AA and B6 create strategic partnership
 

JetBlue and American Airlines Announce Strategic Partnership to Create More Competitive Options and Choice for Customers in the Northeast

Wonder how this will impact B6's London and Europe ambitions

Looks like it will not cover TATL, so B6 still wants to go to London and beyond. This certainly is interesting, though it is not the first time this has happened.

This is very interesting, especially hot on the news of AS and AA teaming up, and AS adding more routes out of LAX, presumably to counter the future B6 growth.

-J.

If anything, this helps B6 with its Europe plans. With a lot more slots available at JFK, they can add more connections to feed their new international flights. AA is not using some of their LGA and B6 can move O/D traffic over there and use those AA slots. AA is also going to be less competitive with its own metal from BOS. Thus B6 has time to build up EWR/JFK regional service now which will help it with filling flights to Europe later. AA will also be a weaker competitor in the North East. B6 couldn't have asked for anything more favorable.

It can also easily hold AA over a barrel if they have no domestic feed after outsourcing a lot of it to B6, and if B6 finds that it wants to feed its own flights rather than AA international ones, the partnership can be dissolved.

It is worth reading the entire press release located on both the investor relations web page for both AA & B6. It includes many details and a presentation. B6, in fact, states that it still intends to independently pursue its TATL route(s).

I find B6 to be a superior flight experience in main cabin compared to AA. The seat width, pitch, IFE (free internet), and cabin service seem superior compared to AA. I would be unhappy to be thrown on an AA flight (especially when they are not blocking out middle seats). Wish B6 could have worked something out with DAL instead.

It is unfortunate that B6 and AA are at different terminals at JFK. Would be curios if Admirals Club access will be available for flyers who book a Mint Class ticket on the AA website. Wonder if this will inspire B6 to finally build a lounge in T5 at JFK.

I read somewhere (I forget if it was a press release or an article) that Scott Laurence was not very concerned about different terminals, since many airlines offer connections through different terminals at JFK every day without issue (for example, B6 to anyone except TP and EI; AA and BA; AS and AA; DL and AF/AM/AZ/KE/etc.).

I doubt B6 will build a lounge. Time and time again they have said they will not. Do you get AC access on a tcon J ticket on AA? I know in Flagship F you have access to that lounge, but B6 does not offer F.

-J.

You get access to admiral club and flagship lounge flying J on A321T.

Right now, it seems a bad time to spend money on building a lounge. But as they add TATL and possibly enhance this relationship with AA, maybe they should revisit. At some point, the potential for extra revenue outweighs the cost.

At this point, I'm just curious to see what kind ff benefit and improvement in connection experience come out of this.

The whole point of this partnership is so that AA can reduce regional flying and focus on core longhaul flights, while having other airlines (AS from the west, B6 from the east) feed them with mainline flights, which presumably would be more reliable than their own regionals.

An update on this from earnings call. Apparently, they have now concluded the details of the ff agreement with AA. The partnership is under regulatory review still, waiting for DOT/DOJ approval.

They're already selling posters in the company store :D

https://shopjetblue.com/C3JB/p-BZ872J027MLT

Is that the same poster from the last time they worked together? Was there a poster last time? They're both old liveries and I can't help but think I've seen this before somewhere.

-J.

I would guess so since it's still the pmAA logo.

I think whoever their vendor is brought that back from the past. The Atlanta poster is from the first time they flew to Atlanta, not the second time.

Not to mention the old B6 paint job with the light blue stripe.

-J.