JetBlue Airways is pouring resources into Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport (FLL) to become the dominant carrier in South Florida and fill the gap left by the abrupt departure of its major competitor, Spirit Airlines. That means tightening its belt elsewhere.
The low-budget carrier is dropping “underperforming” Daytona Beach International Airport entirely, just seven months after returning to Daytona Beach following a seven-year absence, according to a company memo acquired by USA TODAY NETWORK Florida.
Service will end Sept. 9, the memo said. Along with Daytona Beach, the carrier is also dropping service to Antigua in the Caribbean, “to free up aircraft time and redeploy those planes into Fort Lauderdale.”
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JetBlue is also ending service between New York and Vero Beach, and Providence, Rhode Island, and Fort Myers the same day, part of seven routes the carrier is dropping. In May, JetBlue ended service at Manchester-Boston Regional Airport (MHT) and cut routes then as well, including several in Florida.
“JetBlue has announced plans to grow to 150 daily flights in Fort Lauderdale,” the company said in an official release. “To enable our expansion there, we are ending service on several underperforming routes in other parts of our network, freeing up aircraft availability for our new Fort Lauderdale flights.”
Customers affected by these changes will be contacted directly and offered available reaccommodation options where possible or a full refund to their original form of payment, the company said.
JetBlue quickly beefing up flights in South Florida
Within days of the struggling Spirit Airlines grounding its planes on May 2, JetBlue announced a major expansion to fill the gap, including 11 new cities and increased service. On July 9, the New York-based airline announced six more. The new and returning flights are:
JetBlue will also increase service on multiple existing routes from Fort Lauderdale, including to Austin, Texas; Dallas/Fort Worth, Texas; Raleigh-Durham, North Carolina; Aguadilla, Puerto Rico; and Santo Domingo, and Santiago de los Caballeros in the Dominican Republic.
JetBlue’s president, Marty St. George, suggested in the company’s first-quarter earnings call that the carrier may establish a dedicated lounge at Fort Lauderdale, which would be the carrier’s third after New York and a planned one in Boston. On July 8, the South Florida Sun-Sentinel reported that JetBlue is seeking 30 more gates at FLL, along with space once used by Spirit.
JetBlue service to Daytona Beach had just returned
In December, JetBlue returned to Daytona Beach after a seven-year absence to fanfare and a welcome sign. The carrier launched service to two destinations from the World’s Most Famous Beach: New York City and Boston.
At the time, Dan Blake, JetBlue’s vice president of airport experience, told the crowd at the ribbon-cutting that the passenger carrier’s mission is to “connect the East Coast customers to destinations they love.”
JetBlue previously left Daytona Beach in 2019 after three years to serve destinations that were more profitable.
“It’s never an easy decision to end or reduce service, especially in cities where we’ve only recently launched,” JetBlue’s memo to employees said. “But part of building a competitive network means testing, learning, taking advantage of opportunities when they present themselves, and making adjustments when performance doesn’t meet expectations.
“That was the case with DAB and JFK-Vero Beach, where demand didn’t develop as anticipated, and the routes have remained unprofitable. We’d ordinarily give them more time to develop, but the opportunity in FLL is here now.”
More airlines adding Florida flights
Several familiar names are also increasing their Florida presence, including:
C. A. Bridges is a journalist for the USA TODAY Network-Florida’s service journalism Connect team. You can get all of Florida’s best content directly in your inbox each weekday by signing up for the free newsletter, Florida TODAY.
(This story was updated to add new information.)
This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: JetBlue to drop ‘underperforming’ Florida airport, end routes at 2 more
Reporting by C. A. Bridges, USA TODAY NETWORK – Florida / The Daytona Beach News-Journal
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By C. A. Bridges, USA TODAY NETWORK – Florida | USA TODAY Network
