JetBlue: Extra Leg Room For Sale

[Yusoff 1]

Stumbled upon this on my email news ticker, well, 5 days old already:

 

from: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/06/travel/06COMleg.html

 

For Sale on JetBlue: Extra Leg Room

 

By HILARY HOWARD

Published: April 6, 2008

 

Good news for long-limbed or claustrophobic travelers: JetBlue Airways (www.jetblue.com) began selling optional seats with 38 inches of pitch — four inches more than its standard seats — on April 1

 

On JetBlue’s 150-seat A320s, above, the new seats are in rows 2 through 5 and in the emergency exit rows, a total of 36 on each plane. The airline’s 100-seat Embraer 190s have the new seats in emergency exit rows only, four seats per plane. They cost $10 extra on flights under 600 miles, $15 up to 1,500 miles, and $20 on long-haul flights.

Next coming deal from AK and D7 --> Extra Leg Room: from RM 9.99

Any takers?

Edited April 10, 2008 by Yusoff

[Azuddin 1]

Comparing to AK, at least Jetblue got live TV on board.

[Mohd Azizul Ramli 2]

Actually D7 has been selling extra legroom since day 1 of their operation. All the bulkhead and the first row seats on the second part of the Economy class cabin are on sell for MYR 100 per seat.

 

D7 also charged MYR 20 for passengers who want to choose the seat on their own. D7 also has been charging for check in luggages (as discussed in another thread) for MYR 20 for the first 15 kg and the charges increase progressively since day 1 of their operation.

 

However, I doubt it that AK/FD/QZ will offer this service. To have a 38 inch legroom for a few seats meaning AK would have to sacrifice a few rows of its tight pitch seats, which will reduce the capacity offered on each flight. To refitted the whole fleet to this new seat's configuration is another big investment.

[Bennedic 0]

The reason why B6 is doing this is to enable them to fly with only 3 FAs onboard as opposed to the current 4 on the A320.

 

Previously B6 offered either 36in or 34in of legroom depending on which part of the aircraft you are seated. Rows 1-11 had 36in, anything behind that had 34in. They didn't charge for sitting in the forward cabin.

 

With the removal of rows to allow for extra legroom, the aircraft can now fly lighter than before, saving fuel costs. Also, since they now charge for extra legroom, it becomes an additional source of revenue for the airline. All this added to the savings from having one less FA per flight help to increase total revenue for the airline in the long run.

[Pieter C. 5]

" Good news for long-limbed or claustrophobic travelers: JetBlue Airways (www.jetblue.com) began selling optional seats with 38 inches of pitch — four inches more than its standard seats — on April 1 "

 

hehehe, look at this one :

 

JetBlue Sued Over Flight Spent In Toilet

 

May 13, 2008

A New York man who says he was denied a seat on a five hour JetBlue flight and was instead told to "hang out" in the plane's bathroom has sued the airline for USD$2 million, saying he suffered "extreme humiliation."

 

When Gokhan Mutlu arrived to check in for a JetBlue flight from San Diego to New York in February he was told the flight was full, according to the lawsuit filed in New York State Supreme Court.

 

But Mutlu was allowed to board after a JetBlue flight attendant agreed to give up her seat and travel in an airline employee "jump seat." It was not clear in the lawsuit whether the flight attendant was working.

 

However 90 minutes into the flight, the pilot told Mutlu the flight attendant was uncomfortable and he would have to give up his seat and "hang out" in the bathroom for the remainder of the flight, the lawsuit said.

 

The pilot "became angry at (Mutlu's) reluctance" and said Mutlu "should be grateful for being onboard," the lawsuit said. When Mutlu volunteered to sit in the "jump seat," he was told it was reserved for airline personnel.

 

At one point, the plane experienced turbulence and Mutlu sat on the toilet seat without a seat belt, causing him "tremendous fear," the lawsuit said.

 

(Reuters)

 

Why did he accept a jumpseat if he knew the flight was full ?

Take it or leave it...it was his own choice not to be on an ordinary seat

 

 

 

[mokhzani 0]

Is this for real?

