March 23, 2021
The Best Is Yet To Come In The American Airlines, JetBlue Partnership
JT Genter READ TIME: 6 MIN.
In July 2020, American Airlines and JetBlue surprised travelers by announcing their intentions to found a new "Northeast Alliance." After review by the U.S. Department of Transportation, the two new partners shared details of the "first phase" of their partnership in February 2021.
As part of this announcement, the two airlines announced dozens of new routes and launched codeshares on dozens of more routes. While this is a start, American and JetBlue have much bigger plans for this partnership than just this first round.
Let's dig into what we know so far – and what's still to come – of the American Airlines/JetBlue partnership.
New American Airlines and JetBlue Routes
To start their partnership, American Airlines and JetBlue announced a total of 33 new routes. True to the "Northeast Alliance" name, all of these routes are to/from either New York City or Boston.
New American Airlines Routes From New York City and Boston
American Airlines is launching 18 new routes from New York City and Boston starting this summer – 12 domestic routes and six international routes to Latin America and the Caribbean.
On May 6, 2021, American Airlines will launch new routes from New York Kennedy (JFK) to four South American destinations:
Then, on June 5, 2021, American will offer Saturday-only service from New York JFK to two popular Caribbean routes:
JetBlue loyalists can't book tickets on these routes quite yet. But, the airlines expect to begin codesharing sales on the new international routes "soon."
New JetBlue Routes From New York City
JetBlue is launching 15 new routes from the three major airports in New York City. Most are to existing JetBlue destinations, just from different NYC airports. But, two of these are new destinations for JetBlue and both are out of New York JFK:
On July 1, 2021, JetBlue will launch the following 10 new routes between Newark (EWR) and:
Plus, JetBlue will launch three new routes from New York LaGuardia (LGA):
New American Airlines/JetBlue Codeshare Routes
New routes are just one part of the new JetBlue and American Airlines partnership. The codeshare flights are going to be a much more significant part of the partnership. To start, American is launching 49 codeshare routes on JetBlue routes and JetBlue is adding its codeshare to 25 American Airlines routes.
Why Codeshare Flights Matter
If you're not familiar with codeshare flights, let's do a quick overview. There are two main benefits of codeshare flights to travelers: Seamless travel and elite status earnings.
Codeshare flights are particularly helpful to travelers booking connecting itineraries that are operated by two (or more) partnered airlines. Through a codeshare partnership, travelers can fly from Buffalo (BUF) to New York Kennedy (JFK) then transfer to an American Airlines flight from New York JFK to Santiago, Chile (SCL) without having to collect their checked bags and check back in with American Airlines in New York.
Travelers can also use codeshare flights to earn miles and elite-qualifying credits as if you were flying on your favorite carrier. Say you're an American Airlines elite but need to fly on a route that American doesn't operate. Just book a codeshare on JetBlue (or Alaska or one of American's other codeshare partners) and you'll earn as if you were flying on American.
With that in mind, let's review the JetBlue and American Airlines codeshare routes that have been launched so far.
JetBlue's Codeshare Routes on American
As of February 25, 2021, JetBlue flyers can book American Airlines-operated JetBlue codeshares on the following routes:
American's Codeshare Routes on JetBlue
Starting February 25, American Airlines added its codeshare to 49 JetBlue routes. However, unlike JetBlue's codeshare on American Airlines, the full list of routes hasn't been published. However, we are able to find a few examples such as:
What's Still to Come From the American/JetBlue Partnership
New routes and codeshares on dozens of routes are a good start. But there's a lot more to come from the JetBlue/American partnership. The two airlines plan to continue to coordinate schedules and expand codeshares to new routes. Also, AAdvantage and TrueBlue members will be happy to know that reciprocal elite status and mile/point redemptions are in the works.
Adding Codeshares to More Domestic Routes
As part of the mid-February announcement, both American and JetBlue highlighted the next routes on which the airlines plan to work together.
In April 2021, American and JetBlue will coordinate schedules on the following routes:
Boston (BOS) and Washington DC (DCA): 11 daily flights
Boston (BOS) and South Florida (FLL/MIA/PBI): 22 daily flights
Then, in summer 2021, JetBlue and American will coordinate schedules on even more routes, including:
Reciprocal Elite Benefits
For now, American Airlines AAdvantage elites and JetBlue Mosaic elite members won't get elite benefits when flying on the other airline. However, both airlines have shared that they are "exploring opportunities" to provide reciprocal elite benefits. This may include perks like free checked bags, extra-legroom seats, priority check-in and other perks elites are used to receiving.
Redeeming Points and Miles
So far, JetBlue members can't redeem TrueBlue points for American Airlines flights – and American travelers can't redeem AAdvantage miles for JetBlue flights. However, the good news is that this is in the works.
American Airlines shared that "customers will also be able to redeem points or miles on either carrier." More details should be announced "later this year."
Bottom Line
American Airlines and JetBlue's partnership is just getting started. In the "first phase" of the partnership, the two airlines are launching dozens of new routes and dozens of more codeshares. However, there's still plenty more to come, from additional codeshare routes to elite benefits and redeeming points/miles.
