JetBlue fights discounters with no-frill option in fare overhaul

Bloomberg

JetBlue Airways Corp, bowing to rising competitive pressures, began offering a no-frills option in the first revamp of its fare categories since they were introduced in 2015.
Customers buying a reduced Blue Basic fare won’t get a refund if they have to cancel, can’t make changes to the reservation and will have to board last — standards that match other airlines for the category. There are no extra fees for a carry-on bag and one personal item.
JetBlue is feeling pressure from ultra-discounters such as Spirit Airlines and Frontier Airlines, as well as from larger carriers like Delta Air Lines and American Airlines that adopted the reduced, no-extras basic fares several years ago to keep from losing customers to less-expensive rivals.
“Over the last few years, it’s become very clear this no-frills basic economy segment has become a larger and larger set of customers,” Dave Clark, JetBlue’s vice president of sales and revenue management, said in an interview. “Not having that offering, we couldn’t compete effectively.”
Blue Basic also will give JetBlue the tools to “more aggressively” drive fares lower, said JetBlue President Joanna Geraghty. The carrier, which plans to begin trans-Atlantic flights in 2021, hasn’t decided whether to offer Blue Basic on that service, she said.
In contrast to competitors, the Basic Blue fare will allow passengers to select a seat 24 hours before a flight at no charge.