JetBlue Shrinks In Newark And LaGuardia To Grow In Florida

JetBlue is one of New York's hometown airlines. This fall, it is shrinking there on purpose.

It wants to move flights and cash to Florida, right where its biggest budget rival just collapsed.

For years, New York was home. Now the focus is down south.

Out Of New York, Into Fort Lauderdale

This fall, JetBlue will close its flight attendant base at Newark. It will also shut tech bases at Newark and LaGuardia.

No one will lose a job, since staff can move or bid to other bases. JetBlue is also dropping some seasonal Newark flights to Los Angeles and Las Vegas.

That money is heading south to Fort Lauderdale. There, JetBlue is adding cross-country flights on Mint.

Mint is its lie-flat business class, which means seats that fold flat into a bed. The first new route is Fort Lauderdale to San Diego on November 19.

More Mint flights to San Francisco and Los Angeles come this winter. JetBlue is even scouting space for a fancy lounge there.

All of it points one way. JetBlue wants Florida to be its new home base.

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The Math Behind The Move

JetBlue has not turned a profit in two years, and the stock trades as JBLU. So it keeps cutting routes that lose money.

New York airports are some of the priciest places it flies. Its president, Marty St. George, has pointed right at the cost.

At a March event, he said LaGuardia charges JetBlue about $40 a flyer. Then he took a shot at the terminal's 25-foot fountain.

People, he said, "would rather have low fares than a really nice fountain." The Port Authority, which runs the airports, had no comment.

Mint seats cost more than coach, but they also earn the airline more.

Sell fewer, pricier seats, and stop bleeding cash at costly airports. That is the whole game plan.

Why Florida, And Why Now

Timing is the whole story. Spirit Airlines, a cheap Florida airline, collapsed on May 2.

JetBlue is already the top airline at Fort Lauderdale, after years in second place behind Spirit.

For years, Spirit ruled cheap travel in the state, and now that crown is up for grabs.

With Spirit gone, there is an opening. JetBlue wants the higher-paying flyers Spirit left behind.

Spirit flew cheap and still lost money for years. JetBlue does not want to repeat that path.

That is why it is adding nicer seats and a lounge, not cheap fares.

What To Watch

JetBlue is betting that high-end Florida travel beats cheap New York routes. Spirit made the opposite bet and did not survive.

JetBlue's last profit was two years ago, and the next year will show if the Florida bet pays off.

Investors will see in the next earnings report whether Florida is closing that gap.

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