left in 2020.
She does see further JetBlue expansion in Europe, though.
On Tuesday, the airline began offering flights between Boston Logan International Airport (BOS) and London Heathrow Airport (LHR).
In addition, JetBlue started service from BOS to Gatwick Airport in London last month (LGW).
In a wonderfully noncommittal, airline-like manner, Geraghty responded to the question of what locations would be coming up next with "maybe continental Europe."
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