JetBlue to Compete With Delta and US Airways Daily Flights Services to Newark-Bouston Destination Flights
September 4, 2010 | Airline Flight, Airline Service, Aviation
Airline will add four daily flights along Northeast route to compete with Delta and US Airways; lower fares foreseen.
JetBlue Airways announced Wednesday that it will start offering daily service from Newark Liberty International Airport to Boston’s Logan International Airport in May, injecting new competition into a Northeast corridor long dominated by Delta Air Lines and the US Airways.
Queens-based JetBlue plans to launch four daily flights between Newark and Boston. The low-cost carrier already makes up to eight flights per day from John F. Kennedy International Airport to Boston.
“JetBlue is committed to giving travelers more for less, and that is particularly true for our new route to Newark, which currently has some of the highest airfares in America,” said Scott Laurence, the airline’s vice president of network planning in a statement Wednesday.
Though JetBlue declined to give pricing estimates for the new Newark to Boston route, the airline did indicate its fare would be cheaper than the going rate. Its main competition along the New York City-to-Boston route is from the Delta Shuttle and US Airways Shuttle.
Commuters from Newark to Boston paid an average one-way gross fare of $311 during the first quarter of this year, according to U.S. Department of Transportation data compiled by JetBlue. “[That] price is higher than the average fare paid by Boston travelers on any of the six coast-to-coast routes operated by JetBlue from Logan,” the company said in a statement.
Average ticket prices on all carriers from JFK to Boston during the same period were $106 one-way, and $177 one-way from La Guardia Airport.
JetBlue rates on its JFK-to-Boston route range from $49 to $301 one-way, according to an airline spokesman. The airline did not provide an average fare, but pointed out that all of its flights include unlimited snacks and is the only carrier with free live television programming on the route.
US Airways declined to comment on JetBlue’s service, instead pointing out that the US Airways Shuttle offers hourly service from La Guardia to Boston from 6:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. weekdays. US Airways also serves free beer, wine and soft drinks on its shuttle flights.
Delta Air Lines also declined to comment on the JetBlue move, saying only that “La Guardia is the preferred airport for business travelers…and they have long counted on the Delta Shuttle for reliable, convenient hourly service.”
JetBlue’s announcement came just days after discount-rival Southwest Airlines won 36 flight slots at Newark airport as a concession of the merger between Continental Airlines and US Airways. Assuming it receives the necessary governmental approvals, Southwest can start operations at Newark as early as March.
JetBlue is the largest carrier at its home base of JFK, moving more than 11.5 million passengers through the airport over the 12 months ended in June. It currently has a small presence at Newark Liberty, from which it serves five cities in Florida, carrying fewer than 980,000 passengers over the same period. JetBlue was the sixth-ranked carrier at the New Jersey airport.
