Big Five Airline? How a Merged JetBlue-Spirit Could Compete | WSJ
HTML-код
- Опубликовано: 11 июн 2024
- American, United, Delta and Southwest are often called the big four U.S. airlines. JetBlue’s tie-up with Spirit would make it the fifth largest domestic carrier. This deal is an ‘’acquisition about assets’ and would increase the airline’s pilots, planes and seat capacity, supercharging its growth and accelerating its plan by years.
WSJ’s Alison Sider and a former JetBlue executive explain how the combined airline could compete.
Photo Illustration: Adele Morgan
0:00 Major airlines
1:01 Pilots
2:30 Fleet of planes
3:31 Available seat miles
4:29 Destinations
5:52 What’s next?
More from the Wall Street Journal:
Visit WSJ.com: www.wsj.com
Visit the WSJ Video Center: wsj.com/video
On Facebook: / videos
On Twitter: / wsj
On Snapchat: on.wsj.com/2ratjSM
#Spirit #JetBlue #WSJ
Spirit should sell their old seats to the Department of Defense and Homeland Security as "enhanced interrogation" devices.
🤣🤣🤣🤣
😂😂😂
XD
GOLD 🤭👍
💀💀
I really hope this doesn't screw with JetBlue's service quality. They are the best I've flown. And I've flown on all mentioned airlines.
I’m curious as to what routes do you fly? Jetblue was very reliable in the past but its flights to the carribean (specifically the DR) have been a nightmare since covid. I'm talking flights regularly delayed for 3+ hours and families sleeping in at the airport for days waiting on a flight out.
It got so bad that the local government launched an investigation into Jetblue and announced plans to start it's own psuedo-airline because Jetblue's poor performance has hurt their tourism.
Southwest absorbed ValuJet back in the day. Southwest kept their cattle car model. So jet blue will probably stay the same.
JetBlue has the worst rating from international travelers.
This comment was made by a robot
I agree I've taken united, Alaska, delta, and American and I've had the best experience with jet blue easily
Dont let the article fool you.. it's not about people or planes .. this purchase is simply for JETBLUE to obtain gate space and landing slots and travel lanes.. the major destinations are full up and .. it's the simplest way to get your foot in the door.
Yea, I'm surprised they didn't mention that! A big part of Jetblue acquiring Spirit was for their routes and to expand their share of popular destinations.
Exactly, I agree. This is about slot to major hubs where Jet Blue does not. It's not about Pilots or planes, it's about network growth primarily.
Eh, I think gate space and routes are way down the list of importance here. This article called it right: pilots and planes. Without those, where you gonna fly?! Jetblue has a really lame network so while that will be a bonus to get some of the routes that Spirit serves, gates and landing slots will have to be given up. Hopefully they can make some money off that.
@@A22DNAL do you even u understand that routes and gate/landing slots are critical to an airlines bottom line.. all aircraft have a break point.. all airlines need 100% capacity on both legs to make money.. FedEx spent 950 million to purchase tigers .. they wanted the routes to China and Pacific they did not need the planes or pilots.
@@thomasburke7995 Like…I…Said…way down the line of importance to a airline like JetBlue. If their paramount concern was routes and gates, they could’ve had them sans merger/buyout. They tried that. THEY DIDN’T HAVE THE PLANES TO OULL IT OFF. Hence why they went so hard on swiping Spirit out from under Frontier. Never said they weren’t needed…just not what they needed more with this merger. Look up all the routes they’ve had to cut service in B/C THEY DON’T HAVE ENOUGH PLANES!
Personally love JetBlue; I find they treat everyone equally with the amenities ranging from TVs for every seat, to better more modern/comfortable seating, as well as a wide range of food.
As a New Yorker I’m also supportive since the company is from here.
their company is in delaware like most companies 💀
I guess you haven’t heard of Mint, which means that there isn’t an equality of product on the plane.
@@NickCBax mint flies to like 4 routes
@@chantplug JetBlue is expanding Mint’s reach. It’s getting added to more routes.
I flew JetBlue before and the seats are very comfortable and love the IFE.
Jet blue could only improve spirit. I am pretty sure not much could make spirit worse.
So true
Perhaps them being acquired by an African or Indian airline could make them worse, but not much else.
