JetBlue TrueBlue - This United 1K flyer is about to take his 1st B6 flight

I'm usually quite loyal to UA but the $139 RT fare and ideal schedule between IAD and FLL got my attention.

Any advice on what I can expect on this route? I did manage to snag window seats in the in the middle of the plane where the additional legroom is offered.

I'm usually quite loyal to UA but the $139 RT fare and ideal schedule between IAD and FLL got my attention.

Any advice on what I can expect on this route? I did manage to snag window seats in the in the middle of the plane where the additional legroom is offered.

You can expect GREAT service, GREAT snack selection, GREAT inflight entertainment options, and LESS chance of your bags getting lost! Also, if for some reason your flight is delayed, expect to get realistic updates from the crew members... your not gonna be getting the "oh your flight will be leaving 15 minutes from now" speech every 15 minutes. The legroom is similar to that of Economy Plus on a UnitedPS flight just with inflight entertainment and a bit wider seats.... if your lucky, you might even get XM Radio on your flight. What you won't get is a chance to listen in on what is going on in the flightdeck and the communication with ATC. However, I think jetBlue's IFE, service, and comfy leather seats make up for that! Welcome to the jetBlue's trueBlue family... because I'm confident that after this flight, you'll be flying UA alot less! And I don't even work for jetBlue. :D

I'm a 1K and I love JetBlue. :)

What you won't get is a chance to listen in on what is going on in the flightdeck and the communication with ATC. However, I think jetBlue's IFE, service, and comfy leather seats make up for that!

excuse my ignorance, but could you fill me in on that one? Do you mean with airlines other than Jetblue (I fly southwest 99% of the time) one can tune in to the flightdeck/ATC communications? Does that involve bringing some kind of scanner/radio? sounds neat if possible

excuse my ignorance, but could you fill me in on that one? Do you mean with airlines other than Jetblue (I fly southwest 99% of the time) one can tune in to the flightdeck/ATC communications? Does that involve bringing some kind of scanner/radio? sounds neat if possible
He was comparing jetBlue to UA - since the OP is a UA loyal customer and asked what to expect on jetBlue. UA offers "channel 9" which allows you to listen to ATC during your flight.

I'm a 1K and I love JetBlue. :)

I too love JetBlue, but only after I made my 1K status for the year. :D

i also made my first trip on Jet Blue this weekend

$100.80 for a roundtrip between iad and jfk
(about $24 less than the legacy carriers)

and as i wasnt able to get to the giants game yesterday
i was able to take an earlier flight home

positives
- seats were cheap
- seating with legroom
- went standby on an earlier flight at no charge
- free wifi in the gate area (although it wasnt working yesterday)
- ife system, as i was able to watch "Flava of Love" , both up and back :D

negatives
- FFP has no international routes or partnerships
- FFP credits expire in a year (?)

not sure when i will fly them again
but will when the price difference betwem them and the legacy carriers becomes large enough

negatives
- FFP has no international routes or partnerships
- FFP credits expire in a year (?)

not sure when i will fly them again
but will when the price difference betwem them and the legacy carriers becomes large enough

jetBlue doesn't do any Internation destinations (except several Latin countries in the Carribbean which are really too close to be considered real international destinations). They are a domestic discount airline, not really concentrating on introducing international destinations in the near future.

Secondly the FFP expires in one year ONLY if you do not have the jetBlue card from American Express. If you have the jetBlue AmEx card your points do not expire. Trueblue online is pretty good, but get the card and get points that don't expire.

I completed my first B6 flight today and was impressed by every facet of the experience. Boarding was done in a civilized and orderly manner, the plane was freakishly spotless and perfectly clean, On-Demand TV was terrific even though there isn't much worth watching at 8 in the morning. Bountiful and unlimited supply of snacks and perfectly-brewed Dunkin Donuts coffee. The flight attendants were all attractive cutie pies and went up and down the aisle a half million times offering the snacks and beverages. Flight landed early. What else can you ask for? I give this experience a ^ .

If they were a true direct competitor of UA and offered F class and international destinations, I would switch allegiance in a heartbeat.

What else can you ask for?

Channel 9 would be nice :).

