By Philip Newman
The Kew Gardens-based airline JetBlue has ordered two more Airbus A320 jetliners as part of a planned expansion of its fleet and has begun new service from Washington, D.C. to the West Coast.
“JetBlue is moving forward with its controlled growth business plan and to date our fleet of A320s has carried more than five million happy customers,” said Chief Executive Officer David Neeleman. “Our Airbus fleet has performed very well, which makes our job of taking our customers where they want to go, comfortably and on time much easier.”
The new jetliners are scheduled for delivery in December 2002 and May 2003 with 51 such aircraft set for delivery through the year 2005.
The Airbus A320s used exclusively by JetBlue are equipped with leather seats and television at every seat.
JetBlue last week began non-stop flights from Washington/Dulles International airport and both Long Beach and Oakland Calif.
JetBlue inaugurated service out of Dulles in November with service to Fort Lauderdale, Fla. The airline plans to begin service from its flight center at John F. Kennedy International Airport to San Juan, P.R. on May 30, its first service beyond the United States mainland. Three flights daily are scheduled.
JetBlue recently came out with the first earnings report since the airline began business just over two years ago. It showed a doubling of sales and profits of 93 percent over those of a year earlier.
From JFK, JetBlue flies to five Florida destinations, three upstate New York cities, Long Beach, Ontario and Oakland, Calif., Burlington, Vt., New Orleans, Denver, Salt Lake City and Seattle.
All seats are assigned, all fares are one-way and a Saturday night stay is never required. A $5 discount is offered through May 31 on fares booked through the web site www.jetblue.com.
Shares of JetBlue, which were sold to the public April 12, plummeted by nearly $5 to $49.60 a share Tuesday on the Nasdaq market after an analyst at UBS Warburg who helped write the public offering said the stock appeared overvalued. Other analysts gave the JetBlue stock a valued fairly assessment.
Reach contributing writer Philip Newman by e-mail at Timesledgr@aol.com or call 229-0300, Ext. 136.
