We knew this was coming, and it’s now official. As a Miami resident, I’m very happy about this announcement.
JetBlue expanding to Miami (MIA)
JetBlue has today formally announced that it will launch flights to Miami as of early 2021. The airline will launch service from Miami to four airports (Boston, Los Angeles, New York, and Newark), with up to 14 daily flights. The Los Angeles route will even feature JetBlue’s exceptional Mint business class.
As a reminder, JetBlue has a large hub in Fort Lauderdale, so it’s cool to see the airline expand just a bit further South. Southwest Airlines also has a hub in Fort Lauderdale, and recently announced a Miami expansion.
JetBlue’s new routes out of Miami
Anyway, let’s take a more detailed look at JetBlue’s Miami expansion:
JetBlue’s Miami to Los Angeles flights
As of February 11, 2021, JetBlue will offer up to two daily flights between Miami and Los Angeles. These flights will operate with the following schedule, using Mint-configured Airbus A321s:
B62986 Miami to Los Angeles departing 9:20AM arriving 12:50PM
B62886 Miami to Los Angeles departing 6:10PM arriving 9:32PM
B62885 Los Angeles to Miami departing 9:00AM arriving 4:58PM
B62985 Los Angeles to Miami departing 11:35PM arriving 7:29AM (+1 day)
My take? I am so excited to see American get some competition on this route, in particular with JetBlue offering its Mint product. This without a doubt will become my new favorite flight out of my home airport. Mint fares as of now are starting at $439, which is excellent (here’s to hoping fares are similar next year, when the JetBlue Mosaic companion benefit applies).
JetBlue’s Miami to New York JFK flights
As of February 11, 2021, JetBlue will offer up to four daily flights between Miami and New York JFK. These flights will operate with the following schedule, using Airbus A320s:
B62292 Miami to New York JFK departing 8:20AM arriving 11:11AM
B62592 Miami to New York JFK departing 12:50PM arriving 3:42PM
B62692 Miami to New York JFK departing 4:10PM arriving 7:04PM
B62492 Miami to New York JFK departing 8:00PM arriving 10:54PM
B62293 New York JFK to Miami departing 8:00AM arriving 11:12AM
B62593 New York JFK to Miami departing 12:00PM arriving 3:11PM
B62693 New York JFK to Miami departing 4:00PM arriving 7:14PM
B62893 New York JFK to Miami departing 7:00PM arriving 10:22PM
My take? I get that New York to Miami is a big market (and vice versa), but in a way I’m surprised by this. While American and JetBlue will eventually have a partnership, fares are already ridiculously low in this market, and there’s not much connecting traffic on either end here for JetBlue (at least not in a geographically logical way). For those exclusively traveling between Miami and New York, LGA is typically preferred over JFK.
JetBlue’s Miami to Newark flights
As of February 11, 2021, JetBlue will offer up to four daily flights between Miami and Newark. These flights will operate with the following schedule, using Airbus A320s:
B62294 Miami to Newark departing 7:00AM arriving 9:55AM
B62594 Miami to Newark departing 12:30PM arriving 3:22PM
B62694 Miami to Newark departing 3:00PM arriving 5:54PM
B62894 Miami to Newark departing 8:29PM arriving 11:22PM
B62295 Newark to Miami departing 8:30AM arriving 11:40AM
B62595 Newark to Miami departing 11:00AM arriving 2:11PM
B62695 Newark to Miami departing 4:30PM arriving 7:38PM
B62495 Newark to Miami departing 7:00PM arriving 10:10PM
My take? JetBlue has been expanding out of Newark lately, so this growth almost makes more sense to me than the JFK growth. This will be some real competition for United.
JetBlue’s Miami to Boston flights
As of February 11, 2021, JetBlue will offer up to four daily flights between Miami and Boston. These flights will operate with the following schedule, using Airbus A320s:
B61520 Miami to Boston departing 7:20AM arriving 10:28AM
B61220 Miami to Boston departing 12:00PM arriving 3:08PM
B61320 Miami to Boston departing 4:25PM arriving 7:35PM
B61620 Miami to Boston departing 7:55PM arriving 11:03PM
B61519 Boston to Miami departing 8:30AM arriving 12:04PM
B61219 Boston to Miami departing 12:05PM arriving 3:37PM
B61319 Boston to Miami departing 3:35PM arriving 7:07PM
B61619 Boston to Miami departing 7:00PM arriving 10:34PM
My take? This market makes sense, and if anything what surprises me is how JetBlue is going all-in on the three Miami to Northeast routes, with 4x daily flights.
Are Miami & Fort Lauderdale different markets?
Some might find it strange for an airline with a huge hub in Fort Lauderdale to also fly out of Miami. However, as a Miami resident I avoid flying out of Fort Lauderdale Airport whenever possible.
It’s not that it’s that inconvenient, but there’s something nice about driving just 10 minutes to the airport, and avoiding the stretch of I-95 between Miami and Fort Lauderdale, which I’m convinced has the world’s worst drivers.
I’m not alone in feeling this way, and I know plenty of others who never even check routes or fares out of Fort Lauderdale when planning their travel.
I can’t wait to fly JetBlue out of Miami!
What about the American & JetBlue partnership?
A new strategic partnership between American and JetBlue was recently announced, so some people may be confused about this in the context of JetBlue flying to Miami. Is JetBlue’s expansion out of Miami somehow being done in partnership with American, or are the two airlines competing?
The airlines haven’t yet started the process of coordinating routes, fares, schedules, etc., so I see no reason to believe that American had any part in this growth.
The reality is that airlines have partnerships when they see specific opportunities, and these partnerships aren’t like mergers. The new partnership between American and JetBlue is focused on the Northeast primarily. I would guess with near certainty that American isn’t happy about this expansion, but ultimately each airline has to do what’s best for them. There are plenty of markets in which these two airlines compete.
What does that mean for JetBlue’s expansion out of Miami?
- Clearly JetBlue is trying to get market share from American, and just as the airlines compete in other markets, that’s the case here as well
- It’s possible that AAdvantage members may be able to earn miles on these JetBlue flights, or it’s possible that the partnership only covers select routes; that hasn’t yet been decided or announced
American probably doesn’t love JetBlue’s Miami expansion
Bottom line
Starting in February 2021, JetBlue will launch 14 daily flights to four destinations out of Miami. The growth will be focused on the Northeast, but beyond that JetBlue will also be flying to Los Angeles, including with its Mint product.
What do you make of JetBlue’s Miami expansion?
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