Well..Jetblue is Still a Discount Airline and in some respects you are going to get Discount Service..i.e..No airline lounges..No First Class so No chance of upgrades..No meals not even available for purchase..and no worldwide mileage program..also less experienced Flight Crews..Il stick with a Legacy Carrier.. @:-)

Well..Jetblue is Still a Discount Airline and in some respects you are going to get Discount Service..i.e..No airline lounges..No First Class so No chance of upgrades..No meals not even available for purchase..and no worldwide mileage program..also less experienced Flight Crews..Il stick with a Legacy Carrier.. @:-)
Pretty much all you mention is only offered to first class customers, those with elite status and/or those who pay for access to airport lounges at the legacy airlines. Overall, that is a very small percentage of the total public who travels. Therefore, comparing economy to economy for the "Average Joe" and the vast majority of the population - jetBlue offers much greater bang for your buck.

JetBlue does not have first class for a number of reasons. No first class seats...no second class citizens. First class would complicate the jetBlue business model and it is not needed. JetBlue offers what some like to call "Better Economy." Also, aside from transcons, most jetBlue flights are shoort to medium length. With 34" pitch, leather and the IFE - it's a pretty good ride. At legacy airlines, upgrades are harder to come by these days.

No meals? What airline ever offered a decent mail in coach??? Even the ones for sale are not all that good. People would rather pay less, and bring their OWN food than be served crap and pay more. Also, jetBlue offers a variety of unlimited snacks...FOR FREE!

No world-wide mileage program because once again that is not the market jetBlue is after.

Less experienced flight crews????? PLEASE, give me a break. That is the craziest thin I've ever heard in this industry. JetBlue has equal or higher standards compared with the rest of the industry when hiring flight crews. The FAA would not allow them to fly if they were not fully qualified and 100% capable....PLEASE, get real!

jetBlue is not for everyone - but for the millions of happy customers they do serve, they do a great job. Have fun on your legacy airline and I'll have fun on jetBlue.

Well..Jetblue is Still a Discount Airline and in some respects you are going to get Discount Service..i.e..No airline lounges..No First Class so No chance of upgrades..No meals not even available for purchase..and no worldwide mileage program..also less experienced Flight Crews..Il stick with a Legacy Carrier.. @:-)jetBlue is an all-coach airline with a focus on domestic U.S. travel (although they do fly to the Caribbean).

No, jetBlue does not have airport lounges as in United's Red Carpet lounge or Continental's President Club. If that's something that is important to you, then you will feel that jetBlue is not right for you. On the other hand, jetBlue does have free WiFi at a number of its terminals.

First Class. No, there is no first class. Then again there is premium coach. CAL PHL FLYER, I know you fly a lot of Continental. But unless you're flying exclusively in FC, B6 provides an infinitely better experience in coach than Continental and virtually every other legacy airline. The only possible exception is UA with its E+. But even here you can often end up in E- if you book a last-minute (and expensive) ticket. And UA's E- has the same wretched 31" seat pitch of CO's coach.

If you're buying FC on a legacy it's going to cost your beaucoup bucks. And if you're upgrading, on most legacies, you need to buy a coach ticket that is generally far more expensive than the typical B6 ticket, and--on most legacies--use a coupon or spend a little more money for the upgrade. CO has free, space-available upgrades, but these have become exceedingly rare, especially on discount fares.

Meals. It's not precisely accurate to say there are no meals on B6. Yes, there are no hot meals with a tray and a piece of overcooked chicken, etc. as used to be the norm on the legacies. But B6 has a generous snack selection and you can actually eat a fair amount of calories if you so choose. Secondly, most legacies don't serve hot meals in coach any more either and CO, which still does at certain hours, provides you with about a minimal a meal as you could imagine.

Flying B6 on a long flight means bringing your own meal, which I much prefer to the kind of slops coach passengers have always been served by the airlines in coach. This way I'm eating exactly the meal that I want, a meal that I find superior to the best FC meal (because I picked it based on my tastes).

