JetBlue Founder Predicts Bankruptcy For Struggling Airline In Leaked Recording

Sounds about right. JetBlue's future is either a merger with Alaska Airlines, or folded into American Airlines. A merger between B6 and UA won't happen.

It would work if bondholders agreed to trade their debt for shares of stock in a combined UA/B6 merger/acquisition. Now how likely is that?

@Lucky it is worth noting that Neeleman didn't really say that United shouldn't take the deal, instead he apparently heard from them that United's just not interested from a source (presumably at United). Whether we think they should or not depends on our feelings, while whether they will or not depends on United's board and shareholders.

Neeleman may still own 4% of the company, but he hasn’t been directly involved since like 2009. He’s started Azul and Breeze since then, and is basically leading a competitor, these days, so I’d take what he’s saying with a grain of salt. The sky is not falling… yet.

I just hope the good things about B6 survive (extra legroom, live TV, free WiFi, Mint, cute names on the planes).

yeah maybe these were competitive advantages in 2015

American acquiring JetBlue makes the most sense (apart from JetBlue's base at Fort Lauderdale which would serve no purpose being so close to Americans fortress in Miami). Ultimately if United don't move for JetBlue I feel nobody will and then it will just be a question of who snaps up what assets if/when JetBlue goes under

by this argument what make's AA's debt load attractive for United to take on. Does management believe that AA is undervalued and the assets are worth the debt load?

Hey Armchair CEO - exactly what has David gotten "wrong"? You make this statement but then claim nothing specific to David. I'm no defender and have no skin in the game but besides flying a lot, exactly what are your qualifications?

Neeleman has started more airlines than just about anyone - going all the way back to Morris Air - which was successfully exited to WN. B6 lost their way after he left for sure and Breeze seems to be doing just fine. So exactly what is "wrong"?

cute names clearly drive profitability. All airlines now have extra legroom - and they charge for it, just like JetBlue. Most have live TB and all the big guys have (or are getting) free WiFi. Mint is fine - but it is on a tiny fraction of B6 flights and still a bit off, anyway.

@ben - I don't think you've ever written an article on David neelman's overall legacy in the airline industry. Would be interesting to read your take on what you think he has gotten right and wrong

As part of that maybe you could compare each of the airlines he's founded/been involved with. Could make for an interesting article/series of articles!

"No shade, but Neeleman has a very mixed track record. He’s obviously a bright guy in the scheme of things, but I also think he gets a lot of things wrong"

No, still relevant in 2026. Blue Basic is still better (more legroom, TV, and WiFi) than Basic on AA with no TV, and until recently no free WiFi, and better than UA (half half no TV, still charges $8/800 points for WiFi).

tom, newer and older Mint is excellent; better food, suites with doors (before anyone else had them). As for extra legroom, all seats, not just the Blue Extra, have more legroom than most seats on the Big 3 in Economy.

tom, your attempt at gatekeeping Ben is lame. You don’t have to be an airline CEO to have an opinion here. Neeleman was forced out of B6 around 2009. Are you him? Did we hurt your feelings?

Best you can do is "lame"? Um, OK.

Yes, I am him!!!!

Get real. Ben said "numerous things he got wrong" and then failed to list any. That is an opinion, and I'm fine with it but what are the things? Just askin'

As I have said for months, B6 will take a trip through chapter 11 before anyone jumps on them quickly. Even enough slots for 175 or how many JFK flights is not worth $9 billion dollars.

A chunk of B6' unsecured debt - which is the only kind you can realistically reduce in chapter 11 - is covid era government debt which you cannot reduce in chapter 11.

there is about $800 million in non-government unsecured debt which could be reduced in chapter 11 but that isn't much compared to the total $9 billion by this fall.

Their seats are also wider. Hoping it survives in some fashion as it is my favorite airline by far.

This is the same person that has never gotten over the fact that the controlling board at the time of his "employment" demanded he step down as CEO. Anything he says about "his" jetBlue reminds me of a parent's befuddlement when their adult kid goes no contact. He is great at starting airlines...but actual longevity and prosperity is not his cup of tea.

It seems like Spirit will go chapter 7, clearing the way for JetBlue to expand into Latin America and the Caribbean from Florida and JFK. The have become the prime carrier out of their Ft. Lauderdale hub in the last 6 months. Without Spirit road to profitability seems shorter.

Highly doubt regulatory approval happens before midterms regardless

yeah like anyone cares what a travel blogger's take is about M&A activity. I think the saying is "stay in your lane"

I care

The unfortunate thing about another airline bankruptcy would be on going downward pressure on air fares at all the airlines until things shake out either through acquisition or failure. Spirit Frontier Avelo JetBlue seem to be floundering while Southwest and Breeze are not quite hopping along on all feet either.

Well paid airline gigs lost are not what President Trump wants in this industry. His goal is stability and profitability for airline industry workers be they union or none union.

@ betterbub -- You're of course correct, and I wonder who the Neeleman source at United would even be. I imagine it's not Kirby, and often discussions of any mergers come as a surprise to even most mid and upper level executives at airlines, given the need for secrecy, and concern over leaks.

@ bob -- Hey, fair enough! There are lots of things on the internet that don't interest me, and I don't generally read them or comment on them. 🙂

@ Al -- Thanks for the idea! He's quite a character, and you're right, I've never really written specifically about him.

