JETBLUE is cutting 16 routes and discontinuing service in five cities to cut costs after a failed merger with Spirit Airlines.
The two commercial airlines had their proposed merger – said to be worth $3.8 billion – blocked earlier in March.
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However, JetBlue says the newly announced changes are strictly due to demand and financial performance of certain routes.
Starting in June, the airline will stop servicing Kansas City, Missouri, and Newburgh, New York.
Additionally, the airline will terminate service in Bogotá, Colombia; Quito, Ecuador; and Lima, Peru.
On top of the suspension of service in those five cities, JetBlue is reducing its existing routes from other destinations.
Sixteen routes will be removed, according to a CBS News report, including:
- Aguadilla, Puerto Rico, to Tampa, Fla.
- Fort Lauderdale, Fla., to Atlanta, Ga.
- Fort Lauderdale, Fla., to Austin, Texas
- Fort Lauderdale, Fla., to Nashville, Tenn.
- Fort Lauderdale, Fla., to New Orleans, La.
- Fort Lauderdale, Fla., to Salt Lake City, Utah
- Los Angeles to Cancun, Mexico
- Los Angeles to Las Vegas
- Los Angeles to Liberia
- Los Angeles to Miami
- Los Angeles to Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
- Los Angeles to Reno, Nev.
- Los Angeles to San Francisco
- Los Angeles to Seattle
- New York/JFK to Detroit
- Orlando to Salt Lake City, Utah
“These decisions are never easy, however, these markets have recently fallen short of our expectations,” JetBlue said in a statement to The U.S. Sun.
“These moves will allow us to redeploy our fleet to increase frequencies on well-performing routes from JetBlue’s focus cities while continuing to increase crucial ground time for our aircraft, reducing the chance of delays for our customers.”
The airline also added that the changes will help with limitations, as about 12 of the fleet’s aircraft are grounded due to ongoing engine inspections.
Most JetBlue customers impacted by the changes will be able to select alternate flight options themselves online.
Where alternate routes are not available, customers will be provided with a refund.
FAILED MERGER
While JetBlue attempts to gain financial ground by cutting flights, the airline also looks to reassess its strategy for growth and stability in the competitive aviation industry.
“[W]ithout aircraft time and gates available to grow organically, we need to refocus,” Dave Jehn, JetBlue’s vice president of network planning and airline partnerships, wrote in a memo obtained by CBS News.
The airline was previously looking to expand by merging with Spirit.
But a federal judge agreed with the US Department of Justice that the merger could threaten competition and reduce the number of low-cost tickets on the market.
William Young, a US district judge in Boston, Massachusetts, believed Spirit’s low-cost fares “would likely be harmed,” according to The Guardian.
The merger would have created the country’s fifth-largest airline carrier.
JetBlue’s new CEO, Joanna Geraghty, had called it “a bold and courageous plan intended to shake up the industry status quo,” according to the Associated Press.
Spirit’s CEO, Ted Christie, said he was upset that the plan fell through.
“We are disappointed we cannot move forward with a deal,” Christie said.
The airlines had appealed the original ruling but ended the potential deal before the scheduled June court hearing.
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