JetBlue CEO Pushes for Level Playing Field for Small U.S. Airlines

JetBlue’s new chief executive, Joanna Geraghty, is pressing the federal government to step in and create what she calls a “level playing field” for smaller U.S. airlines, warning that current rules around airport access and market power leave carriers like hers struggling to compete with the country’s four aviation giants. Her comments, made after she took over as CEO on February 12, 2024, come as JetBlue shifts its strategy and tries to shore up its position in some of the most crowded and expensive air travel markets in the United States 🇺🇸.

Geraghty argues that the United States aviation market is effectively controlled by the “Big Four” airlines, which together hold about 80% of the market, a dominance built through years of mergers that were cleared by regulators, including the Department of Justice. For JetBlue, which has long cast itself as a customer-friendly disruptor, this concentration has turned into a structural wall. The airline now wants Washington to reconsider how fair competition is defined in a system where a handful of powerful carriers control most key routes and airport access.

Perimeter slots and airport access

A central part of Geraghty’s complaint focuses on perimeter slots, the tightly limited takeoff and landing rights at key congested airports, especially those where short-haul and medium-haul flights are subject to distance limits.

These perimeter slots are some of the most prized pieces of real estate in U.S. aviation because they determine:

• which airlines can serve high-demand city pairs,
• how frequently they can operate,
• and how new entrants or mid-sized carriers can expand.

When those slots are concentrated in the hands of a few big rivals, smaller carriers argue they are effectively shut out of crucial business and leisure routes, no matter how strong their demand might be.

“Level playing field” — Geraghty’s phrase highlights the demand for regulatory adjustments to address concentrated control of airport access.

Impact on travelers and immigrant communities

For travelers — including millions of immigrants and mixed‑status families — decisions about perimeter slots can determine whether there is any real choice in fares or schedules.

• If only a few airlines control most available slots at major gateways, they can decide which cities get direct connections and which do not.
• That can lead to higher prices, fewer direct options, or longer, more complex journeys.
• Affordable, frequent service to smaller cities, the Caribbean, and Latin America becomes harder to sustain, affecting family visits, consular appointments, and immigration‑related travel.

Sites focused on immigration travel, such as VisaVerge.com, often note that price‑sensitive travelers rely heavily on low‑cost or mid‑sized carriers. When market power is concentrated, those smaller players lose the ability to undercut fares or introduce new city pairs tailored to immigrant communities.

JetBlue’s strategic shift: Northeast focus

Under Geraghty’s leadership, JetBlue has more openly defined itself as a Northeast‑centric leisure carrier. The airline is:

• concentrating on dense travel corridors and holiday routes,
• stepping back from an “all‑things‑to‑all‑people” approach that, by her admission, didn’t produce needed results.

Focusing on the Northeast means doubling down in some of the most crowded and politically sensitive aviation markets in the country, where:

• airport slots,
• perimeter limits,
• and long‑term gate leases

often decide which airline survives and which one is slowly squeezed out.

This puts JetBlue squarely in long‑running policy debates in Washington and at agencies like the U.S. Department of Transportation.

Regulatory context and the role of past mergers

Over the past two decades, regulators allowed a wave of airline mergers that created today’s dominant four carriers. At the time, officials argued consolidation would create stronger airlines and more stable service. Today, those same decisions are under fresh scrutiny as smaller airlines claim they are blocked from gaining meaningful access to high‑value airports, even when willing to invest in new routes and jobs.

Geraghty’s argument is straightforward:

1. Regulators approved mergers that helped shape the current market structure.
2. Therefore, regulators now have a responsibility to provide a level playing field so smaller carriers can compete.
3. Practically, this could involve:
   • revisiting how slots are allocated,
   • encouraging more competition on constrained routes,
   • rethinking how much control large airlines hold over key hubs.

While she hasn’t laid out a full policy blueprint in the source material, her emphasis on perimeter slots suggests she views airport access as the core problem.

Broader economic and workforce implications

For airline workers — including many foreign‑born employees in airports and on flight crews — the health of carriers like JetBlue affects employment prospects.

• A market dominated by four airlines centralizes decision‑making and can make smaller cities and specialized routes more vulnerable to cuts when demand dips.
• Geraghty’s push for fairer competition is indirectly a push to keep alternative employers viable in an industry that supports hundreds of thousands of jobs.

Consumer advocates warn that when four companies control about 80% of any vital service, the risk of higher prices and fewer choices increases. In aviation, this risk is magnified by the physical limits of airports and the regulatory framework around slots. Perimeter slots at busy hubs act like gates to the market; if those gates are locked by the same small group of airlines, competition becomes more theoretical than real.

Political and industry pushback

Changing the system will not be easy. Any move to reallocate slots or loosen perimeter rules would trigger:

• fierce lobbying from large incumbents, who argue scale enables reliable service and complex networks,
• counterarguments from smaller airlines that, without intervention, the market will remain frozen and space for newcomers or mid‑sized growth will be limited.

Policymakers are left weighing consumer choice, industry stability, and political pressure from all sides.

What’s next

As Geraghty settles into her role, her repeated demand for a level playing field signals JetBlue will continue pressing Washington to revisit earlier regulatory choices that helped create today’s concentrated market.

Key outcomes to watch:

• Whether regulators consider concrete changes to perimeter slots,
• Any shifts in how slots are allocated or how hub control by large carriers is limited,
• The broader implications for competition, fares, and service availability — especially for immigrant families and other price‑sensitive travelers.

How regulators respond will shape not only JetBlue’s future as a Northeast‑centric carrier but also how much real choice air travelers — including millions of immigrant families — will have in the years ahead.