JetBlue TrueBlue - Jet Blue to Canada

Any rummors out there about service on JB to Canada?

Yep. A while ago there was an article posted that jetBlue requested clearance from Canada and from Bermuda for future flights.

Love for them to start flying to Toronto and Montreal.

Jaguar, from your lips to David's ears. I fly to YUL every month, and would love to have jetBlue on the route.

Jaguar, from your lips to David's ears. I fly to YUL every month, and would love to have jetBlue on the route.

There has been talk about jetBlue to Montreal, but from Lauderdale, not JFK.

I'm surprised we don't have US low-fare service here to any great extent. Now that Westjet, Jetsgo and CanJet are all flying to the US, it's only a matter of time untill JB or SW comes up here. And if the Canadian government follows through on the unilateral open skies thing, we could have them flying within Canada soon.

I'm surprised we don't have US low-fare service here to any great extent. Now that Westjet, Jetsgo and CanJet are all flying to the US, it's only a matter of time untill JB or SW comes up here. And if the Canadian government follows through on the unilateral open skies thing, we could have them flying within Canada soon.
Southwest has a strong stance against international flights. Unless they change their policy, they're not going to Canada soon. B6 in Canada seems weird to me-there's already those Canadian LCCs mentioned plus AirCanada, etc... could happen...

Well, here's a small conspiracy theory. JetBlue wants slots at LGA. Jetsgo has 2. Jetsgo is on the brink of collapse, according to many sources. Maybe JB will direct a little competition their way in hopes of nudging them closer to the brink, so those 2 slots at LGA will open up.

I did read a story on cnn.com that JetBlue was eyeing Canada for expansion. I hope the story is true. That would be very welcomed news!!

Well, here's a small conspiracy theory. JetBlue wants slots at LGA. Jetsgo has 2. Jetsgo is on the brink of collapse, according to many sources. Maybe JB will direct a little competition their way in hopes of nudging them closer to the brink, so those 2 slots at LGA will open up.

Are slots at LGA that hard to come by? Seeing as WestJet, CanJet and Jetsgo all started service to LGA in the past year or so, I can't see how jetBlue could be shut out of the airport if they wanted in, unless there are some regulatory or political hurdles I'm not aware of..

I don't know other than the talk on here about JB needing more LGA slots if they want to seriously run a BOS-NYC shuttle. I just assumed from that talk that it's hard to get more LGA slots.

AFAIK, the shuttle slots out of LGA are super slots (or some other similar term). These slots allow the respective airline (US or Delta) to utilize a standby aircraft if necessary. Also, I believe the shuttle slots can override a ground hold, but don't quote me on this clause.

B6 to Canada is a red herring, IMHO. It gives the media something to wirte about on the speculation question of "where are you going next, David"?

Also, consider that everyone is taking a bath in red ink on YYZ-Florida, I doubt B6 would do a YYZ-JFK because the connection traffic just would not materialize. Better luck next season.

Also, consider that everyone is taking a bath in red ink on YYZ-Florida, I doubt B6 would do a YYZ-JFK because the connection traffic just would not materialize. Better luck next season.

O/D traffic on that route is pretty good, though, so there might be something there. And you've got the onward international destinations from JFK to some "strange" places not served from Toronto.

Maybe when JetBlue gets its new Embraers it'll look at this route.

One thing is for sure LGA can not handle anymore traffic! As it is.. I have NEVER departed or arrived for/to LGA on-time! This is because of too much air traffic! or so the airlines say... I tried AC, WestJet, AA and yeap the same problem... If JetBlue does start to fly to Toronto I think JFK is where it should be from...

I'm surprised we don't have US low-fare service here to any great extent. Now that Westjet, Jetsgo and CanJet are all flying to the US, it's only a matter of time untill JB or SW comes up here. And if the Canadian government follows through on the unilateral open skies thing, we could have them flying within Canada soon.
No more Jetsgo...

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=409767

Bob

Makes sence for B6 to move on in now...

