San Juan is seen from the shore of Castillo San Felipe del Morro (Photo by Edwin Remsberg)
JetBlue will fight back against Frontier Airlines’ rapid expansion in Puerto Rico.
The carrier said Wednesday it will expand island service with “significant network enhancements that reaffirm its position as the largest carrier in Puerto Rico.”
The expansion includes the addition of six new destinations from San Juan, “one of JetBlue’s most successful focus cities,” the carrier said.
The new destinations from San Juan include five to be added between Oct. 27 and Oct. 29. They are Providence, RI daily; Westchester County, N.Y daily; Santiago, Dominican Republic, daily; Medellin, Colombia, four times a week; Cancun, three times a week. Also, JetBlue will add daily San Juan -St. Croix daily starting Dec. 12.
Additionally, JetBlue will enhance its JFK service to San Juan, adding a daily Mint flight on July 22. Mint has lie-flat seats and upscale dining.
“JetBlue has been part of the Puerto Rican community for over twenty years, and we're excited to deepen our roots with this expansion," said JetBlue President Marty St. George in a prepared statement. “Our decades-long history with this vibrant community drives our enthusiasm to not only increase our service but also to strengthen our relationships and presence in the region.”
JetBlue spokesman Derek Dombroski said Wednesday, “Looking at April, for example, our research shows we are the largest carrier in Puerto Rico based on departures, seats, and customers.”
On Frontier’s May 2nd earnings call, CEO Barry Biffle said that in Puerto Rico, “We see a massive opportunity for flights to the United States, “ adding “San Juan provides a gateway to the broader Caribbean region.”
Frontier has about 8% of its capacity in Puerto Rico. By July, it will serve 26 destinations from San Juan as well as two Florida destinations each from Aguadilla and Ponce. It has more than doubled Puerto Rico capacity since 2019. The number of destinations was 17 in June 2023.
The carrier has three major initiatives planned for San Juan this summer. They include opening a San Juan crew base, boosting inter-Caribbean service and, most ambitiously, entering the heavily served San Juan-New York market with flights from JFK and Newark.
Besides JFK, the only overlap with new JetBlue routes is the San Juan-St. Croix route, which Frontier plans to open in July.
Both Biffle and St. George once worked for pre-mergers, Crystal City, Va.-based US Airways.
JetBlue said it has 370 employees in Puerto Rico. Like Frontier, it also serves Aguadilla and Ponce. With the announced expansion it will average 40 daily departures from San Juan this winter. In will serve 18 destinations from the three airports.
Besides boosting Puerto Rico service, JetBlue will add Mint service from JFK, Boston and Fort Lauderdale to Phoenix and Vancouver, B.C.
