US carrier JetBlue has reported a net loss of $104 million for the fourth quarter of 2023, translating to an adjusted net loss of $63 million; despite capacity increasing by 3.3% year-on year and operating expense per available seat mile decreasing 2.4% year-on-year for the same period.
“2024 is an important year of chance for JetBlue and we are taking aggressive action, including launching $300 million of revenue initiatives, to return to profitability and delivery value for our shareholders,” said Joanna Geraghty, JetBlue’s president and chief operating officer.
JetBlue reported an operating revenue of $2.3bn for Q4 2023, down 3.7% year-over-year. Although noting that its fleet modernization programme realized around $55 million in cumulative cost savings (with A220s replacing E190s expected to deliver $75 million in savings through 2024), the airline has reached an agreement to defer around $2.5bn of planned aircraft capital expenses from 2024-2027 to 2028 and therefore ‘providing a more consistent level of annual aircraft deliveries through the end of the decade’.
The carrier ended the fourth quarter with$ 41.7 billion in unrestricted cash, cash equivalents, short-term investments, and long-term marketable securities (excluding its $600 million undrawn revolving credit facility).
Average fuel price for Q4 2023, including hedges, was $3.08 per gallon. However, Geraghty added that JetBlue is “carefully evaluating deeper cuts to [its] controllable costs beyond [the] ongoing fleet modernization and structural cost programs,” which will help the carrier “re-establish profitability and position JetBlue to restore historical earnings power”.
JetBlue also delivered a completion factor of 99.8% in Q4 2023, its best fourth-quarter figure since 2004.