Originally Posted by
GW McLintock
Another thing to consider: priority security and Group B boarding cost JetBlue nothing, but are material benefits for some travelers. The alcoholic beverage costs JetBlue around 50 cents (30-33 cents for the nip, the rest is my very generous estimate for fuel, advertising, labor, etc.). It's ironic that the bonus points are arguably the most expensive for the company, but you can see here that these second-round tile benefits have little-to-no value.
-J.
Right, that's sort of my point. The first tile has overt (modest) value -- $55-$70 dollars, let's say. But then the value proposition falls off a cliff. It doesn't make much sense that frequent flyer perks should become
less valuable as you fly more segments, and really reiterates what a schizophrenic airline JetBlue is. We'll continue to fly them because of our preferences for (relatively) cheap extra legroom bulkhead seats at booking, something no other domestic carrier can match.. but it really feels like their identity, as an airline, is out to sea.