JetBlue Airways is moving quickly to fill the void left by the Spirit Airlines collapse at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport (FLL).
The New York-based airline will resume some of Spirit’s lost service in Fort Lauderdale with 11 new routes from the airport starting in July. They are all markets that had been served by the discount store until its closure in the early hours of Saturday morning.
JetBlue’s new routes from FLL are:
- Ernesto Cortissoz International Airport (BAQ) in Barranquilla, Colombia, every day from October 1
- Baltimore-Washington International Airport (BWI), three times a day starting July 9
- Alfonso Bonilla Aragón International Airport (CLO) in Cali, Colombia, every day from October 15
- Charlotte Douglas International Airport (CLT), three times a day starting July 9
- Chicago O’Hare International Airport (ORD), twice daily starting July 9
- John Glenn Columbus International Airport (CMH) in Ohio, daily starting November 2
- Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport (DTW), twice daily starting July 9
- Houston Bush Intercontinental Airport (IAH), three times a day starting July 9
- Indianapolis International Airport (IND), daily starting November 2
- Nashville International Airport (BNA), three times a day starting July 9
- Mercedita International Airport (PSE) in Ponce, Puerto Rico, every day starting July 9
Of those, six are airports that JetBlue does not currently serve. They are: Barranquilla, Baltimore, Cali, Charlotte, Columbus and Indianapolis.
COMPLETE TPG COVERAGE: Spirit Airlines closes
“South Florida is a key market for JetBlue and we recognize this is a challenging time for many travelers,” Joanna Geraghty, JetBlue CEO, said in a statement. “Our goal is to take a step forward in the short term by adding services, maintaining connectivity and keeping fares competitive, so customers can continue traveling with confidence.”
Spirit’s closure removes nearly 2% of U.S. domestic seats from the market in one fell swoop, scheduling data from aviation analytics firm Cirium shows. Fort Laurderale was its largest market, followed by Orlando International Airport (MCO), Newark Liberty International Airport (EWR), Detroit and Chicago O’Hare.
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Airfares are expected to rise in Spirit’s former markets as airlines rush to cover soaring fuel costs as a result of the US-Israel war with Iran.
Wall Street analysts expect Frontier Airlines and JetBlue to be the biggest beneficiaries of Spirit’s closure due to overlapping networks.
Frontier and JetBlue, as well as American Airlines, Southwest Airlines and United Airlines, offer discount tickets to the stranded Spirit passengers.
For JetBlue, the closure opens the door to realizing its vision of a major hub at FLL. The airline has grown there since Spirit began to entrench itself last summer and will fly nearly 44% more seats from the airport this month compared to May 2025, according to Cirium schedules.
Speaking last week before the Spirit collapse, JetBlue President Marty St. George said, “We’re very happy with what we’re seeing in Fort Lauderdale.”
He described FLL as the “third leg of the stool” in terms of the airline’s route map with its bases at Boston’s Logan International Airport (BOS) and New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK) the other two legs.
JetBlue, as of Tuesday, planned to grow FLL to about the size of its BOS base as gates became available, he said. The airline too looking for space for a new BlueHouse lounge at Terminal 3 in Fort Lauderdale.
The airline flies about 90 daily departures from FLL compared to 130 from Boston, Cirium schedules show.
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