No worldwide flight program. You're right. But at least, with TrueBlue, it is possible to redeem reward travel quite easily. This summer, I traveled to California with my family and all four tickets were reward tickets. We were able to get our first choices on both the outbound and return legs. Try that on OnePass. Also, unlike the legacy ff programs, TrueBlue has only one standard redemption level which means you don't have to spend twice the points/miles to get a reward ticket. The last time I attempted to send my family out to California on a OnePass reward ticket, we could only find "EasyPass" seats which would have meant spending 200,000 miles.

Inexperienced crews. As jetBlue NYFL points out, that's simply a silly comment. Are there any 30-year veterans at B6? Of course not. But there are a lot of very experienced people who've worked at other airlines who are now at jetBlue. And the crews are genuinely friendly and helpful, which--sadly--is not always the case at some of the legacies.

Personally, I went from Continental, where going 0 for 25 on upgrades meant flying its miserably uncomfortable coach, to B6 and I could not be happier. I now always fly in a very comfortable seat, so much so that there is no need for FC. I have also saved a lot of money because last-minute tickets on B6 are far less expensive than on the legacies.

I still fly Continental and the SkyTeam Alliance because I do a fair amount of international travel. So B6 has become my domestic airline of choice while CO and SkyTeam are my international travel team.

Finally, you write that jetBlue is a discount airline. Sure it is. And that's one of the great things about it. You can travel in "premium coach" at very affordable fares (although not always literally the least expensive). That's seems like a pretty good deal to me. Of course, if you're Daddy Warbucks and you have a lot of money to throw around to fly FC, you probably won't be picking jetBlue.

B6 isn't going after the "Daddy Warbucks" market segment, that's all.

JetBlue is what it is, and if it's not right for you, it just isn't.

No meals not even available for purchase

That may be changing soon ;)

That may be changing soon ;)

Please tell me its not going to be what airlines usually do for BOB, which is offering some "gourmet" type food that which tastes aweful because the carrier has spent $4 on it. Please Jetblue nothing with a Balsamic infusion :D

Please tell me its not going to be what airlines usually do for BOB, which is offering some "gourmet" type food that which tastes aweful because the carrier has spent $4 on it. Please Jetblue nothing with a Balsamic infusion :D

It's jetBlue... I'm they'll make their BOB selection much better than that of other carriers.... I mean, look what they did to inflight snacks... much much much better than just peanuts or pretzels. I can see it now, NY style deli sandwiches piled high with real meat! Lobster salad from Maine! Fresh fruit salad from the farms in California! Maybe stuff from where ever jetBlue flies. :D

Please tell me its not going to be what airlines usually do for BOB, which is offering some "gourmet" type food that which tastes aweful because the carrier has spent $4 on it. Please Jetblue nothing with a Balsamic infusion :D

It would be nice if B6 went along the same lines they did with the coffee and Dunkin Donuts. Offering something like sandwich service from Subway (3 or 4 pre made sandwich selections would due) would be great.

The Buy-On-Board program was talked about a little over a year ago...I remember Neeleman saying they may test it out.

Personally, I don't think it will stick and here's why: All those meals will add a significant amount of weight to the airplane. jetBlue was just so successful in putting the fleet on a "diet" and trimming about 1,500 lbs. from each. The revenue brought in from these meals must greatly exceed the costs of acquiring the meals AND the added cost in fuel burn. Let's keep in mind, although fuel is somewhat lower than recent highs, it is still much more expensive than 5 years ago. Also, I think fuel might just inch back up after the elections, unfortunately.

I think a better idea would be a system to purchase a meal at the gate. This way, jetBlue won't have to worry about the meals that go unsold adding more weight to the aircrat. I also think this would improve overall freshness and control over distribution.

Either way, I'm happy with the current system of "bring your own food and get as many free snacks as you want."

I think a better idea would be a system to purchase a meal at the gate. This way, jetBlue won't have to worry about the meals that go unsold adding more weight to the aircrat. I also think this would improve overall freshness and control over distribution.

At many airports, the food vendors by the gates sell pre-packed sandwiches and other meals meant for bringing on board airplanes.

