American Airlines, JetBlue Airways sign slot swap agreement out of East Coast cities

by Melanie Nayer on

Washington DC travelers rejoice: JetBlue Airways will begin flying to Reagan National Airport as part of a new agreement with American Airlines. In return, American Airlines will take over some gate slots at John F. Kennedy International Airport.

The news, announced this morning, also says American Airlines and JetBlue Airways are joining forces to help boost international travel. The two airlines signed an agreement for commercial collaboration that will allow JetBlue customers in New York and Boston access to American Airlines’ international flights.

The payout: American is giving up eight slot pairs at Ronald Reagan National Airport and one slot pair at White Plains, N.Y. to JetBlue, and JetBlue will transfer 12 slot pairs at John F. Kennedy International Airport to American.

In a press release from both airlines, “The partnership will focus on routes into and out of JFK and Boston that extend and complement each others’ networks. For example, it would provide seamless service for customers who wish to fly nonstop from Nantucket to JFK on JetBlue and from there to London on American. Likewise, customers can board American from Paris to JFK and connect to a nonstop flight on JetBlue to Burlington, Vt. JetBlue customers will be able to effortlessly connect on flights to 12 of American’s international destinations from JFK and Boston including Barcelona, Spain; Sao Paulo, Brazil; and Tokyo, Japan.”

In addition to the international flights, award program members of each airline can book flights with the other airline to collect miles. For example, American Airlines customers can book JetBlue flights from JFK or Boston to Portland, Maine, and collect miles.

As someone who has covered the travel and airline industry extensively for years, this relationship between American Airlines and JetBlue is intriguing. On the one hand, JetBlue prides itself on in-flight customer service and amenities (something American Airlines has been chastised for over the years, according to customer complaints). On the other hand, American Airlines has consistently prevailed in down economies, even introducing new routes and destinations when travel is at an all-time low. How it all pans out we’ll have to wait and see. In the meantime, maybe American Airlines can learn a thing or two about effective customer service, and maybe JetBlue can pick up a few tips on how to manage customer demand.

You can the entire press release here.

Sixteen-hour LAX to JFK “flightmare” fueled by four Pringles

by Laurel Miller on

Virgin America flight 404, bound from LAX to JFK, took a bit of a detour Saturday, reaching its destination in sixteen hours, instead of the usual six.

Due to 60-mph winds in New York, the plane was forced to circle JFK before it was diverted 90 miles north, to Stewart Airport in Newburgh. The plane then sat on the tarmac for approximately seven hours (until midnight), according to irate passengers.

Things got really ugly when frazzled, snappish flight attendants were forced to ration food and drink; each passenger was allotted a half-cup of water and four Pringles. The angry mob threw cookies and cursed the “flight from hell.” One passenger had to be escorted off the plane by police, due to a panic attack.

A mutiny was averted when rival airline JetBlue — who have facilities at Stewart Airport — arranged for buses to take the passengers to JFK, two hours away. The “flightmare” ended at 3am.

One of the passengers, the CEO of a social marketing firm, kept the world updated on the situation via deadpan Twitter posts and videos of the ordeal.

Virgin America issued a statement apologizing for the debacle: “After reviewing the particular circumstances of this diversion, we agreed that we needed to have done a better job with communicating a difficult situation to our guests.”

Big Brother may not be watching, but there’s no hiding from social media.

Twitter Giveaway: On the Ground with JetBlue in Manhattan

by Tom Johansmeyer on

I was at the right place at the right time. JetBlue occupied the corner of E. 11th Street and University in Manhattan‘s East Village, giving away free tickets to anyone clad in blue and bearing something plane-related. The crowd rounded the corner, and loud cheers erupted as each victor claimed a voucher for travel. “Any city to any city does have a nice ring to it.” The crowd dispersed a little after 2 PM, and plenty of would-be travelers left happy. Among them were fellow writers David Farley (@davidfarley) and Charu Suri (@Butterflydiary) — great to meet you guys!

If you’ve ever needed a reason to follow JetBlue on Twitter, this is it.

JetBlue handing out free airline tickets in NYC

by Melanie Nayer on

This is one of those right-place-right-time situations, but if you’re in the place (New York City) and you’ve got the time, you could get a free ticket to fly JetBlue. Here’s the deal, straight from the JetBlue blog:

“If you happen to be in NYC in the right place at the right time today (and equipped with the right information) you may be able to get FREE JetBlue tickets! As part of our ongoing 10th Anniversary celebrations, we’re handing out lots of FREE tickets (take a guess how many… you may be surprised when you find out) today in different areas in Manhattan.”

Follow JetBlue on Twitter for details on what, where, and when, and you could walk away with free airline tickets. Why the scavenger hunt? What’s a birthday party without party games?

We suggest showing up with cupcake and a candle to help score your party favor.

Air France goes prix fixe, not buffet

by Tom Johansmeyer on

Starting in April, Air France is going to make you pay for what you consume. If you consume only one seat, that’s all you’ll have to buy. But, if you require more than one seat, expect to whip out your plastic. For some reason, airline spokesman Nicolas Petteau calls it “a question of security,” but I don’t think so. To me, it seems more like a question of getting what you pay for … and asking you to pay for everything you get.

The new policy includes refunded additional fares for obese passengers taking up two seats on a plane that isn’t full. Air France estimates that these refunds will be granted in 90 percent of big-passenger cases. Nonetheless, the airline cites economic factors as behind the decision (aside from the bizarro comment about security), which is not only believable but appropriate.

Air France, which denied the policy in the French media, ran into some trouble over this issue three years ago. A passenger weighing 353 pounds successfully sued the airline, which had to pay him $11,423 in damages and the cost of the second seat from New Delhi to Paris. (Let’s just hope he had an empty seat next to him.)

Other airlines have similar policies, including Southwest and JetBlue — and I applaud them. Forget about everything except the simple fact that the ticket you buy entitles you to one seat on the flight. If one seat does not meet your needs, buy two seats. After all, if I go to a restaurant and buy one entrée and remain hungry, I have to buy a second one.