Spirit would disappear. The stations likely stay. JetBlue would finally solve its old A320 replacement problem (JetBlue runs up hours on planes like no one else worldwide).
any merger is bad for the consumer, good for the company. there’s no mom and pop airlines, only the big players. Would you want there to be only 1 cell company or many to choose from?
@@vitaly6312 Ryanair probably
Everyone knows Spirit is garbage and JetBlue is pretty good. I imagine mostly good things will come of this, and although I flew Spirit once and would never do it again, I will try JetBlue after the merger.
Spirit is garbage yet they fill more planes than jetBlue and jetBlue is massively overpaying for them out of desperation. If regulators don't approve this deal jetBlue is toast, they can't grow to the level they need to and will become unviable long term. Spirit will be fine in the space they currently occupy.
Yeah, but fairs will be much higher. It’s like comparing apples and oranges, there’s a reason Spirit’s product is so terrible and that’s so their tickets can stay cheap. This merger won’t make JetBlue’s flights cheaper.
Jetblue has gone downhill too
@@Mike072385 I fly about 20-25 trips annually, I’ve flown all the airlines in USA. The worst, of course, is SPIRIT! I doubt JBL will adopt the terrible style of SPIRIT. Of course, prices will go up, and the yellow Spirit will vanish, I hope, won’t re-encarnaste ever again!
@@EternalWanderlust Even Spirits prices have gone in recent years due to the inflation, etc and yet their product remains as garbage as ever.
Interesting take with “big four”, always thought it was big “three” with AA, United and Delta. Southwest is a middle ground between mainline and budget carriers
It’s Big 3. Southwest does not really have an international presence
There used to be a "hateful eight" of Pan Am, TWA, Delta, American, United, Continental, Northwest, Eastern...
now it's just a bunch of banks
@@visionist7 those who truly know the airline industry know all the money is in the loyalty programs and credit cards
Agreed. I don’t consider southwest a major carrier.
@@JPPSrules If you’re flying domestic Southwest often has more direct flights than anyone else at least at my airport.
If JetBlue can increase seat quality and flight experience while keeping Spirit prices, this can be a great thing. Reminds me of TMobile's acquisition for MetroPCS... they grandfathered in all the plans but network speed and quality drastically improved switching from Metro's CDMA network to TMo's GSM 4G/5G networks.
How else do you think JetBlue can "increase seat quality"? They already offer free WiFi, in-seat power outlets and the most legroom in coach of any US airline.
@@malikbarnett7243 I mean increase seat quality of the Spirit planes they aquire if it goes thru. That sounds nice, I've actually never flown JetBlue as they don't really serve my market.
@@malikbarnett7243 I’ve flown JetBlue and American and there’s little difference in their seating quality.
Spirit prices? No.
@@adrian33161 That’s factually false. JetBlue has more pitch (32”) in economy. No American plane offers more than 31”. It also doesn’t equip its planes with thin-line seats as American does and JetBlue’s seats are at least 18” wide. American’s narrowest seats are 17” wide.
It’s actually good to see that there is decent competition with in the air line industry.
Is there? Spirit is supposed to be the budget airline disrupter bringing more competition that was going to drive down fares. Now we’re seeing more consolidation and JetBlue’s changes will certainly mean no more airfares as low as Spirit.
@@saahiliyer11 no, spirit was making it impossible for the other low cost carriers to keep up
@@cheboyard which is why they’re needed. Ryanair, easyJet and WizzAir keep all the European legacy carriers in check.
@@jatterhog not quite. Frontier, allegiant and others were so much smaller in comparison and with such a smaller market share to where they really wouldn’t be able to compete, none but frontier at least. Removing spirit will mean more competitive routes and prices from the other low cost carriers
Frontier will be the dominant ultra low cost carrier now.
When I moved to the US there were Continental, Northwest, AirTran, US Airways and Virgin America. Wonder how many would be left when I move away.
There corpses are all around, just in different colors.
And if you’ve been around the US for 40 years you’d see a whole lot more.. ValuJet, People Express, Piedmont, PSA.. The industry has been consolidating for a long time.
@@NickCBax let alone Pan American and Trans World, the most legendary US carriers
@@jatterhog Eh, I think PSA is more legendary than PanAm. Lots of marketing and cowboy piloting..
