I was one of three adults who led a backpacking trip to the Colorado Rockies this past June with six teenage Boy Scouts from Troop 876 of Savannah, Ga. After seven nights camping, our tenth night — June 26 — was to be aboard a redeye to Kennedy Airport, followed by a morning flight to Savannah, both on JetBlue Airways. But our Denver departure was delayed over two hours and we missed the connection. We waited for three hours in line, only to politely be told the next flight available was five days later, even after we offered to fly to Atlanta, Charleston, S.C., or Jacksonville, Fla., instead. JetBlue would not provide a hotel. So we opted for a refund (plus $12 meal vouchers), rented two cars and drove 14 hours home, racking up about $1,200 in travel expenses. But when our refunds from JetBlue came through, they totaled $261 for nine of us, only 18 percent of the original cost. A customer service representative later explained to me by phone that we had been reimbursed for only the New York to Savannah leg. We believe JetBlue should have gotten us on an earlier flight on a different airline or at least reimbursed us for the nine fares and fees totaling $1,458, and perhaps chipped in for the expenses to get home. Can you help?
JetBlue Has a New Boarding Scheme. It’s Complicated
27.07.2023 - 18:20 / smartertravel.com
To airline managers, an airplane sitting on the ground is a horror: an expensive asset failing to justify its expense. The goal is full utilization, which means keeping planes airborne as many hours as possible, with as many passengers on board as possible.
One key to maximizing utilization is timely turn-arounds, which require quick, orderly boarding. That would seem to be among an airline’s easiest tasks. Yet after more than a century of commercial air travel, there’s still no consensus on the best way to quickly fill a plane with passengers.
Some airlines board passengers by row; others board by cabin; and still others use a hybrid scheme that combines considerations of row and cabin and other factors.
While there’s no consistency among different airlines, travelers can at least expect consistency from flight to flight when flying the same carrier. Until, that is, the airline changes schemes.
That’s just what JetBlue did recently, replacing its row-by-row boarding with a new group-based approach, which boards passengers in the following order:
Pre-boarding for disabled passengers Mosaic elite and Mint passengers Even More Space passengers (Group A) Active military and passengers with children in strollers or car seats Group B Group C Group D Group E Everyone elseNaturally, JetBlue paints a rosy picture of the new process, touting its supposed benefits to passengers. In response to a request for more information regarding the reasons for the change and its effects, a JetBlue representative claimed the new procedure was designed to “reduce congestion on the jet bridge and in the aisles—and get customers on their way faster than ever.” As for its effects, “While the process is still new, we have been quite pleased with the results. Many customers and crewmembers have remarked on the ease and speed of boarding.”
Related:This Country Just Took the Title for World’s Most Powerful PassportIs it really any faster than the old way? JetBlue customers commenting on FlyerTalk, a discussion board for frequent flyers, gave the new scheme mixed reviews.
According to one commenter:
But another’s experience was less positive:
And there was at least one conspiracy theorist, who divined ulterior motives in the switch:
Indeed, for what’s being characterized as a customer benefit, the airline has been notably mum on the subject. Aside from an email to JetBlue’s elite Mosaic members, there has been suspiciously little communication about the change. No news release. No social media buzz. Nothing.
As a result, many JetBlue travelers have been taken by surprise when faced with the new boarding rules. Whether it’s ultimately deemed a pleasant surprise or not remains to be seen.
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