This was posted today on the USA Today Website
JetBlue has eye on flights to Melbourne
By Scott Blake, Florida Today
ORLANDO JetBlue Airways Chairman and Chief Executive Officer David Neeleman said Monday he "wouldn't be a bit surprised" if JetBlue starts flights between Melbourne and New York within a year or two, as the airline gets more passenger jets.
"We're going into places like Melbourne, hopefully, in the future," Neeleman said after presiding over a ceremony attended by Gov. Jeb Bush to celebrate the opening of JetBlue's flight simulation and training center at Orlando International Airport.
"We're looking at it very seriously," Neeleman said about flights at Melbourne International Airport.
Based at New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport, JetBlue began operating in 2000, and has become one of the nation's few profitable airlines. JetBlue operates 75 156-passenger Airbus A-320 jets. This year, the company is adding nine Airbus A-320 jets and seven 100-passenger Embraer E-190 jets to its fleet, with more planes to come in following years.
JetBlue also has a presence in Melbourne, where its LiveTV subsidiary makes the satellite televisions that are installed on the back of every seat of its planes the airline's signature offering. JetBlue in 2002 acquired LiveTV, which was founded in 1998, and once was partly owned by Melbourne-based Harris Corp.
Neeleman said he expects the Melbourne operation, which has about 75 employees, to grow as JetBlue grows in the years ahead. The Melbourne facility's staff performs research and development for JetBlue's TV systems and other products, he said.
JetBlue President and Chief Operating Officer Dave Barger, who also presided over Monday's ceremony in Orlando, said chances that JetBlue eventually will fly to and from Melbourne are "very good."
"We clearly know Melbourne is a location that's been waiting for service," Barger said.
Already, New York-to-Florida flights are JetBlue's most popular routes, but the airline has not had enough planes to serve secondary markets, such as Daytona Beach and Melbourne, Barger said.
Flights between Melbourne and Boston or Washington, D.C., also are a possibility, Barger said. The earliest the Melbourne flights would start would be late-2006 or early-2007, he added.
Melbourne International Airport Interim Executive Director Richard Ennis said he was "very encouraged" by Neeleman's and Barger's comments about serving Melbourne.
Ennis said, if JetBlue serves Melbourne, he would prefer flights to Boston, since Delta Air Lines Melbourne's only major carrier already has flights between Melbourne International and New York's Kennedy International.
"I'd rather have Boston, but I'd be happy to get service to New York," Ennis said.
Melbourne International managers and JetBlue representatives first discussed flights in Melbourne about three years ago, Ennis said.
In March, Ennis met with JetBlue representatives in Orlando, and Ennis plans to make a presentation about Melbourne to JetBlue executives next week during the Airports Council International annual conference in Calgary, Canada.
JetBlue has "got an excellent rating," Ennis added. "Everything I've heard is extremely positive. I've never heard a complaint about JetBlue. I would be very pleased to have them at this airport."
At Orlando International, JetBlue has had flights since 2000.
In April, JetBlue's LiveTV opened a $24 million, 100,000-square-foot hangar at Orlando International for the installation and maintenance of its satellite TVs and other products on planes.
Monday, the airline officially opened a $120 million flight simulation and crew training center called "JetBlue University" at Orlando International. The 107,000-square-foot facility will employ up to 200 people, with room for several hundred other JetBlue employees there for training.
The building has four Airbus A-320 flight simulators and one Embraer E-190 simulator, with a second E-190 simulator to be added in August. There's also an auditorium, classrooms, briefing rooms, offices and an outdoor training pool.
The training center was designed by Melbourne-based BRPH Cos. Inc.
Also Monday, JetBlue executives unveiled plans to build a $20 million, 300-room hotel at Orlando International to give JetBlue employees a place to stay while training at the airport and conducting other airline business in the area.
During the ceremony, the governor thanked JetBlue for flying more tourists into the state.
"People are coming down from New York on your planes, spending their hard-earned money in Florida," Bush said, adding that state and Orlando-area officials "put up a little money," as incentives to bring JetBlue to Orlando.
