Last July, American Airlines (NASDAQ: AAL) and JetBlue Airways (NASDAQ: JBLU) announced plans to team up through a new alliance covering New York and Boston. Earlier this week, the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) closed its review of the proposed alliance. The DOT will allow the partnership to go forward in exchange for several key concessions and commitments by American and JetBlue. Let's take a look.
American Airlines and JetBlue are planning for a level of cooperation that is unprecedented among major U.S. airlines (excluding mergers, of course). When they initially announced the partnership last year, American and JetBlue pointed to codesharing, slot swaps at New York's LaGuardia and JFK Airports, and reciprocal frequent-flyer benefits as some advantages of teaming up. These forms of cooperation are all tried and true in the domestic market, but have limited benefits.
Image source: American Airlines and JetBlue Airways.
For further details see:
American Airlines and JetBlue Get DOT Clearance for Northeast Alliance