JetBlue announced it will make its highly anticipated entrance into the transatlantic market with nonstop service between New York’s John F. Kennedy international Airport (JFK) and London Heathrow Airport (LHR) starting from August 11, 2021. The airline will also add a nonstop service between New York-JFK and London Gatwick Airport (LGW) starting September 29, 2021. London service from Boston will start in Summer 2022.
“The pandemic has opened doors to London’s two busiest airports, and we look forward to bringing customers low fares and great service at both Heathrow and Gatwick,” said Robin Hayes, chief executive officer, JetBlue. “JFK-LHR, the single largest international air travel market from the US, has long suffered from outrageously high fares for far too long, especially in premium cabins. We’re ready to change that with a price point and experience that will impress even the most discerning transatlantic flyers. We’ve always said that JetBlue would serve multiple London airports, and we’re pleased to have secured a path at Heathrow and for long-term growth at Gatwick, which offers speed, low costs, and convenient accessibility into Central London.”
Flights on both routes will operate daily on JetBlue’s new Airbus A321 Long Range (LR) aircraft with 24 redesigned Mint suites, 117 core seats and the sleek and spacious Airspace cabin interior.
JetBlue is set to take delivery of three A321LRs in 2021, all operating on the JFK routes.
Additional A321LRs scheduled for 2022 will operate Boston service.
“Our low fares will disrupt the pricing of the major carriers and massive joint ventures; JetBlue’s presence in this market is going to be immediately noticeable to customers,” said Hayes. “When we launched Mint in 2014, we cut in half the cost of premium travel between New York and California, and now we’re ready to shake up the transatlantic market the same way, with Mint fares that will half the cost of a full-fare walkup business class seat on the legacy carriers. Heathrow is one of the busiest airports in the world, and our initial schedule is made possible due to temporary slot availability from the past year. We continue to work with the slot coordinators and the U.S. and U.K. governments to identify long-term pathways to continue serving Heathrow, as we believe the public benefit from true competition into this market will be extremely meaningful.”
“JetBlue’s touchdown at Heathrow as its first U.K. base is a ringing endorsement of the value we deliver for our passengers and the country,” said John Holland-Kaye, chief executive officer, Heathrow Airport. “JetBlue is a fantastic airline, renowned for delivering top-quality service at competitive prices. That value for money mantra is also at the heart of what we do at Heathrow, and we’re delighted that we’ll be seeing their characteristic blue tailfins at the airport later this year. In the meantime, Ministers should help more people travel safely and boost the economy by moving more low-risk destinations – including the U.S. – to the green list as vaccination rates increase and infections decrease.”
“We have an incredible opportunity to secure long term slots in London’s second-largest airport, and we look forward to building our presence there over the long-term,” Hayes said. “Gatwick will perfectly complete our London service, giving customers options as they plan their travel. Gatwick is an attractive choice with its low costs, speed and convenience to Central London.”
“Being able to offer our customers the low cost, high value experience from JetBlue, with daily flights to New York starting in just a few months, is a welcome addition to the choice of airlines and destinations which Gatwick currently has,” said Stewart Wingate, chief executive officer, Gatwick Airport. “Equally we look forward to welcoming travellers from the U.S. who are looking for easy, quick access to London, the South of England and beyond. We believe this is a start of an important long-term partnership for us and we look forward adding JetBlue flights to and from Boston next year.”