Well, that was quicker than I thought LOL. I do have doubts that Jetsgo's demise will prompt JB to jump at Toronto any quicker than they would have otherwise.

Well, that was quicker than I thought LOL. I do have doubts that Jetsgo's demise will prompt JB to jump at Toronto any quicker than they would have otherwise.

Canada is a good market to enter right now. With the demise of Jetsgo, there will be more rational fares on the route. On some recent Westjet flts from LGA to YTO the planes were completely full. This seems to me to be an ideal route for the EMBs rather than the 320s. I expect by 2006, we will see B6 flying to Canada and Mexico though Boston and East Coast expansion can keep them busy for a while.

Any recent info on B6 routes to Canada?

I think that Jetblue will go to Canada, but not right now. They have some issues that have to be worked out, and they do not want to be expanding so rapidly. But I do think they will have some routes to Canada, but just be patient.

Happy Flying

DeltaJFK

It looks like it will start next Spring.
(article form yesterdays Globe and Mail)
http://www.reportonbusiness.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20071030.wjetblue1030/BNStory/robNews/home

It looks like it will start next Spring.
(article form yesterdays Globe and Mail)
http://www.reportonbusiness.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20071030.wjetblue1030/BNStory/robNews/home

I'm surprised JetBlue would want to go head-to-head with WestJet, especially considering that they are such similar products (remember, David Neeleman was a WestJet co-founder before leaving to start B6!).

Even where B6 has entered already-competative markets, their success has largely been credited to lowering fares and providing a superior product that travelers prefer over other carriers. In the case of CMH and BNA, they lowered prices in the market, but never attracted the passenger base away from the other carriers already competing on those routes.

I'd imagine B6 going-up against WestJet would be fruitless, since B6 can't really offer folks much to lure them away from WestJet...

The Markets that would be suitable for B6 to serve north of the border, if they do continue in that direction, would be Toronto and Montreal...maybe Ottawa shortly there after. Both cities should see service start off with both JFK and BOS service with IAD, FLL, and MCO within the first 12 to 18 months afterwards. If they can do that, it would probably be sucessful.

The problem CMH and BNA, like with PIT which now is coming around to a better point than where they were, is aggresiveness. I like the Southwest approach. When you go into a new market, hit it hard with service and advertising. Not only a better price, but a general sense of enthusiasm about your product will spell success.

As far as WestJet goes, it does give some concern as a competitor. However, B6 still has a high amount of loyalist in the New York area, Boston/New England area, as well as the Toronto/Buffalo area. B6 is well established in these markets to make a go at it once the market data supports it and their resources allow it.

As much as I like Westjet (used them several times) ,their prices are slowly but surely creeping up to the level of Air Canada (its only serious,Canadian competitor).I'm not counting Sunwing,Air Transat and Canjet in this comparrison. Due to YYZ exorbitant landing fees and taxes(highest in the world),I would doubt if they would be flying out of there. I would probably expect them to use either Hamilton,Kitchener or London as the departure point for Torontonians.

You aren't getting Torontians to go to Kitchener or (especially) London. Hamilton is bad enough, and Westjet had to move it's hub to Toronto from Hamilton to compete. If B6 went to Hamilton with, say, 3 flights a day to JFK, they'd probably cut 2 from BUF, since southern Ontario probably generates that amount of traffic from BUF for them as it is.

In Toronto, they'll compete against Air Canada and the other US airlines. In Hamilton, they'll compete against themselves from BUF.

You aren't getting Torontians to go to Kitchener or (especially) London. Hamilton is bad enough, and Westjet had to move it's hub to Toronto from Hamilton to compete. If B6 went to Hamilton with, say, 3 flights a day to JFK, they'd probably cut 2 from BUF, since southern Ontario probably generates that amount of traffic from BUF for them as it is.

In Toronto, they'll compete against Air Canada and the other US airlines. In Hamilton, they'll compete against themselves from BUF.

