belfordrocks

B6's best merger partner would be and will be for quite a while Frontier. They have complementary fleets and virtually zero route overlap. B6's hubs/focus cities are well spread in the NE (JFK, BOS), SE (FLL, MCO) and west (LGB), while Frontier's hubs/focus cities (DEN OMA MKE MCI) are all in the Midwest. Perfect fit.

Merging with VX isn't really ideal due to overlaps and NK's business model would be too different to B6's to have any real streamlined efficiency improvements post-merger.

bmg42000

The could just interline or codeshare with them instead of merging.

BearX220

Recall that PeoplExpress organized with the "old" Frontier in 1986 using exactly the same rationale. PE owned EWR, the NE and Florida, Frontier hubbed at DEN as it does now and was strong in the midwest and west.

It would have been interesting to see how it worked out, but the whole house of cards collapsed in about 15 minutes and PE was taken over by Texas Air / Lorenzo / Continental, which was already big in DEN at the time.

belfordrocks

History doesn't have to repeat itself. Also this would have RAH's backing increasing the chance of success.

CIAO LAX

With all the mergers and acquisitions happening now, it would be unwise for JetBlue not to consider all of its options. It seems to me that Virgin America would be the best fit with JeBlue for a number of reasons - Branson wanted to be involved with JetBlue from startup but couldn't, they have similar fleets and product offerings, and B6 is big on the east coast while VX is busy developing their SFO and LAX hubs. I think for B6 to ever compete seriously on the west coast, or VX on the east, an acquisition must occur... Also, now is a good time to acquire while VX is still a private company as it would not require as many of the regulatory approvals as some of the other mergers.

Here is what I would like to see out of the combined carrier if B6 and VX ever merged:

*JetBlue name
*VX cabin lighting
*VX First class
*B6 Even More Legroom and 34" pitch in the rest of Y
*VX Red System (rename BLUE, of course, and dump Dish for DIRECTV)
*B6 on-board service with VX food selections
*B6 NYC Headquarters
*Newly developed Elite Tiers for True Blue (to lure high-paying business FFs from the legacy carriers)

Does anyone else think this is a good idea, or am I just dreaming? I would be surprised if execs at both of these companies weren't seriously considering this as an option! I'm interested in hearing the thoughts of B6 Frequent Flyers... as a frequent traveler on UA/CO (1P/Star Gold) I'd love to switch to B6 or VX, but I need a more extensive route network to get me to my work destinations... and with my mileage bonus and elite benefits I also need some incentive to switch carriers (like free Way More Legroom and Upgrades)!

PS I wasn't able to find any discussion threads on this topic, but feel free to merge with another if appropriate...

sbm12

It is called Even More Legroom, or EML, for the 38" pitch section (34" on E90s).

The portion of load that is business-traveler based continues to grow on B6. This was mentioned again yesterday in their Q3 earnings call. They are growing it organically and seem pretty happy with that, though I wouldn't expect them to say anything else until whatever else was happening was really done.

That all said, I believe that the only real complimentary thing VX/B6 bring to each other is a similar fleet and hubs on the coasts. The in-flight experience is quite different as is their market segmentation and marketing focus. It certainly would be a way to grow quickly, but that doesn't really seem necessary IMO.

I fly B6 every now and then even though my focus is on programs with better FF returns. Still, when the schedule and price are right I have no apprehension about jetting (I am tonight, in fact). The F program needs a bit of work for truly great value to come from it for my travel patterns, but other than that it works great as an airline, so long as you're based in Boston or NYC. If you're on the west coast, not so much.

BearX220

If you'll look about five posts higher, you'll see that Barger has just said explicitly B6 is not going to pursue this, so no point in fantasizing about a hybrid airline and product. Anyway I think the brands and service models are too dramatically different to weld together, and VX doesn't represent enough lift to warrant the hassle of an acquisition unless B6 simply wanted to buy it and park it, e.g. knock VX off the chessboard -- which again I don't see because VX isn't exactly crowding 'em out at JFK or BOS.

It's still pretty much useless for business travelers in the west. Low frequencies, usually redeyes, no interlining during irrops, FF program irrelevant, pricing no cheaper (often more expensive) than DL, UA, etc. I've said for a long time B6 ought to drop the 1x/2x daily stations across the west, and serve fewer cities with more frequencies. Also, LGB as a conx hub makes no sense if you're in SEA trying to get to the northeast.

I presume the growing business traveler base is mainly people in BUF who have to go to FLL a lot, or similar trips. They have a long way to go to be attractive to biz travelers beyond the northeast.

CIAO LAX

What about a JetBlue/Frontier merger? This could make a lot of sense and produce millions in cost savings for both airlines... both airlines have very similar fleets and prodcut offerings, and it would expand JetBlue's reach in the West!

belfordrocks

Yes, IMO we'd see B6/F9, AA/AS, US/NK

Forever2P

As a boston-based FL A+ Elite, B6 does work for me, and with FL going away, I'm shifting a lot of my business over. But, I agree, the FF program is lacking a lot compared to that of other airlines. IMO, FL had by far the best program out there. Some sort of elite tier with a priority security line would be good.

MrPresident1776

Jetblue should try to take over Spirit Airlines. Their route networks are complementary and even include some overlap. It would allow Jetblue to expand its FLL operation to include more service to Latin America while eliminating the biggest competitor at FLL. The fleets are also complementary as Spirit uses the IAE engines also. Also, it would allow B6 to add 7 daily flights at LaGuardia to Boston as Spirit has 2 daily flights to Detroit and 4 daily flights to Myrtle Beach which would be moved to JFK. Other cities such as Chicago O'Hare, Detroit, Myrtle Beach and Orlando would all see incremental increases in flights.

At FLL, these flights could be added (Baltimore, Bridgetown, Charlotte, Denver, Houston Hobby, Jacksonville, New Orleans, Phoenix, Pittsburgh, Ponce, Puerto Plata, Rochester [seasonal], St Lucia, Seattle [seasonal], Syracuse [seasonal]).
Boston (Atlanta, Dallas/Fort Worth, Detroit)
New York JFK (Detroit, Myrtle Beach, Port Au Prince, St Thomas)

CIAO LAX

And no more charge for carry on baggage!!!

MrPresident1776

Exactly, you hit the nail on the head as there are a whole lot of Spirit customers who would not fly Spirit any again due to the fees, etc. It is not so much the fees themselves but a failure on NK's behalf to communicate them properly. They are getting better but B6 should just buy them before NK's becomes too much of a competitive threat.

sbm12

If no one is flying Spirit anymore then how will they become a competitive threat?

belfordrocks

Yeah, Spirit's operation is quite unique (in both positive and negative ways) that I don't think any airlines that takes over it can succeed without preserving the ULCC model.