United and JetBlue Launch Blue Sky Partnership
United and JetBlue have teamed to form a new partnership dubbed “Blue Sky,” which aims to make it easier for travelers to find flights the airlines said in a press release.
The partnership lets guests earn and use points from United’s MileagePlus program and JetBlue’s TrueBlue program across both airlines. Additionally, benefits of each airline’s loyalty program, such as priority boarding, complimentary access to preferred and extra legroom seats and same-day standby/switch, will be available when customers travel on the other airline’s aircraft.
Each airline will offer flights on one another’s website and app to make booking across the two airlines’ complementary networks simple and easy. Blue Sky includes an interline agreement, not a codeshare, meaning each airline will continue to publish and market flights independently under its own brand and flight numbers.
As part of the airlines’ agreement, JetBlue will provide United access to slots at JFK International Airport for up to seven daily round-trip flights out of JFK Terminal 6 to begin as early as 2027. And, as part of a net-neutral exchange, JetBlue and United will exchange eight flight timings at Newark.
The press release also states that “United will move its website and mobile app’s ability to sell hotels, rental cars, cruises and travel insurance to JetBlue’s Paisly platform.
The Blue Sky partnership comes just three months after JetBlue’s president said the airline was discussing potential partnerships, after federal judges blocked the Northeast Alliance with American and the attempted purchase of Spirit Airlines.