Some very good points... the first question I ask is, what pax are the going after? The AC business traveler or the WJ leisure traveler. Considering your points, YKF may be ideal (biased maybe, but your comments do lend weight) with the ability to pull GTA West pax through London and into the Golden Horseshoe. HUGE Market that would not comete with themselve as much from BUF and provide the only service that I can think of out of Southwestern Ontario to the JFK/BOS area.

I don't think Jet Blue will look to fly out of Hamilton or Kitchener/Waterloo, but I think they will face Pearson head on. Jet Blue has not been afraid to fly into or out of high cost, high congestion airports. Jet Blue's service includes Kennedy, LaGuardia, Newark, Logan, O'Hare, Dulles and other high cost airports; whereas Southwest flies out of Islip, Manchester, Providence, Midway, and BWI (I think they recently moved into Dulles and they service LaGuardia and Reagan through ATA). I don't think they will fly out of Hamilton because they do not want to cannibalize their service from Buffalo. When Jet Blue started, some of their first destinations included Buffalo and Rochester, and I think that was because Governor Pataki and Senator Schumer worked out a deal where Jet Blue got some sort of favorable tax treatment or financing from New York State in return for serving the upstate communities (why Schumer, a federal lawmaker, got involved in New York state affairs is somewhat of a mystery, although he has always been more actively involved in the affairs of the state than either Senator Clinton or Senator Moynihan - but I digress). I do not think that Jet Blue will want to jeopardize its cozy relationship with New York State by cutting service from Buffalo.

As for West Jet, they are afraid to compete in the Toronto to Northeast corridor market, and they do not fly to Chicago, San Francisco, Denver or Miami. Jet Blue already has service to each of these places. This will give Jet Blue entrée not only into the business market, but into the leisure market as well, as many of these destinations are popular with tourists.

As for the closecover household, we have been wearing sackcloth and have been sitting in ashes ever since West Jet canceled its Toronto to LaGuardia service. We have our Jet Blue countdown calendar all set up and look forward to marking off each day until Jet Blue comes to the GTA. We hate giving Air Canada (with its high prices, uncanny ability to lose baggage, bad service and smug attitude) our business. And we will get the chance to say hello again to Nantucket as well as a chance to apologize for our extended absence from that little slice of heaven.

YYZ, isn't it the most expensive place in the world to land a commercial airliner? If they do wish to complete aggresively on price while offering the perks they are known for, is this feasible at YYZ? WestJet's, Canada's LCC, prices have been creeping op over the last few years and many communicate little to know price benefit vs. AC.

Saw a mention on another board that Jetblue states that 1/3 of their BUF traffic is from southern Ontario. Perhaps to avoid the appearance of cutting flights from Buffalo, they may announce new destinations from Buffalo at the same time as they announce new flights from whatever southern Ontario airport they decided to fly from. Perhaps cut 2 flights a day to NYC from BUF and start flights from YYZ, and at the same time, add 2 flights to TPA, MCO or elsewhere ex-BUF so BUF flights stay consistent.

The other thing to speak in favour of YYZ is that YHM, YKF and YXU don't have US pre-clearance. Not sure how it would complicate operations at JFK for passengers to have to clear immigration on arrival. Much of this discussion is also assuming that JFK would be the destination of choice from Ontario, but that's not a given either LOL.

I can attest that I have friends in TO who regularly drive to BUF to fly B6 in order to avoid AC's typically absurd fares.

They would certainly be a welcome alternative. YYZ and YUL are obvious choices, but I suspect that Florida routes will be a priority over NYC or elsewhere.

I would love to see B6 fly 190s to Toronto Island airport. But that requires a much discussed but not yet implemented end to the ban on jet aircraft at YTZ. The current runway is slightly shorter than what the E190 requires, so some significant change would be required. Not soon, I guess.

YHZ is a nice idea, but probably not enough traffic to make it work. I would suspect service from key west coast cities to western Canadian cities such as YVR and YYC are more likely.

I don't think turnaround due to customs/immigration is a huge deal. CO manages turnarounds at YYZ in under an hour. Due to pre-clearance of US customs at all major Canadian airports, turnaround on arrival in the US is no different than for any domestic flight.