Latest News

JetBlue looks for to block United from winning new Washington DC location flight

JetBlue Airways asked the U.S. Transportation Department on Wednesday to disqualify United Airlines from winning among 5 brand-new roundtrip flights from congested Washington Reagan National Airport.

JetBlue said United's proposition to include a Washington to Los Angeles flight should be turned down due to the fact that it would take off before 7 a.m. and the airline company stated that is prohibited by Congress. On May 16, President Joe Biden signed legislation creating the brand-new flights at the busy airport in Arlington, Virginia, outside the nation's capital.

JetBlue has obtained a 2nd round-trip flight to San Juan, Puerto Rico, from Reagan National Airport. United, which stated its backup proposition was a brand-new flight to Los Angeles, declined to comment.

Comments on applications should be submitted by July 17 and choices on the brand-new flights by the Transport Department are to be announced later this month.

The Washington, D.C., area has 3 significant airports, but Reagan National is the closest to the U.S. Capitol and downtown.

Since of its brief runways, its primary runway is the busiest in the nation. Reagan is the 24rd-busiest U.S. airport as measured in travelers.

Delta Air Lines has actually made an application for a new flight in between Seattle and Reagan and if effective would compete with Alaska Airlines, which runs the two existing everyday flights in between the airports.

Delta greatly lobbied for the modification - and had pushed for adding far more day-to-day flights - while United opposed it.

Southwest looked for a brand-new daily flight between Washington and Las Vegas, which has only one flight each day on American Airlines. Las Vegas airport estimates the new flights would decrease typical round-trip rates by $130.

American has used to start a brand-new day-to-day flight in between San Antonio, Texas, and Washington, which would link the seventh-largest U.S. city to the D.C. airport.

Consumer advocacy group Travelers United urged the Transport Department to turn down the American Airlines application, stating that American runs about 60% of flights at Reagan

Alaska Airlines has looked for a brand-new daily flight to Reagan. from San Diego, California, which is the largest market without direct flights to the D.C. airport

(source: Reuters)