And TWA.. EEEK.
@@NickCBax I’ll give you TWA, but no way is PSA more legendary than Pan Am
@@jatterhog Awww! Come on the smiling planes and the customized L1011 with a bar below the main cabin floor?
Not to mention that many of its practices made it to Southwest Airlines, then to Ryanair and just about every LCC and ULCC on the planet...
Sell a $19 ticket, you get a $19 passenger
😂
True dat. Double true!
I’ve flown Spirit several times. No frills and you actually get to your destination in the same time as other planes.
I flew spirit twice. It sucked the first time, delayed for a long time, other passengers sucked, and it was very dirty. The second time (Nov. 2022) was okay. I got what I payed for, and it was a 45 minute flight anyway. Clean enough for the price
If you want more pilots, how about investing more on institutions with piloting programs? 🧐
I feel like with the 1500 hr ATP requirement and a bad economy, the pilot shortage will just get worse imo.
lol. Investing in the future instead of complaining workers are making too much as they finally escape years of debt or years of entry barriers? Do you even management? Do you even economics? Can you even capitalism?!
It’s free to become a pilot in Canada
@@canadianaviator what?
@@kb_100 U don’t pay anything in CanadaZ
I love JetBlue. The free snacks, clean bathrooms, free wifi, games on the tv screens. Lots of fun
Same One Of My Favorite Airlines.
They Should Add A Little More Games Though.
Not to mention the huge seats compared to others, and the pantries right next to the bathrooms so that you don’t have to wait for snacks, also the working wife, and the gigantic seats in first class.
@@superdudegaming8484 ikr the games kinda not good but hey I ain't complaining it's something new
This is an issue of survival for JetBlue. Open slots at major airports is limited, so organic growth is hard. In the end, it is a story of eat or get eaten.
It will be interesting to see how wages, for employees and the polar opposite cultures of these two airlines unravel.
Spirit has a true no nonsense approach.
It works well for short distance.
Plus their safety record is great
I’m still disappointed that JetBlue failed to buy Virgin America 6 years ago. I think JetBlue would have appeased Virgin America fans more than Alaska (keeping great service, the safety video, etc).
Me too. I refuse to fly on Alaska before and definitely after.
Same
@@celebrityrog Whats wrong w Alaska?
@@SaahajMatteythey ruined virgin America completely and they downgraded their seats like American Airlines did.
This is very interesting. Loved the content. Thank you.
As a traveller to the US, Jetblue is solid. I don't feel "intimidated" compare to AA & Spirit, where I constantly feel they are doing me a favour to get me where I want to go. Jetblue and Southwest are setting good benchmarks and I hope they continue to improve customer experience in the US air travel.
Flying Boeings is not a good benchmark.
@@rmx33383 Boeing is going to be around for a long time, whether anyone likes it or not. The shtick is old…
@@legwearlife Yeah you know just 381 dead and trying to pay the gov off to cover it up nbd.
@@rmx33383 why?
Awesome video. JetBlue is my favorite airline, would love to see them have a bigger footprint
Adding destination will not give you the actual total unless there are no any destination served by both airlines at present.
It's kind of standard nowadays to meme spirit, but spirit is a good example of getting what you pay for. If you're flying for about just 100$, and you can deal with being in a slightly more uncomfortable metal tube for 1-3 hours, then perfect decision. In most of my experiences with spirit, I've had no problems with delays etc with the airline, besides a 12-hour delay at Las Vegas. Even in some cases, my spirit flights beat the same route as American. Spirit aircraft are being outfitted with wifi currently, and it's at a cheaper price than American's wifi.
TL;DR spirit is a coin flip. Either you can have a standard uneventful flight if you're able to deal with the obvious caviats of paying way cheaper for a flight, or you'll have a terrible time via delays etc.
I like spirit and the price is good. I can pack a backpack and be fine. I don't need on board entertainment (I can read or sleep or play with my tablet). I bring my own water and snacks. It's very affordable.
I love JetBlue. I fly JetBlue even if it is slightly more expensive.
I hope they bring back free carry on for Blue basic fares
This isnt about acquiring more aircraft and employees, it's for the parking slips at airports. Now they will be able to do a nonspot from LA to NYC, and to multiple other cities. This will allow jet blue to service more customers, and is the only way that they can continue growth and customer retain meant from point to point and minimize the airline switch mid travel, losing potential revenue.
