Spirit Airways is opposing United Airways and JetBlue Airways’ “Blue Sky” partnership, claiming the proposed pact is a “coordinated oligopoly masquerading as competitors.”
The Florida-based discounter needs the U.S. Division of Transportation to open a public docket and assessment the loyalty and joint ticket gross sales parts of the partnership, it stated in a regulatory submitting Tuesday. Spirit argued that what United and JetBlue suggest would quantity to the latter turning into a “de facto vassal of United.”
“This anti-competitive tie-up involving a dominant legacy provider will neutralize the aggressive good thing about an present low-fare competitor (JetBlue), will elevate fares, and can are likely to weaken different worth airways, equivalent to Spirit and others, by siphoning off prospects attracted by entry to the United loyalty program,” Spirit stated.
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United and JetBlue unveiled the distinctive Blue Sky partnership in Could. A substitute for JetBlue’s failed Northeast Alliance with American Airways, the tie-up focuses nearly fully on loyalty by offering members of United’s MileagePlus and JetBlue’s TrueBlue packages reciprocal advantages on both airline. It additionally consists of gross sales of each airways’ flights on both provider’s web site, each United and JetBlue adopting a few of the different’s know-how, and, in 2027, United’s return to New York’s John F. Kennedy Worldwide Airport (JFK) with slots offered by JetBlue.
“United’s international attain completely enhances JetBlue’s East Coast leisure community, and considerably expands the choices and advantages for TrueBlue members,” Joanna Geraghty, the CEO of JetBlue, stated when the deal was introduced.
And she or he is true — the partnership will present TrueBlue members with considerably extra utility by opening United’s complete international community, which is 4 instances the dimensions of JetBlue’s by flight numbers.
United’s MileagePlus program would additionally acquire extra relevancy in key markets, together with Boston and Florida, the place the airline is a small participant.
That joint profit would come on the expense of opponents like Spirit.
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Evaluation: Why I am enthusiastic about United and JetBlue’s new partnership, and the place there’s room to develop
The discounter had sought to merge with JetBlue solely to see the deal blocked on antitrust grounds by a federal choose. That ruling was adopted by a Chapter 11 chapter submitting by Spirit in November 2024, from which it emerged this March as a considerably smaller airline.
However, as Cranky Flier writer Brett Snyder not too long ago advised Raymond James’ Savanthi Syth, Frontier Airways and Spirit act as primarily “spill carriers” — or those who choose up what visitors is left over from bigger, legacy or midmarket airways — attributable to their broad route map overlap and poor buyer notion.
That leaves an airline like Spirit in an unenviable aggressive place within the U.S. market, and one which may very well be additional pressured by a United-JetBlue partnership.
Spirit is the sixth-largest airline by seats in New England and New York, with only a 2.7% share in June, schedule information from aviation analytics agency Cirium reveals. United is the second largest, with a 17% share, and JetBlue is third, with an almost 15% share.
The DOT will weigh Spirit’s request for a public docket and assessment of the Blue Sky partnership.
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