American Airlines and JetBlue Airways will begin to wind down their Northeast Alliance on July 21.
The Northeast Alliance helped American Airlines in the New York market. Before the Northeast Alliance, this was where American Airlines had been losing money. In May, a federal judge ordered the airlines to end their agreement.
Starting July 21, American and JetBlue customers can no longer book new codeshare flights on the other airline. For American customers, they can update their American booking with a TrueBlue member number until July 20th. For JetBlue customers, they can also update their existing booking using an AAdvantage number until the same date. According to an American Airlines spokesperson, existing bookings are not affected.
JetBlue’s Northeast Alliance vice president Dave Fintzen said that they are disappointed to end “popular benefits like codesharing and reciprocal loyalty benefits.” He added that “We know customers will miss these features.”
But despite the end of the NEA, both JetBlue and American said that both companies will do their best to minimize disruptions to those that already booked their tickets. They will also reach out to customers who will need either a re-accommodation or a refund.
Fintzen said that “With the court’s recent ruling and the termination of the NEA, we have to sunset them in short order.” He added that “Even as these benefits end, we are still committed to minimizing disruption to existing travel plans and continuing to deliver great value and our award-winning product and service to our customers.”
Northeast Alliance Out, JetBlue-Spirit Merger In?
JetBlue decided to no longer appeal the court decision that the Northeast Alliance violates antitrust law. And though JetBlue will no longer appeal the court decision, it wants to focus its attention on the planned $3.8 billion purchase of Spirit Airlines. CEO Robin Hayes in a staff memo said that “This decision will enable us to focus even more on our combination with Spirit.”
American Airlines, on the other hand, has a different plan. It says that it plans to challenge US District Judge Leo Sorokin’s decision.
