American Airlines and Alaska passengers aren’t the only ones paying more to check their luggage. The cost of checking bags for many JetBlue customers has also recently gone up.
JetBlue made the fee it applies to the first checked bag on U.S., Latin America, Caribbean and Canada flights within 24 hours of takeoff higher as of the beginning of the month.
For first bags checked within 24 hours of departure, JetBlue upped the fee for Blue Basic, Blue and Blue Extra tiers to $45. That marked a $10 increase from the $35 it was for reservations before Jan. 11 and a $5 from the $40 it was Jan. 11-31, according to JetBlue’s website.
First bags checked over 24 hours before departure have also received a hike this year, the airline’s website showed. Those now cost $35 for the same three fare types.
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Meanwhile, JetBlue asks Blue Basic, Blue, Blue Plus, Blue Extra and JetBlue Plus card member customers to pay second checked bag fees of $60 for within 24 hours of departure and $50 for outside that time frame.
Blue Plus, Mint and Mosaic customers have complimentary first checked bags, with the latter two tiers also getting the option to check a second bag at no cost, according to JetBlue.
The airline also has $125 fees for third checked bags and $150 fees for additional bags on U.S., Latin America, Caribbean and Canada flights beyond that, its website showed.
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The checked bag fees of transatlantic JetBlue flights didn’t receive a hike, staying at their current levels.
"The cost of doing business has gone up significantly due to increased wages, higher fuel costs, and other inflationary pressure, and we remain unprofitable since COVID. While we don’t like increasing fees, it’s one step we are taking to get our company back to profitability and cover the increased costs of transporting bags," a JetBlue spokesperson told FOX Business. "By adjusting fees for added services that only certain customers use, we can keep base fares low and ensure customer favorites like seatback TVs and high-speed Wi-Fi remain free for everyone."
The airline said in late January that it generated about $9.6 billion in total operating revenues in 2023. It also saw an annual net loss of $310 million, a slight narrowing from the $362 million net loss it reported for the year before.
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Joanna Geraghty, JetBlue’s CEO as of earlier this month, said at the time that 2024 "is an important year of change for JetBlue and we are taking aggressive action, including launching $300 million of revenue initiatives, to return to profitability and deliver value for our shareholders."