JetBlue already serves LAX to JFK nonstop I'm pretty sure. Their whole new business class is designed around it, and their new transatlantic routes. This will give them more time slots to fly instead of opening a new market altogether.
@@visionist7 Yes, we serve the most nonstops on the JFK - LAX route (compared to the big 4)
Spirit’s not even that bad. The walk to the hotel wasn’t even that far from where we crashed. 10/10 recommend
I hope they get this done.
As a 6'4" man I always opt for the emergency isle for legroom. I'm also willing and able to help in an emergency. Prior military, pilot, 10+ years in aviation
I don’t care what so long as it’s better than American…
JetBlue is by far the best airline out of the “big 5”
Delta is just as good, never had a bad experience with them.
Delta is solid
Jetblue was a great airline, now they are middle of the pack at best. The day pudgy little Robin Hayes pushed out David Neeleman was the day the slide started. They no longer put the customer first, anticipate a large POS airline.
United is also steadily improving.
And all of the big 5 are decent at best globally
Always loved flying with JetBlue. Just got approved for their JetBlue plus card. 80k points by spending 1k with a $99 dollar fee basically $900 worth if travel by spending $1000 and you get free carryons with the card.
They know what they are doing!
thanks for the super excellently produced Video-Report
I never had a problem with jetBlue it’s a great airline with the service and the friendly flight attendants
I never understood how Sprite Airlines was a "low cost" carrier. With the extra fees and stress incurred, was it worth it?
The "low cost" refers to the costs of running the business, not necessarily low prices for the customers.
@@intrepidfox37 🎯
Perhaps other people value stress differently than you do. Just a thought.
@09mrmarshall The delta thing was my experience also.
“Low cost” has more to do with operating costs, which in turn keeps the cost per seat low. JetBlue and Southwest are the only true low-cost carriers left, while others have shifted to *ultra* low-cost, who then charge secondary fees while otherwise keeping operating costs even lower.
Interesting food for thought.
This really helps JetBlue more so…as they solve the problem of replacing their old planes. JetBlue is a 24-hour operations and their planes are getting up in hours. In fact, on their oldest planes, JetBlue chose not to do a life extension and will instead retire them (these planes are approaching 90,000 hours, the limit without a life extension).
I love flying JetBlue. I would definitely start a miles reward program that would rival aa or united because that’s what young flyers look into.
NO one ever thought of three musketeers merging Frontier,Spirit and Jetblue all with 33% each with 1% for me
My grandfather works at JetBlue and I plan to as well in the next few years
I hope this goes through, not only that but eventually adding frontier would help JetBlue significantly
Based on destinations I personally feel like it’s more of a big 3 situation still.
What baffles my mind is the fact that JetBlue’s CEO and board of directors insisted to Spirit Airlines’ shareholders that they can still retain their Northeast Alliance joint-venture with American Airlines (which is currently being sued by the Department of Justice over antitrust concerns) even after fully acquiring the largest ultra-low cost carrier in the country.
The proposed merger between Spirit Airlines and Frontier Airlines made a lot more sense since both airlines air ultra-low cost carriers, and a full-service carrier like JetBlue acquiring Spirit Airlines, the largest ultra-low cost carrier in the country, will most certainly increase airfare for travelers. Furthermore, their current Northeast Alliance joint-venture with American Airlines will also reduce competition and hurt travelers as well. Typical corporate greed taking advantage of consumers during a time when inflation is rampant and we are on the brink of an economic recession.
I love how the used Airbus A737 model airplanes.
As long as prices stay low. I'm flying the cheapest option with the price of everything going through the roof. Nice video. Keep up the good work.
I think this will hurt prices honestly. Spirit helped keep prices down.
everyone in the comments complaining about spirit clearly doesn’t get it. If you feel you need 4 feet of legroom and 300 lbs of luggage and tvs and free snacks go ahead and pay triple the price to fly jetblue but i’ll stick with paying $35 to fly halfway across the country with a backpack for luggage and a book for entertainment and yes im ok with sitting in the fetal position for three hours if that’s what it takes to save $300
This guy gets it. ✅ We all have options.
