{"id":194326,"date":"2025-09-20T13:00:03","date_gmt":"2025-09-20T13:00:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/entertainment.runfyers.com\/index.php\/2025\/09\/20\/jetblue-makes-fort-lauderdale-push-amid-spirits-struggles-the-points-guy\/"},"modified":"2025-09-20T13:00:03","modified_gmt":"2025-09-20T13:00:03","slug":"jetblue-makes-fort-lauderdale-push-amid-spirits-struggles-the-points-guy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/entertainment.runfyers.com\/index.php\/2025\/09\/20\/jetblue-makes-fort-lauderdale-push-amid-spirits-struggles-the-points-guy\/","title":{"rendered":"JetBlue makes Fort Lauderdale push amid Spirit’s struggles – The Points Guy"},"content":{"rendered":"


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As questions swirl about the future of Spirit Airlines, JetBlue has been making a big push in the budget airline’s backyard. And it may just be getting started.<\/p>\n

Last week, JetBlue announced a major expansion<\/a> at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport (FLL), ramping up service to Latin America and a handful of U.S. cities \u2014 including a slew of routes Spirit serves.<\/p>\n

Expect to see more where that came from. “The bet we’ve made in [Fort] Lauderdale is a pretty big bet,” JetBlue president Marty St. George said, speaking last week at an industry conference. “And we have more stuff to come.”<\/p>\n

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A JetBlue airplane lands at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport (FLL). EVA MARIE UZCATEGUI\/BLOOMBERG VIA GETTY IMAGES<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

So far this year, JetBlue has added 17 new routes out of FLL, and bolstered its flying to a dozen other cities. That includes a significantly larger presence in the Caribbean, Central America and South America.<\/p>\n

All you have to do is look at a map to see the growth \u2014 check out what JetBlue’s international route map out of FLL looked like in January 2025, as shown by Cirium.<\/p>\n

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\"JetBlue's<\/div>
JetBlue’s international route map out of Fort Lauderdale as of January 2025. CIRIUM<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Here’s what it’ll look like come January 2026 \u2014 St. Maarten, Honduras, Colombia, Aruba, Costa Rica, you name it.<\/p>\n

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\"JetBlue's<\/div>
JetBlue’s planned international route map out of Fort Lauderdale as of January 2026. CIRIUM<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

That southward expansion isn’t over.<\/p>\n

“There are a lot of places south of Fort Lauderdale that we’d like to fly,” St. George said, addressing the Morgan Stanley Laguna Conference in California on Sept. 11.<\/p>\n

All told, the airline expects to grow its departures out of Fort Lauderdale this winter by 38%, per Cirium data.<\/p>\n

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And the carrier sees the airport, going forward, as the southeast counterpart to its big hubs in New York and Boston \u2014 a third “tentpole,” as St. George put it, to complement John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK) and Boston Logan International Airport (BOS).<\/p>\n

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Opportunities in Fort Lauderdale<\/h2>\n

That JetBlue is back to major growth somewhere outside the Northeast is notable, after 2024 saw the carrier pull back significantly<\/a> in other parts of the country as part of a series of maneuvers meant to return the company to profitability.<\/p>\n

The timing of the carrier’s Fort Lauderdale moves, though, is no coincidence. JetBlue has long wanted more gates at FLL.<\/p>\n

The airport’s top carrier \u2014 Spirit Airlines \u2014 is now embroiled in chapter 11 bankruptcy<\/a> for the second time in less than a year (and less than two years after its planned merger with JetBlue came to a halt). Spirit has raised concerns about its long-term financial viability, and recently began slashing flights from its network<\/a> \u2014 opening up gate space in Fort Lauderdale in the process.<\/p>\n

“As our biggest competitor there has started to [cut back] and luckily open up some gate capacity for us,” St. George said, “we’re taking advantage of it.”<\/p>\n

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\"A<\/div>
A JetBlue aircraft takes off from Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport (FLL). JOE RAEDLE\/GETTY IMAGES<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

So have other rivals. United Airlines recently announced a sizable Florida expansion<\/a>, and Spirit’s low-cost competitor Frontier Airlines will grow its wintertime departures out of FLL by 40%, Cirium data shows.<\/p>\n

Earlier this month, Spirit told TPG the network moves by other airlines amounted to “wishful thinking” by competitors hoping to put the Dania Beach-based carrier out of business.<\/p>\n

Regardless of the motives, JetBlue and others sense a big growth opportunity \u2014 perhaps a once-in-a-decade chance \u2014 to make a big push in Fort Lauderdale, now perhaps one of the airline industry’s biggest flashpoints in the year ahead.<\/p>\n

“We are excited to welcome the new routes and\/or increased flight frequency that existing carriers have announced recently,” the Broward County Aviation Department, which oversees FLL, told TPG in a statement, noting the increase in “convenient and cost-effective ways to visit and enjoy these destinations” for business and leisure travelers alike.<\/p>\n

FAQ: Spirit Airlines’ bankruptcy and how it might affect your travel<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

JetBlue’s future plans in Europe<\/h2>\n

On top of adding new short-haul international routes to Latin America, JetBlue is also dropping hints about its future long-haul international flights to Europe.<\/p>\n

It was only four years ago the carrier launched its first transatlantic flights to London<\/a>. Then came Paris<\/a>, Amsterdam<\/a>, Dublin<\/a>, Edinburgh and Madrid<\/a>. But while JetBlue isn’t ruling out another European destination, it is expecting its fast growth trajectory across the pond to level off.<\/p>\n

The carrier is only slated to receive two more planes capable of reaching Europe between now and 2031: “We’re just about reaching the first plateau of transatlantic growth,” St. George said.<\/p>\n

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\"A<\/div>
A gate celebration marks the launch of JetBlue’s Dublin service in March 2024. SEAN CUDAHY\/THE POINTS GUY<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Still, the carrier remains bullish on its still-burgeoning Europe service.<\/p>\n

That’s especially true after the carrier began pulling back (some) on its transatlantic flights during the wintertime, instead deploying those planes \u2014 equipped with its spiffiest Mint cabin<\/a> \u2014 to popular warm-weather and skiing destinations.<\/p>\n

“That balance of good sun markets in the winter, and then the European markets in the summer and fall, has made for a very, very good profit portfolio for us,” St. George said.<\/p>\n

Doubling down on premium Europe service<\/h3>\n

JetBlue’s long-haul Europe service will get a premium infusion on the ground later this year when the carrier unveils its first airport lounge<\/a> at JFK, offering access to its Mint passengers taking those flights.<\/p>\n

A second outpost will open next year at BOS.<\/p>\n

While the lounges will cater to JetBlue’s high-paying travelers flying to Europe, there will be other ways for customers to gain entry. The airline will offer club access to top-tier Mosaic 4 elite status members, and TrueBlue loyalists who carry the carrier’s new premium credit card<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Related reading:<\/b><\/p>\n<\/div>\n


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As questions swirl about the future of Spirit Airlines, JetBlue has been making a big push in the budget airline’s backyard. And it may just be getting started. Last week, JetBlue announced a major expansion at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport (FLL), ramping up service to Latin America and a handful of U.S. cities \u2014 including […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":194327,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[15],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-194326","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-travel"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/entertainment.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/194326","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/entertainment.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/entertainment.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/entertainment.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/entertainment.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=194326"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/entertainment.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/194326\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/entertainment.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/194327"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/entertainment.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=194326"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/entertainment.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=194326"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/entertainment.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=194326"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}