Im confused. Did everyone else not read that comment as “united is going to wait until it goes into receivership so it can negotiate down the debts with the creditor committee”?

It seems like the obvious thing to do for anyone with even a modest banking or finance background.

Does anyone here have experience integrating union and non-union labor in aviation? I don’t know if there are any additional bankruptcy benefits there

@ tom -- It's a fair question, thanks for asking. Look, we all get things wrong, so I'm not here to make a list of incorrect predictions or business decisions of Neeleman (he has made some, as have most airline executives, and that's besides the point).

It's not that I have an issue with Neeleman, he's just not at the top of the list of industry people I respect. He has done really well for himself investing in the airline industry (not many people can say that), but actually running airlines has been a different story.

It seems his specialty is setting up very low cost airlines and taking advantage of their very attractive cost structure at first, to then spin them off ASAP. His overall airline portfolio doesn't have a great track record of actually returning good margins long term, not that I'm saying that's all his fault.

I just don't think he's particularly on top of industry trends either. Breeze is a mystery, and since it's not publicly traded, we don't know what's actually going on in terms of financials. They claim they're profitable by some metrics now, though I question that, given the reality of the industry. It just seems like starting a value carrier coming out of the pandemic isn't really reflective of current industry realities.

On a personal level, I'm also not a fan of the extreme measures he takes to try to control unionization and labor costs, like initially Breeze initially only trying to hire flight attendants who would fly and study, clearly to keep seniority down, and make sure it's just a temporary job for those people, and not a career.

Anyway, I could go on, but those are my two cents, not that I'm suggesting anyone should care.

Hey Bob, isn’t Ben’s entire “lane” aviation though?

The DOJ blocking the Spirit - JetBlue merger was completely nonsensical. They feared reduced competition, now there will be no competition...

Other breaking news….water is wet.

The DOJ may have inked blocking JB’s acquisition of Spirit, but it was at least one if not all the big 3 that blocked it.

Extra legroom and free stuff? Lol definitely not surviving. Do you fly anything but jet blue? In fact, JB announced they’re shrinking legroom

At the end of the day any M&A comes down to cost. Is the deal worth the money involved? Jet blue didn't aquire that massive debt in a vacuum and it adds tremendously to the overall cost of any deal with the airline and I believe thats why nothing has happened with them as of yet and things aren't getting better.

Why buy an airline $9b in debt when you can wait for them to go under and move in at that time?

Interesting that he said “I know Alaska isn’t “ interested.

I live in the Boston area and would love to have another option to Delta. JetBlue has a hub in Boston but we never fly them. There is a reason they are called Masshole Airlines.

I’m all for United coming in to Boston and competing with Delta here. Game on!

i hope JetBlue sticks around longer cuz I wanna try their Mint transcon so bad

IMO...they just waited too long to roll out systemwide first class and lounges and never courted the passengers that actually make airlines profitable. On top of that, they've lost a bunch of good partners and they cancel flights left and right.

I loved them when they first came out and MINT was such a good product...they just never leaned into it. I hope they make it.

I just hope the good things about B6 survive (extra legroom, live TV, free WiFi, Mint, cute names on the planes).

@ betterbub -- You're of course correct, and I wonder who the Neeleman source at United would even be. I imagine it's not Kirby, and often discussions of any mergers come as a surprise to even most mid and upper level executives at airlines, given the need for secrecy, and concern over leaks.

tom, your attempt at gatekeeping Ben is lame. You don’t have to be an airline CEO to have an opinion here. Neeleman was forced out of B6 around 2009. Are you him? Did we hurt your feelings?

@ tom -- It's a fair question, thanks for asking. Look, we all get things wrong, so I'm not here to make a list of incorrect predictions or business decisions of Neeleman (he has made some, as have most airline executives, and that's besides the point).

It's not that I have an issue with Neeleman, he's just not at the top of the list of industry people I respect. He has done really well for himself investing in the airline industry (not many people can say that), but actually running airlines has been a different story.

It seems his specialty is setting up very low cost airlines and taking advantage of their very attractive cost structure at first, to then spin them off ASAP. His overall airline portfolio doesn't have a great track record of actually returning good margins long term, not that I'm saying that's all his fault.

I just don't think he's particularly on top of industry trends either. Breeze is a mystery, and since it's not publicly traded, we don't know what's actually going on in terms of financials. They claim they're profitable by some metrics now, though I question that, given the reality of the industry. It just seems like starting a value carrier coming out of the pandemic isn't really reflective of current industry realities.

On a personal level, I'm also not a fan of the extreme measures he takes to try to control unionization and labor costs, like initially Breeze initially only trying to hire flight attendants who would fly and study, clearly to keep seniority down, and make sure it's just a temporary job for those people, and not a career.

Anyway, I could go on, but those are my two cents, not that I'm suggesting anyone should care.

@ Al -- Thanks for the idea! He's quite a character, and you're right, I've never really written specifically about him.

I care

@ bob -- Hey, fair enough! There are lots of things on the internet that don't interest me, and I don't generally read them or comment on them. 🙂

Hey Bob, isn’t Ben’s entire “lane” aviation though?

The DOJ may have inked blocking JB’s acquisition of Spirit, but it was at least one if not all the big 3 that blocked it.