JetBlue seeks codeshare partnership with British Airways
JetBlue is planning a sprawling new partnership with British Airways, through which the two airlines would link significant parts of their networks across the U.S. and Europe.
The airlines’ plans were laid out in an application filed by the two carriers with the Department of Transportation on Wednesday, which was first noted by PaxEx.aero.
Under the partnership, the two airlines would codeshare on flights to 92 destinations, including 75 in the United States — 39 from New York and 36 from Boston. Codesharing from those hubs would include a range of destinations across the country, including cities like Los Angeles, Fort Lauderdale, Salt Lake City and Nashville, and smaller leisure destinations like Martha’s Vineyard and Nantucket in Massachusetts.
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The codeshare would also include 17 major European cities via London, including Amsterdam; Budapest; Copenhagen; Munich; Oslo; Paris; Lisbon; Lyon, France; Warsaw, Poland; and Zurich. Notably, there are no connecting cities within the United Kingdom included.
It wasn’t immediately clear if the tie-up would include frequent flyer perks like reciprocal mileage earning, though no specific mention of that was made in the filing.
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However, the arrangement would allow JetBlue to significantly grow its network’s connectivity to Europe without adding more planes across the Atlantic.
In recent years, the airline has grown its service to Europe. It first introduced flights to London from New York and Boston in late 2021, using new Airbus A321LR long-range jets. It followed London with services to Paris, Amsterdam and Dublin. The airline operated its inaugural flight from New York to Edinburgh on Wednesday.
The airline has characterized the transatlantic service as commercially successful, though has shown signs of pulling back somewhat as newly appointed CEO Joanna Geraghty reorients the carrier in an effort to stem financial losses. It recently announced that it would discontinue flying to London Gatwick Airport (LGW) during the winter season — although it will continue flying to London’s Heathrow Airport (LHR) — and will reduce its frequencies between New York and Paris during the offseason.
The codeshare application is notable coming a year after a federal judge blocked JetBlue’s Northeast Alliance with American Airlines — which itself operates a codeshare as part of a joint venture with British Airways.
American has a fairly limited presence in the New York City market, however, so a new partnership with JetBlue would allow British Airways to expand its connecting offerings with more capacity and destinations than American offers.
JetBlue and British Airways did not immediately return TPG’s request for comment.
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