Each day, there’s a bit more information that leaks about the rumored imminent partnership between JetBlue Airways and United Airlines. Rather than fixate on the partnership itself, I want to focus on how United Airlines would serve New York Kennedy if this partnership includes a return to JFK for United with 20 slot pairs.

How Would United Airlines Utilize 20 JFK Slot Pairs?

I think the answer is clear…we need only look at the words of CEO Scott Kirby.

The latest twist in the stream of rumors is a claim that as part of the partnership, United will gain access to 20 slot pairs (20 takeoffs and 20 landings each day) and access to two boarding gates from JetBlue.

Before we discuss how United would operate 20 flights per day at JFK, let’s review a bit of history first.

A Brief History Of United’s Struggles At New York JFK

In February 2021, United returned to New York JFK with four flights per day: two to Los Angeles (LAX) and two to San Francisco (SFO). The routes resumed utilizing United’s “High-J” 767-300, which featured 46 business class seats in a 1-1-1 configuration along with a premium economy section and a small economy class section.

By August 2021, it faced a dilemma: with only two flights per day between each of its West Coast hubs, there simply wasn’t enough scheduled service available to meaningfully pick off travelers from American Airlines, Delta Air Lines, JetBlue, and Alaska Airlines.

In October 2021, United downgauged all four JFK flights from the 767 to a much smaller 757-200 with an inferior business class seat and no premium economy.

By September 2022, United threatened to leave JFK if it was not allocated additional slots from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). At the time, it said:

“The reason is simple: without permanent slots, we can’t serve JFK effectively compared to the larger schedules and more attractive flight times flown by our competitors. For example, JetBlue currently flies to Los Angeles six times more often from JFK than United does and American flies there more than four times as frequently.”

It also argued that JFK could handle more traffic and United should be awarded more traffic rights:

“More specifically, JFK has four total runways (compared to just three at Newark – EWR) – two pairs of parallel runways – with the ability to consistently shift between two arrival or two departure runways to accommodate arrival or departure demand spikes. Yet, the airport capacity has remained the same: 81 operations per hour since 2008, just two more movements per hour than EWR’s stated limit of 79.”

But the pleas fell on deaf ears, and by the end of October 2022, United (once again, like in 2015) suspended JFK service.

> Read More:

• United JFK Employees Say Goodbye to Home, Hello to Uncertainty
• United Airlines Faces JFK Dilemma
• Confirmed: United Airlines Suspends JFK Service (Again)
• My Office Is A 767-300 Traveling Between LAX And JFK
• United Airlines Wants To Grow At New York JFK
• United Airlines Returns To New York JFK

Scott Kirby Already Told Us What He Wants At JFK

Recall that in 2022, United applauded a potential merger between JetBlue and Spirit, with Kirby saying it would lead to United getting back to JFK “in a big way, particularly in the transcon market.”

“Well certainly the place that we, whether it’s through JetBlue or somewhere else, we would like to get back into JFK in a big way, particularly in the transcon market. So getting enough slots at JFK that we can get back to serving San Francisco and Los Angeles, particularly for business customers, and having another real option for business customers in those markets that would be our number one priority.”

That’s the answer.

Going back more than a decade, United served Washington (IAD) and London (LHR) from JFK. In its final years, it served only LAX and SFO.

Based on the words of Kirby alone, I’m confident that United would use its 20 slots pairs to launch 10 flights per day to SFO and 10 flights per day to LAX. Well-timed flights throughout the day would be far more effective than a single morning and evening departure to each West Coast hub and the same is true in the opposite direction.

If United did utilize two JetBlue gates in T5, it could theoretically take over the shuttered AerLingus lounge to create lounge space (JetBlue also plans to open its own lounge in late 2025 at JFK, and more likely, United would use that).

CONCLUSION

I don’t mean to get ahead of ourselves here, but this kind of speculation is a lot of fun…but also rather obvious if you simply trace back the words of Kirby. Yes, United has made clear for years it wants to return to JFK and in so doing, operate transcontinental routes. That should come as no surprise. I don’t expect other new routes. And with AA A321Ts falling apart, there’s potential here.

But my question remains: What’s in it for JetBlue beyond more United flyers being exposed to its product? Is that enough to give another player, particularly one focused on creating a premium experience, a foot in the door on JetBlue’s bread and butter routes?

We’ll see…but if the deal is for 20 slot pairs has been reported, you can bet the service will be to SFO and LAX.