JetBlue Airways announced that it is dropping several routes and reducing the flights out of Los Angeles, one of the most popular U.S destinations, to focus on more profitable routes. The airline has been facing major financial troubles since a federal judge blocked a partnership between JetBlue and American Airlines back in May of 2023 and another judged blocked JetBlue’s attempt at a $3.8 billion acquisition of Spirit Airlines, saying that the deal violated antitrust law.
JetBlue will completely exit Kansas City, Missouri, and Newburgh, New York, along with eliminating other routes. In addition to exiting U.S. cities, the airline will also leave Bogotá, Colombia; Quito, Ecuador; and Lima, Peru. JetBlue also plans to reduce its departures from Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) from 34 per day to around 24, choosing to focus on what it calls its “bread and butter” routes on the East Coast and flights to Caribbean vacation destinations.
"With less aircraft time available and the need to improve our financial performance, more than ever, every route has to earn its right to stay in the network," said Dave Jehn, JetBlue’s vice president of network planning and airline partnerships in an internal memo sent to JetBlue employees obtained by CBS News.
Here is a full list of all of the flights that JetBlue is cutting beginning on June 13:
- 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, Nevada
- Los Angeles to San Francisco
- Los Angeles to Seattle
- Fort Lauderdale, Florida to Atlanta
- Fort Lauderdale, Florida to Austin, Texas
- Fort Lauderdale, Florida to Nashville, Tennessee
- Fort Lauderdale, Florida to New Orleans
- Fort Lauderdale, Florida to Salt Lake City
- Aguadilla, Puerto Rico to Tampa, Florida
- Orlando to Salt Lake City
- New York/JFK to Detroit
JetBlue has lost more than $2 billion since 2019, which was its last profitable year. The company announced a plan in January to reduce expenses by $200 million by the end of the year. At that time, it also cut multiple routes from New York City to popular U.S destinations including Portland, Oregon; San Jose, California; and Milwaukee.
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