Well..Jetblue is Still a Discount Airline and in some respects you are going to get Discount Service..i.e..No airline lounges..No First Class so No chance of upgrades..No meals not even available for purchase..and no worldwide mileage program..also less experienced Flight Crews..Il stick with a Legacy Carrier.. @:-)

As a Jetblue Pilot I fly into Ewr on a regular basis. In all that time I've never landed on a taxiway once. My experience level enables me to keep the aircraft on the runway.

As a Jetblue Pilot I fly into Ewr on a regular basis. In all that time I've never landed on a taxiway once. My experience level enables me to keep the aircraft on the runway.LOL :) In fact, jetBlue has an extremely experienced, very able corps of pilots (some of whom happen to be ex-TWA).

As a Jetblue Pilot I fly into Ewr on a regular basis. In all that time I've never landed on a taxiway once. My experience level enables me to keep the aircraft on the runway.
hahaha...that's gold!

Welcome to FT!!

It goes to show, once again, that jetBlue's flight crews are just as qualified, if not MORE qualified, than other airlines. The FAA sets standards and jetBlue has other standards as well. JetBlue's pilots are very well trained and prepared to handle all types of situations.

Remember flight 292 just over a year ago??? Perfect landing at LAX with a messed-up nose gear. ^ ^ for jetBlue pilots! Keep up the great work!

The airline lounge service may not be a distinguishing characteristic. You can still buy airline lounge access even when flying JetBlue. Priority Traveller is one way, for example.

The value of lounge access is situational, though. It depends on the proximity of the lounge to your JetBlue gate. But that may not be unique to JetBlue.

On top of that, most lounges will sell a "day pass" for about $50. For the typical airline lounge system if you buy daily access fewer than 8 times it's less expensive than a full membership. There are a lot of people who fly and who wouldn't use a lounge so many times. They can apply their fare savings and purchase daily passes (or full annual memberships for that matter).

Actually if the legacy carriers offered complementary lounge access to their elites and full fare passengers then this would be a stronger argument in their favor. But since U.S. airlines treat them as independent profit centers (unlike, say, most Asian airlines) then they're available to JetBlue flyers, too.

The frequent flyer program argument is pretty weak, in my humble opinion. It keeps getting harder to use the miles, especially for international travel. And real cash (i.e. fare savings) is much more valuable than fake money (i.e. FFP points). Most Americans (about 79%) don't even have passports!

As a Jetblue Pilot I fly into Ewr on a regular basis. In all that time I've never landed on a taxiway once. My experience level enables me to keep the aircraft on the runway.

I have nothing but the utmost confidence in our pilots and haven't met one that i wouldn't get on a plane with. I really can't believe that people still have the stupid idea that the pilots at Frontier, AirTran, Southwest, jetBlue, Spirit, or any regional carrier are less qualified to fly than a pilot at United. Show me facts that make you believe that and maybe i'll look at your opinion.

Look at the 2 most highly talked about successful emergency landings, jetBlue at LAX with the fulty nose wheel and the Expressjet blown main tires at IAH! Neither where legacy pilots in your opinion and but had very successful non-dramatic landings.

Well..Jetblue is Still a Discount Airline and in some respects you are going to get Discount Service..i.e..No airline lounges..No First Class so No chance of upgrades..No meals not even available for purchase..and no worldwide mileage program..also less experienced Flight Crews..Il stick with a Legacy Carrier.. @:-)
Don't feed the trolls people...

CAL PHL FLYER trolls around FT(especially the Airtran forum) instigating ridiculous flame wars.
She apparently likes to watch people react to her nonsense...

Perhaps the poster was referring to the flight attendants since B6 is a relatively new airlne. Then another poster posed the question, "Are there any 30-year veterans at B6? Of course not."

Maybe not 30 year veterans of B6, but many, and I mean many inflight crewmembers are from other airlines whether leaving on their own, or perhaps being furloughed by another carrier after let's say, working for another airlne for 30 years (cough TWA, cough). Please don't fully count out experience based on B6's relatively short existence.

