JetBlue announced yesterday that they will be opening a crew base in San Juan, Puerto Rico. JetBlue is the largest airline at Luis Muñoz Marin International Airport (SJU) in San Juan and has plans to grow there even further. Earlier this month the airline announced a large expansion in the Caribbean and Latin America, primarily focused on SJU.
Growing in San Juan
JetBlue’s presence in Puerto Rico dates back over two decades. The airline began service to SJU back in 2002 and it has grown into a focus city for the airline. The airline has previously called San Juan on of their most successful focus cities so it shouldn’t come as a surprise that they would add this base. I even saw a post someone on Twitter/X respond to the announcement with shock as they assumed that SJU was already a crew base.
In the press release, the airline indicates that they are planning to base 120 pilots and up to 325 inflight crew members in San Juan. JetBlue’s Chief Operating Officer, Warren Christie, had this to say about the new base;
“We’re so excited to base hundreds more crewmembers right here in San Juan, where we are proud to be the largest airline with plans to grow even more. The new crew base will support our operation as we grow and benefit the local economy in a place we are proud to call home.”
Warren Christie, JetBlue COO
San Juan becomes the 7th crew base for JetBlue, joining Boston, Ft. Lauderdale, Los Angeles, New York-JFK, New York-Newark, and Orlando. The airline added a maintenance base in San Juan back in 2020.
The base is expected to open in phases, beginning at the end of 2024. This will be the airline’s first crew base outside of the continental United States. With the size of their San Juan operation, having a local crew base should greatly assist with operations.
The Governor of Puerto Rico, Pedro R. Pierluisi, championed the announcement as a vote of confidence for Puerto Rico in the airline’s network.
“This new crew operation base at the Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport, in addition to creating hundreds of jobs, confirms the confidence of the airline in the Puerto Rico market. I thank JetBlue for choosing our Island for its continued economic growth on our Island.”
Puerto Rico Governor Pedro R. Pierluisi
Summary
JetBlue is opening a new pilot and flight crew base in San Juan, Puerto Rico. This will be the airline’s first crew base outside of the continental United States. This announcement comes as the airline continues to grow its presence in Puerto Rico, where it is the largest carrier.
