United and JetBlue have announced that they are officially entering a partnership. The two airlines plan to link their loyalty programs and swap some slots in the near future at JFK and Newark.
Calling it “Blue Sky,” this will change how frequent flyers of both carriers look at their partner’s network and open up many more options when traveling. Indeed, routes and network were a key area JetBlue wanted to grow in when considering this deal.
For the loyalty side of things, passengers will receive benefits for each airline’s program, including priority boarding, complimentary access to preferred and extra legroom seats, and same-day standby across both airlines (as seen in the above photo).
Passengers can earn and redeem miles on each other’s flights as well. Revenue bookings for each other’s flights will also be available.
That said, there are no codeshare agreements between the two, as this is only a basic partnership at this point. They can always expand this partnership in the future, but this is what makes sense for now for both parties, especially as they look for regulatory approval.
The two airlines will also swap slots at JFK and Newark.
United will get 7 slots from JetBlue for JFK operations, and will fly out of the brand new Terminal 6. The airlines plan for this to happen in 2027.
JetBlue will also receive 8 from United at Newark, “as part of a net-neutral exchange.”
United has long expressed interest in returning to JFK. Newark is in a weird spot of “is, but not a New York City airport.” Living in New York City, I’m one of those people who avoid flying out of Newark at all costs, simply because it’s such a pain to get there. Having JFK as an option for its highly competitive routes, like JFK-LAX, will be a major win for United.
“This collaboration with United is a bold step forward for the industry — one that brings together two customer-focused airlines to deliver more choices for travelers and value across our networks,” said Joanna Geraghty, CEO of JetBlue. “United’s global reach perfectly complements JetBlue’s East Coast leisure network, and significantly expands the options and benefits for TrueBlue members, no matter where in the world they are traveling. This is a clear win for our customers and crewmembers, and supports our JetForward strategy.”
One thing to understand is that a very basic partnership. Aside from these loyalty benefits, bookings, and slot swaps, each airline will otherwise operate independently. I do think this still opens the door for something deeper in the future, though.
That said, JetBlue has been a part of failed partnerships in recent years, most notably the Northwest Alliance with American. This United partnership is similar, but also more shallow. I’m looking forward to seeing what comes about with this, both in terms of getting approval and the changes from each airline operationally, should this become official.
Featured image by United, JetBlue.