I flew JetBlue once, it was a nice quirky experience. Spirit on the other hand I will never fly with. Aside from all the horror stories I’ve read or watched videos about, the most trashy people - loud and obnoxious - that I saw in Las Vegas on the shuttle to the airport were making their way to the Spirit check in lines. That made me glad I was not experiencing any potential flight disturbances.
Spirit being gone from the airways is a blessing in and of itself
Its kinda of like United + Continental and American Airlines + U.S Airways.
Great video 🫡
Man I just hope JetBlue adopt Spirit’s guideline for personal item size -18x14x8”. I don’t wanna pay for carry on (just my unimportant personal complaint).
I love it that they use Daron planes
Yeah
Noticed that too! What no Gemini Jets!
@@nosedive03 Nah! is real toy/daron!
hahaah, they look identical and cheap!
@@WinginWolf molds!
I was hoping that JetBlue would keep Spirit sort separate and maintain its current business model. Maybe slightly re-brand it. Similar to how there are hotel companies that own different levels of hotel brands.
A lot of airlines tried that and most of the "low cost" subsidiaries went outta business
How do they fare against Avelo, Breeze, SunCountry, and Silver??
I honestly JetBlue is positioning itself to be what TWA should have been in the 90s and 2000s.
Spirit allows people that don't have much money to travel with there really low fares. We'll see if government approves it
...but so does Frontier.
Unfortunately, Spirit's customers are animals.
@@austincharles967 So its like Greyhound bus of the air.
@@mph5896 it is. Is very cheap 🤪.. i don't care much about it as long as I get to my destination 😆
@@mph5896 It's the Magic School Bus of the air.
If I have the option, even if it’s more than the legacy carriers, I take jet blue. I really hope this merger fixes spirit, and doesn’t just break jet blue.
Amazing video plane very cool 😮
Nevermind US airline sucks
Air travel should be like the 60/70s. You used to buy a ticket and it was valid up to one year.
Really hope they have that much airline choices in Canada 😢
rip Canadian Airlines
Spirit is like the greyhound bus of the sky.
So? People with low income can still fly. There is a market for everyone. This deal will only make things more expensive.
@@michaellim4165 People? You mean "animals", right? Spirit customers are the absolute worst. Ghetto trash at its worst.
that's what I loved about it :c
@@michaellim4165 that's not the issue. The issue those people are uncivilized.
More like for Jerry Springers Guest....
I'm more interested in trying to find the planes he got, so I could play with them😂
Watching this video to learn about Spirit x JetBlue Merger ❌
Watching this video to see toy planes ✔️
JetBlue is significantly more expensive than spirit. I would not like for a budget airline to be taken out, but the possibility that a merger could bring down the average flight cost for all airlines is kind of nice too
Spirit would have merged with frontier making a super budget airline which I kinda thought would have been better tbh
@@chosenmadbro1737 Isn’t it good for them to have competition w/each other though
It's a deal that will help create a powerhouse within the United States, with the ambition to reduce the cost of flying within the United States and provide a more substantial amount of competition to other airlines.
Bot
BOT!
Bot
Does this mean that all those Spirit passengers that were duking it up in the aisles will now be on my JetBlue flight to Palm Springs ? Raise the prices I think some of those folks should take the bus this holiday season .
Don't worry about that, them Jerry Springer Guest will not be able to afford JetBlues Ticket Price...
this has some undertones…
Where's all the outcry about rising airfares and the elimination of competition? That's all I heard when Frontier and Spirit announced a merger agreement.
That’s because they competed with each other mostly. And I did hear that from some aviation and business channels. Yes, JetBlue prices are higher than spirit and will likely be higher than previous spirit prices.
If they’re smart, they’ll swoop into Lambert in Stl as a focus city. Middle of the country, was once the twa hub, and is in talks of a new terminal set up. Jet blue could wiggle their way in and convince a terminal setup that benefits them.
Jetblue is a decent airline. Spirit is like the dollar store of airlines. I've flown both. Spirit? Never again.
I think this is just the first of several mergers. When all is done, there may be three American carriers at the most.