JetBlue has eye on flights to Melbourne
By Scott Blake, Florida Today
ORLANDO JetBlue Airways Chairman and Chief Executive Officer David Neeleman said Monday he "wouldn't be a bit surprised" if JetBlue starts flights between Melbourne and New York within a year or two, as the airline gets more passenger jets.
"We're going into places like Melbourne, hopefully, in the future," Neeleman said after presiding over a ceremony attended by Gov. Jeb Bush to celebrate the opening of JetBlue's flight simulation and training center at Orlando International Airport.
"We're looking at it very seriously," Neeleman said about flights at Melbourne International Airport.
Based at New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport, JetBlue began operating in 2000, and has become one of the nation's few profitable airlines. JetBlue operates 75 156-passenger Airbus A-320 jets. This year, the company is adding nine Airbus A-320 jets and seven 100-passenger Embraer E-190 jets to its fleet, with more planes to come in following years.
JetBlue also has a presence in Melbourne, where its LiveTV subsidiary makes the satellite televisions that are installed on the back of every seat of its planes the airline's signature offering. JetBlue in 2002 acquired LiveTV, which was founded in 1998, and once was partly owned by Melbourne-based Harris Corp.
Neeleman said he expects the Melbourne operation, which has about 75 employees, to grow as JetBlue grows in the years ahead. The Melbourne facility's staff performs research and development for JetBlue's TV systems and other products, he said.
JetBlue President and Chief Operating Officer Dave Barger, who also presided over Monday's ceremony in Orlando, said chances that JetBlue eventually will fly to and from Melbourne are "very good."
"We clearly know Melbourne is a location that's been waiting for service," Barger said.
Already, New York-to-Florida flights are JetBlue's most popular routes, but the airline has not had enough planes to serve secondary markets, such as Daytona Beach and Melbourne, Barger said.
Flights between Melbourne and Boston or Washington, D.C., also are a possibility, Barger said. The earliest the Melbourne flights would start would be late-2006 or early-2007, he added.
Melbourne International Airport Interim Executive Director Richard Ennis said he was "very encouraged" by Neeleman's and Barger's comments about serving Melbourne.
Ennis said, if JetBlue serves Melbourne, he would prefer flights to Boston, since Delta Air Lines Melbourne's only major carrier already has flights between Melbourne International and New York's Kennedy International.
"I'd rather have Boston, but I'd be happy to get service to New York," Ennis said.
Melbourne International managers and JetBlue representatives first discussed flights in Melbourne about three years ago, Ennis said.
In March, Ennis met with JetBlue representatives in Orlando, and Ennis plans to make a presentation about Melbourne to JetBlue executives next week during the Airports Council International annual conference in Calgary, Canada.
JetBlue has "got an excellent rating," Ennis added. "Everything I've heard is extremely positive. I've never heard a complaint about JetBlue. I would be very pleased to have them at this airport."
At Orlando International, JetBlue has had flights since 2000.
In April, JetBlue's LiveTV opened a $24 million, 100,000-square-foot hangar at Orlando International for the installation and maintenance of its satellite TVs and other products on planes.
Monday, the airline officially opened a $120 million flight simulation and crew training center called "JetBlue University" at Orlando International. The 107,000-square-foot facility will employ up to 200 people, with room for several hundred other JetBlue employees there for training.
The building has four Airbus A-320 flight simulators and one Embraer E-190 simulator, with a second E-190 simulator to be added in August. There's also an auditorium, classrooms, briefing rooms, offices and an outdoor training pool.
The training center was designed by Melbourne-based BRPH Cos. Inc.
Also Monday, JetBlue executives unveiled plans to build a $20 million, 300-room hotel at Orlando International to give JetBlue employees a place to stay while training at the airport and conducting other airline business in the area.
During the ceremony, the governor thanked JetBlue for flying more tourists into the state.
"People are coming down from New York on your planes, spending their hard-earned money in Florida," Bush said, adding that state and Orlando-area officials "put up a little money," as incentives to bring JetBlue to Orlando.
