T-Bird76
2006-12-04, 01:28 PM
JetBlue delays delivery of new planes
By James Bernstein
Newsday Staff Writer
December 4, 2006, 9:44 AM EST
JetBlue Airways Corp., once among the fastest-growing airlines in the industry, said today it is delaying deliveries of new Embraer 190 jets that it had been scheduled to receive from 2007 to 2010.
The Forest Hills-based airline said it is delaying delivery of 32 so-called E-190 jets between 2007 and 2010 because of higher fuel prices and increasing competition, factors that have been plaguing JetBlue and other airlines for several years now, even though passenger traffic has increased dramatically since the Sept. 11, 2001 terror attacks.
JetBlue will accept delivery of 10 of the Brazilian-built E-190s next year, down from the 18 it had been scheduled to receive.
The airline also said, as it has previously, that its growth target for next year will be to increase capacity by 14 percent to 17 percent, down from its previous goal of 18 percent to 20 percent.
Amy Carpi, JetBlue's director of investor relations, said in a telephone interview this morning that the airline may be slowing growth some but, "We remain a growth airline."
JetBlue's fleet consisted of Airbus A-320 jets, until it began taking on E-190s, which carry about 100 passengers and enable the airline to focus on more higher-return, shorter flights.
JetBlue in October reported a third-quarter loss of $500,000, compared with a gain of $2.69 million in the same period last year.
The airline has orders for 100 E-190s and options on another 100.
In a statement this morning, David Neeleman, JetBlue's founder and chairman, said, "We are now entering a new chapter in the JetBlue story -- still a story of strategic growth, but more a targeted growth that builds on our market dominance on the East Coast, and in particular, our home base of operations" at Kennedy Airport.
Shares of JetBlue closed Friday at $13.38, down 28 cents.
By James Bernstein
Newsday Staff Writer
December 4, 2006, 9:44 AM EST
JetBlue Airways Corp., once among the fastest-growing airlines in the industry, said today it is delaying deliveries of new Embraer 190 jets that it had been scheduled to receive from 2007 to 2010.
The Forest Hills-based airline said it is delaying delivery of 32 so-called E-190 jets between 2007 and 2010 because of higher fuel prices and increasing competition, factors that have been plaguing JetBlue and other airlines for several years now, even though passenger traffic has increased dramatically since the Sept. 11, 2001 terror attacks.
JetBlue will accept delivery of 10 of the Brazilian-built E-190s next year, down from the 18 it had been scheduled to receive.
The airline also said, as it has previously, that its growth target for next year will be to increase capacity by 14 percent to 17 percent, down from its previous goal of 18 percent to 20 percent.
Amy Carpi, JetBlue's director of investor relations, said in a telephone interview this morning that the airline may be slowing growth some but, "We remain a growth airline."
JetBlue's fleet consisted of Airbus A-320 jets, until it began taking on E-190s, which carry about 100 passengers and enable the airline to focus on more higher-return, shorter flights.
JetBlue in October reported a third-quarter loss of $500,000, compared with a gain of $2.69 million in the same period last year.
The airline has orders for 100 E-190s and options on another 100.
In a statement this morning, David Neeleman, JetBlue's founder and chairman, said, "We are now entering a new chapter in the JetBlue story -- still a story of strategic growth, but more a targeted growth that builds on our market dominance on the East Coast, and in particular, our home base of operations" at Kennedy Airport.
Shares of JetBlue closed Friday at $13.38, down 28 cents.