Out with the old, and uhh, pause with the new?
JetBlue is taking its downsizing strategy seriously based on its Q2 results for 2024. Even though the airline managed to turn a net profit of $25 million for the last quarter, they still face a number of operational issues, and expect to turn an overall loss for the year ending 2024.
As part of its “JetForward” plan, the carrier will make adjustments to its fleet, including retiring its remaining Embraer E190 jets. According to JetBlue’s CFO Ursula Hurley, they will retire six units by the end of 2024, and another 15 by the end of 2025. Their E-jets have an average fleet age of 15 years, with the first set being delivered in 2006, while the last was delivered in 2013.
With the Airbus A220s set to replace the E190s, the company also announced that it would defer deliveries of its A321neos citing issues with the Pratt & Whitney’s GTF turbofan engines. They will push back 44 orders, with new delivery dates extending beyond 2030.
With new GTF engine availability still being a massive problem for all A320 family-related PW operators, they prefer to pay a deferral fee rather than having jets potentially sitting idly by waiting for new engines. However, with the deferrals being announced, they also noted that its transatlantic expansion plans will be affected as a result.
“At this stage, we simply can’t afford to continue taking delivery of costly new aircraft that may need to be parked due to engine availability issues,” Hurley said.
Other JetForward Initiatives
Credit: Bradley Wint/Gate CheckedBesides its fleet adjustments, JetBlue is working to adjust schedules to improve its on-time performance. This has been a big problem, especially in the northeast where airspaces tend to be very busy. Even on one of my recent trips, my flight was delayed by half an hour due to airspace congestion restrictions.
They are also working on increasing revenue streams with a number of new product introductions that have not been detailed yet. I’m willing to bet it’s something related to the rumors of domestic first class seating coming to its non-Mint aircraft. What’s most interesting is that the projected seating capacity did not include its E190s, which ties in to the above retirement disclosure.
JetBlue is also restructuring its route network, reducing capacity on business-heavy segments such as in Newark and LaGuardia, and expanding its presence in New England and San Juan, Puerto Rico. Some cities have also been completely removed from its route network including Pointe-a-Pitre (PTP), Charlotte (CLT), Minneapolis-St. Paul (MSP), San Antonio (SAT), Burbank (BUR), Tallahassee (TLH) and Palm Springs (PSP).
Featured image: Bradley Wint/Gate Checked
