Partnership with JetBlue brings AA back to Athens
American Airlines and JetBlue Airways said on Thursday they were forming a strategic partnership to boost flying options in New York and Boston and create what executives called a “growth engine” to recover from the Covid-19 pandemic.
The deal, which allows the two carriers to sell each other’s flights and link frequent flyer programs, gives them more muscle against rivals United Airlines and Delta Air Lines in the northeast at a time when carriers are preparing to downsize and cut jobs.
It makes American “a more-powerful player in the country’s economic center,” said Scott Mayerowitz at the Points Guy, helping it to fill international flights and compete for lucrative corporate contracts without investing in a network of domestic routes.
For starters, American will use the partnership to feed traffic out of New York (JFK) to international destinations including Tel Aviv, Athens and Rio de Janeiro in 2021.
[Reuters]
