Continental Fight's Back Jetblue: Adds more flights to Florida, lowers fares

[babypurin]

Continental Airlines (CAL) will expand service to Florida from its Newark Liberty hub and offered reduced fares on certain of those routes on the same day that JetBlue Airways Corp. (JBLU) (JBLU) said it would begin service in Newark.

Continental will add eight daily round-trip flights on Newark-to-Florida routes beginning Oct. 1, bringing the total number of daily round-trips on the route to 35.

http://money.excite.com/jsp/nw/nwdt_rt.jsp?section=news&cat=INDUSTRY&feed=dji&news_id=dji-00080820050712&date=20050712

[ATrude777]

And once again why didnt CO do this in the first place? Thanks Jetblue for lowering the prices, and adding frequency!!

Think of it as the Southwest Effect, only with Jetblue.

Alex

[babypurin]

And once again why didnt CO do this in the first place? Thanks Jetblue for lowering the prices, and adding frequency!!

Think of it as the Southwest Effect, only with Jetblue.

Alex

But who will win, Continental or Jetblue?

I don't Continental ever thought that Jetblue was going to come to Newark. After kicking out Song, I think they believed that they were not going to have any competition on one of their lucrative routes.

Although, it is great that Continental is lowering fares on their monopolistic (for Newark at least) Florida routes, but will the new prices convince their loyal customers to stay with them or switch to Jetblue. Who knows? We'll find out this October.

[chrisburns]

Gooooo Continental!!!!

[ATrude777]

But who will win, Continental or Jetblue?

Oh I am sure CO will win due to the FF base there. B6 and CO are quite even, frequency, FFP, and they both offer a great food service in flight as well. I really believe it is a close call. We will see.

Alex

[HPA320]

I bet you with CO or B6 at EWR. They getting extra flights EWR-FLL on CO with total of 9 dailies roundtrip on Oct 1. It will be get hard time for competition on jetBlue & Continental. After DL is discontinuation with FLL-EWR last year in 2004? Become it is too poorly loaded to FLL. If I will hear news from DL to get reinstated on Song back to EWR in the future.

[babypurin]

If I will hear news from DL to get reinstated on Song back to EWR in the future.

First of all, Song will not go back to EWR a few months after they leave the market just so they can slowly nip at Jetblue. If they are leaving the market because Continental overtook them, with additional another airline now competiting on the same route, it ain't going to make it any easier; don't you think?

After DL is discontinuation with FLL-EWR last year in 2004?

Delta has absolutely no chance of survival on the Newark to Florida routes. Without a large connection base in the New Jersey area they aren't really able to offer any inducent to NJ flyers to fly on them over Continental; unless they are able to undercut Jetblue's fares which is likely nil because they have a much higher cost base. Continental will attack anyone who tries to compete on their Floridian routes.

[c0ex]

I hope that Continental Airlines has Jetblue leave EWR, just like Delta did to Jetblue at ATL.
BTW
What gates is jetblue suppose to use because continental has tried to get every gate availible at EWR?

[babypurin]

I hope that Continental Airlines has Jetblue leave EWR, just like Delta did to Jetblue at ATL.
BTW
What gates is jetblue suppose to use because continental has tried to get every gate availible at EWR?

While it may be too early to tell what gates Jetblue will end up scraping up at EWR, they will mostly borrow some gates from some Terminal C carrier.

[HPA320]

I hope that Continental Airlines has Jetblue leave EWR, just like Delta did to Jetblue at ATL.
BTW
What gates is jetblue suppose to use because continental has tried to get every gate availible at EWR?

Yes, I remember with B6 serves to ATL from last 2 years ago and they pulled out from late 2003. Become they already comeptition on both DL & FL to LAX & SFO. I doublt when B6 will come back to ATL in the future.

[TheMightyM]

But who will win, Continental or Jetblue?

I don't Continental ever thought that Jetblue was going to come to Newark. After kicking out Song, I think they believed that they were not going to have any competition on one of their lucrative routes.

If anyone at CO that matters seriously thought that, they should be fired. Consider: What does B6 do? They fly relatively long segments with high aircraft usage. Where are they strong and already have brand recognizition? NYC, Florida, especially south Florida... Who has the largest marketshare NYC-FLL: B6 (a year ago they had 32.7% market share!). Given those strengths, it real isn't much of a jump for B6 to move into EWR as it builds on their strengths

... and given that CO announced its response -- complete with the exact number of flights they were adding -- the same day B6 announced EWR service, this is indeed something CO had considered possible and prepared for.

Who wins? The consumer, through lower fares and more choice. Both CO and B6 are so strong in these markets, that will likely will have to coexist.

[DAL767-400ER]

While it may be too early to tell what gates Jetblue will end up scraping up at EWR, they will mostly borrow some gates from some Terminal C carrier.

You do know that Terminal C is strictly CO, and CO only, right? JB will most likely get some gates at A, perhaps some ex-UA gates, as UA has far too many gates for their needs.

[babypurin]

You do know that Terminal C is strictly CO, and CO only, right? JB will most likely get some gates at A, perhaps some ex-UA gates, as UA has far too many gates for their needs.

sorry, meant Terminal A.

[c0ex]

How could this of happened? I thought CO was trying to et every gate availible at EWR. Wouldnt the PANYNJ giving CO the gates?

[assghanistan]

CO can definitely stand up against B6 at EWR, if anything, due to it's connecting traffic into EWR. I doubt that both airlines will be able to sustain that amount of flights into those markets, but I don't think B6 will pull out as easily as Song did, either. I imagine after a few months, both airlines will scale back their frequencies. CO just has too good of a FF program for B6 to pull that much traffic from them.