JetBlue has issued a warning to investors on the impact of recent service disruptions, as the company enters the final month of the fourth quarter.
Though fourth-quarter bookings are trending “in-line with expectations”, JetBlue said in a SEC filing that it was significantly affected by US government shutdown-related cancellations and by Hurricane Melissa in Jamaica.
Together, these two events resulted in an approximately one point reduction to available seat mile (ASM) growth during the fourth quarter. Non-fuel unit cost growth was also impacted by one point due to the ASM reductions.
Over the weekend, JetBlue was further impacted by an emergency airworthiness directive issued in relation to a software issue across Airbus's A320 family aircraft.
The airline said it has completed the required software updates on its A320 and A321 fleet, and that these aircraft have resumed normal operations.
However, this event reduced JetBlue’s fourth-quarter ASM growth by approximately 0.25%, and the airline continues to evaluate the potential financial impact of the weekend’s disruption.
During the company’s third-quarter earnings call, JetBlue President Marty St. George said the company is “optimistic” that the demand environment will continue to improve through the end of the year.
"Peaks are expected to remain strong while troughs remain challenging, and we continue to expect relatively stronger demand for our premium offerings versus core,” he said.
However, fourth-quarter guidance issued by JetBlue at the time explicitly states that it does not contemplate “any impact” from an extended US government shutdown or from Hurricane Melissa.
Going into the fourth quarter, Jamaica represented 2.6% of the airline’s scheduled capacity.