Took my first B6 flight a couple of weeks ago. It was ok, 2.5 hour delay due to ATC in EWR, nothing B6 can do about. But I have not seen so many families with kids on UA all year flying out of MCO. Their impatience and crying during the wait in the penalty box and during the flight was a bit nerv wrecking.
During drink orders I asked the FA for no ice in my cup, first she brought me a cup with ice, then she walked by again and mubled "oh yeah you wanted a cup without ice" nothing happens, then she walks by with the snacks and I ask again for my cup and finally got it.
TV's in the seat backs are great. Seats are ok though not as comfortable as E+ on UA.
Boarding front to back or W/M/A doesn't make that of a difference to me except that you have to worry about bin space if you are sitting in the front.
Overall an OK experience, however I'll go back to UA (TED to be exact) even if I have to connect through IAD or ORD. Big thing for me is flexibility during irrops and the ability to use the RCC during delays.

Overall an OK experience, however I'll go back to UA (TED to be exact) even if I have to connect through IAD or ORD. Big thing for me is flexibility during irrops and the ability to use the RCC during delays.[/QUOTE]

wow--god bless you--i cant fathom doing that and my two favorite carriers are UA and B6. I like the fact B6 has the point to point system down pretty well and i can get direct flights at a great price. service is always solid and ive never had huge issues with irregular ops.

I had my first JetBlue flight last week (a SEA-BOS redeye -- I rolled over to it in desperation after Delta, my booked airline, collapsed at Sea-Tac due to last week's windstorm). I was seriously impressed. Great service, even on a redeye, and more legroom in the exit row than I see in DL's 737 first class cabins. You better believe I'll be flying JetBlue more often.

I had my first JetBlue flight last week (a SEA-BOS redeye -- I rolled over to it in desperation after Delta, my booked airline, collapsed at Sea-Tac due to last week's windstorm). I was seriously impressed. Great service, even on a redeye, and more legroom in the exit row than I see in DL's 737 first class cabins. You better believe I'll be flying JetBlue more often.

Glad to hear that you were impressed with jetBlue and will be flying them again! Keep in mind that the extensive legroom in the exit rows on jetBlue will soon appear in rows 1-10 as well, once the additional row is removed from the A320 fleet!! No more rushing to score an exit row seat!

I may as well chime in too...

Took two r/t's with B6 earlier this month. I'm doing the BUF-BOS commute. When I was doing this earlier this year, the route was around $350, so I wound up flying to MHT. This time, it seems B6 and US are head to head, and the prices have dropped to ~135 for US and 120 for B6.

Because of the "benefits" of FFPs with a legacy carrier, I'm making the next few r/ts on US. However, I must say that I was favorably impressed with the overall experience on B6. From the IFE to the seat pitch, it was all good.

I'll probably be splitting between the two, because I want to stock up on US miles for european travel.

Both carriers use RJ's for the times I fly. B6 uses the E190, and US the E135 (I think that's right). The E190 is to be preferred, because it's 2x2 and has o/h bins both sides -- the E135 is 1x2 and bins on one side only.

So, I will have no qualms about flying JetBlue in the future, and my selection on any given trip will probably depend on the price for that individual trip and where I stand with the miles I need.

Not a bad "dilemma" to have.

I'll prolly run into you on the aircraft then in the future. I'll be commuting on the BUF-BOS run quite a bit as I will be moving to BUF at the end of Janurary.

The 190 is not an ERJ, it's a mainline jet :p

I'll prolly run into you on the aircraft then in the future. I'll be commuting on the BUF-BOS run quite a bit as I will be moving to BUF at the end of Janurary.

The 190 is not an ERJ, it's a mainline jet :pWe're probably going the wrong way. I fly out of BUF at 7:00AM on Mondays, and back at 8:55 PM Fridays (or Thursdays).

And I agree about the 190. My first thought when I got on it was that it looked like a skinny 737 or something. Not cramped at all like the Canadair planes.

I usually depend on when my show time is in BOS. I usually have late shows in BOS so I can take the 7am or the noon departure. I'll prolly run into you at some point since i'll be on that flight hundreds of time a month :p

I am a 150,000 mile per year flier on AA but use Jet Blue and find them quite good. Very good personnel with excellent attitudes add to the experience. If they flew to DFW, I would use them more often. I use them from JFK to BUF and a few other short haul flights. Very comfortable overall. Legacy carriers like AA/UA should ghost ride these flights for tips on training.