I don’t see southwest or Alaskan being absorbed by anybody. Same thing with JetBlue after the merger…
@@vitaly6312 i could kinda see alaska and jetblue merging with american, given both of their strong relationship with AA
@@vitaly6312 They said that about Pan Am, TWA and Northwest. TWA and Pan Am went bust and Northwest got absorbed.
What would that middle of the country hub be? DFW, ORD, and IAH don’t exactly have a lot of open slots. MSP doesn’t have much potential for local demand. The only place immediately coming to mind is Austin, given the growth of the city and lack of a fortress hub from a competitor.
Actually MCI would be smack in the middle, and a good option.
Wouldn't be hard to have pilots if it didn't cost 106K just to get to the point where you build hours.
You didnt discuss the negatives:
1. Combining the pilot contract/seniority will be challenging
2. JetBlue wasnt profitable in Q2, it will have to pay a higher debt service to pay for the purchase.
3. JetBlue has IT issues, bulking up wont solve that problem, especially as it merges reservation systems/ops/frequent flyer program.
All well-intentioned points however the objective of the video was to show the ways they COULD compete...not fall flat on their faces! LOL
I just wanna know where can I buy those plane models?? 🤩
Bruhhh my back hasn’t recovered from spirits seats flew from atl to Vegas and back and I’m hurting i always fly delta but package didn’t offer them as airline now I learned my lesson
After flying Spirit i'd rather walk.
Ah yes, Greyhound of the sky. Nothing like a 17 hour layover in Denver when you are flying from LA to Vegas. 😆
I think the price thing was a little misunderstood, people aren’t worried about possibly getting cheaper high end flights they are worried about losing the ultra low cost spirit option
Being in the northeast, i prefer Jetblue over all others. I just hope the merger maintains that same "spirit" (pun intended)
I will miss Spirit's Yellow 💛 Airbuses. Common on Yate Lauderdale, and now present at Miami.
I just hope if this happens, JetBlue’s everything manages to rub off of Spirit, not the other way around
5:59 👂 🩸 VOCAL FRY AHHH!
Guys.. you misplaced number 2 and 3 at 0.08. 🤣🤣
Let’s hope the end product looks blue and not yellow
JetBlue has been my favorite airline and Spirit is wayyy down there. Hopefully this doesn't kill the quality
Unreal
The combined company will likely need to divest gates in Boston, Fort Lauderdale and Orlando to name a few.
How is alaska that high up!?
JetBlue and Spirits merger makes a bit of sense to me. As that means the larger airline will be able to compete better but it’s more of a win for frontier since that eliminates an airline in the low cost sector.
I wonder if this deal goes through if it means they'll come back to Long Beach. :)
Wouldn't be surprised if Frontier eventually pursues Allegiant as an alternative merger. Another low cost carrier with a320 aircraft that could increase their competition with Southwest.
Unless they drop they carry on - check bag - seating fees then yes , Keep Dreaming..
320’s are being replaced
Southwest is a different tier, more in line with UA, AA and DL (economy class, to clarify).
Calls on Save
I would love to be an American Airlines Boeing 787 pilot. I miss the McDonnell Douglas MD-80's.
MD-80's hated by F/A's. Now give me a DC-10 anyday of the week, I'm all in. Flew the -10 "pub" and -30 all over the world out of my old HNL base mid 80's-early 90's. Always liked that 3rd engine flying across the Pacific. Flew 747-200's too, but DC-10 grew up in.
In 5 years JetBlue might decide to purchase Frontier’s assets too.
now its going to be called spirit blue. half yella half blue.
Megacorporation #3 explaining why massive corporations #37 & #56 should merge to create megacorp #83.
How are they saying this is #1 about aircraft, and #2 about personnel. When it is very clear that this is about acquiring markets and routes....
Have you even heard about Jetblue not being able to fly new routes....BECAUSE THEY HAVE NO PLANES!
Ive never had a bad experience on Jet Blue. But ive had bad experiences on the 1 of the big 4.
I love this merged.
quiero esos aviones
I know a lot of folks that work for JetBlue JFK , MCO. I also no how Spirit operates especially in Detroit Gates & customer service (Major Attitude Problems) a major hub for Spirit. One major problem is that JetBlues Human Resource Dept will be working Overtime dealing with this issue Good luck This isn’t an issue you will hear about in the News.
There are enough pilots, we are just all in training and not flying lol
True…