Just a day after Spirit Airlines announced a major shift in its fare strategy, other low-cost carriers are also making big shifts, with Frontier cutting back 43 routes from its network, and JetBlue postponing delivery of 44 new Airbus planes until after 2030.
Frontier’s announcement, which pulls the routes from its winter schedule and lists no plans for when or if they might return, is part of the move by low-cost and ultra-low-cost carriers to return to profitability, which most have not seen since the middle of the pandemic slowdowns.
Frontier said it is “reducing network capacity given the current industry supply and demand imbalance. We will evaluate individual markets for potential resumption in 2025 based on relevant seasonal performance.” Cleveland, Orlando and Philadelphia are the most heavily-affected cities.
JetBlue, whose CEO says that the drumbeat of cutbacks and realignments is nearly at an end, will go ahead with plans to retire its smallest planes, 22 E190s by the end of next year as it takes delivery of new A220s; the A220 has 30% more seats and is far less expensive to operate. But the 44 A320 family planes that were to fuel the next generation of JetBlue’s growth will now have to wait until better financial times.
