Dive Brief:
- JetBlue announced a fresh first-class domestic product and overhauled its fare structure on Monday, joining other airlines expanding premium experience offerings to meet demand and bolster revenue. The airline will launch BlueFirst later this year, CEO Joanna Geraghty said on a Q2 2026 earnings call Tuesday.
- BlueFirst will fill the gaps in the carrier’s premium offerings, as its business-class Mint fare is only available on limited aircraft and routes, and it offers a more premium experience than the carrier’s EvenMore premium-economy seats. JetBlue will retrofit the bulk of its fleet throughout 2027 and plans to complete BlueFirst retrofits in 2028.
- “BlueFirst is the largest individual JetForward initiative,” President Marty St. George said on the earnings call. “It represents an important next step in evolving JetBlue's product offering, allowing us to better serve customers looking for a premium experience while strengthening unit revenue over time.”
Dive Insight:
Despite JetBlue’s reputation as a more affordable airline, the carrier has jumped on the premium bandwagon. But it wasn’t an easy decision.
“We struggled a very long time deciding to introduce first class, because we were concerned that we were known as a very egalitarian brand, and we didn’t want to lose that, but our first class is accessible first class,” Geraghty said in April at the Semafor World Economy summit in Washington.
The airline launched Mint, its premium business class lie-flat seats, in 2014 on some routes. It launched EvenMore, a premium-economy experience featuring extra legroom, in early 2025. Its experience with those products provides the airline insights in how to best roll out BlueFirst, St. George said.
The benefit of BlueFirst, St. George said, “is getting new revenue on the airplane that we didn't have before.”
Two years ago, JetBlue began pursuing a turnaround with its JetForward plan. As two elements of that plan ramp up, Blue First and Blue Sky, its joint loyalty venture with United Airlines, the carrier expects to return to sustained operating profitability in 2027.
“Looking further ahead, we expect BlueFirst and other JetForward initiatives to continue ramping into 2028 and beyond, helping to drive JetForward annual incremental EBIT to approximately $1.2 billion and a return to positive pretax margin,” Geraghty said.
On Tuesday, the airline reported second quarter revenue of $2.7 billion, a 14.5% year-over-year increase, according to an earnings release. Operating revenue per available seat mile increased 10.9% year over year. However, the airline reported a net loss of $247 million amid volatile fuel prices.
In addition to launching BlueFirst, the airline has restructured its purchasing experience. Now, customers are presented with four experiences: Main, EvenMore, BlueFirst, and Mint.
They then choose from three different fare options: Base; Standard, which includes seat selection, no change fees; and Flex, which includes seat selection, no change fees and a refund to the original form of payment for eligible cancellations.