 

Man sues JetBlue for making him sit on toilet

By SAMUEL MAULL

NEW YORK

A New York City man is suing JetBlue Airways Corp. for more than $2 million because he says a pilot made him give up his seat to a flight attendant and sit on the toilet for more than three hours on a flight from California.

Gokhan Mutlu, of Manhattan's Inwood section, says in court papers the pilot told him to "go 'hang out' in the bathroom" about 90 minutes into the San Diego to New York flight because the flight attendant complained that the "jump seat" she was assigned was uncomfortable, the lawsuit said.

Mutlu was traveling on a a "buddy pass," a standby travel voucher that JetBlue employees give to friends, from New York to San Diego on Feb. 16, and returned to New York on Feb. 23, the lawsuit said.

Initially, Mutlu was told a flight attendant had taken the last seat on the plane, but then he was advised she would sit in the employee "jump seat," meaning he could have the last seat, the lawsuit said.

The pilot told him 1 1/2 hours into the five-hour flight that he would have to relinquish the seat to the flight attendant, court papers say. But the pilot said that Mutlu could not sit in the jump seat because only JetBlue employees were permitted to sit there, the lawsuit said.

When Mutlu expressed reluctance to go sit in the bathroom, the pilot, who was not named in the lawsuit, told him that "he was the pilot, that this was his plane, under his command that (Mutlu) should be grateful for being on board," the lawsuit said.

The aircraft hit turbulence and passengers were directed to return to their seats, but "the plaintiff had no seat to return to, sitting on a toilet stool with no seat belts," court papers say.

Some time later, a male flight attendant knocked on the restroom door and told Mutlu he could return to his original seat, court papers say.

Mutlu's lawsuit, filed Friday in Manhattan's state Supreme Court, says JetBlue negligently endangered him by not providing him with a seat with a safety belt or harness, in violation of federal law.

A JetBlue spokesman declined comment on the lawsuit Monday.

 

 

[Hakan 2]

Gokhan Mutlu is a Turkish Citizens who lives in USA.I read almost the same story in Turkish newspaper but with a little different; Turkish news doesn't talk about "buddy pass". According me, JEtBlue desk operations is guilty in this event. they were already know how much seats are in aircraft and they were should be know before boarding is there an empty seat or not.Law Court may find right to Mr.Mutlu but I don't think so law court gets decide to pay compensation as much as.

[Louis L. 2]

absurd indeed ...... if this is real ... it is ridiculous ......

[Simon 3]

Get $2mil for sitting in the toilet.....i want it also

[Pieter C. 5]

More (no so good) Jetblue news:

 

JetBlue To Defer Delivery Of 21 Airbus A320s

 

May 27, 2008

JetBlue Airways said on Tuesday it plans to defer delivery of 21 Airbus A320 aircraft that were originally scheduled for delivery between 2009 and 2011 until 2014 and 2015, citing current high fuel costs.

 

"In the face of escalating fuel costs, we believe it is essential to take a more financially conservative approach to managing our business," said Dave Barger, its chief executive.

 

Barger said the deferrals will help JetBlue further moderate its growth rate in 2009 and beyond, which will enhance liquidity and defer future debt obligations.

 

(Reuters)

 

[Mohd Azizul Ramli 2]

Why did he accept a jumpseat if he knew the flight was full ? Take it or leave it...it was his own choice not to be on an ordinary seat

I think it is more on 'why did the airline give him the seat despite it was a full flight?' Clearly Jetblue has commited a serious safety violation here. The story appears like what a daily affairs today in Indonesian LCCs.

 

JetBlue Airways said on Tuesday it plans to defer delivery of 21 Airbus A320 aircraft that were originally scheduled for delivery between 2009 and 2011 until 2014 and 2015, citing current high fuel costs. "In the face of escalating fuel costs, we believe it is essential to take a more financially conservative approach to managing our business," said Dave Barger, its chief executive.

Will AK follow suit? Skyrocketing fuel price, intense competition from MH, all time low share price at MYR 1.01, disposal of 5.5 million shares by an important US investment house... we'll see tomorrow when they announced their quarterly financial result.