JetBlue President and Chief Operating Officer Joanna Geraghty took to the stage at the Skift Global Forum on Sept. 20 for a session titled, JetBlue’s Future: Balancing Expansion and Operations. She participated in a conversation moderated by Skift Airline Weekly Editor Edward Russell.

Last year, JetBlue was named the No. 1 domestic airline in the Travel + Leisure World’s Best Awards 2021 readers’ survey. Today, the airline has begun to expand its international influence. JetBlue has seen significant growth in its business across the globe. For example, JetBlue recently established new service between Boston and London. It offers flights daily to London from JFK in New York City as well as Boston.

“London is the perfect opportunity for JetBlue,” Geraghty noted. “London was at the top of the list of markets that JetBlue didn’t serve, both out of Boston and out of JFK. It makes for the perfect match to our network.”

The new international flight will feature 24 Mint-configured seats, as well as food provided by Dig Inn. JetBlue is dedicated to providing its travelers with the best experience for the best price.

As a part of its expansion, JetBlue is acquiring Spirit Airlines for $3.8 billion, making it the fifth largest U.S. airline. By accelerating its organic growth strategy, JetBlue hopes to challenge the 80 percent of domestic seats claimed by Delta, American, Southwest, and United Airlines.

“We want to bring more low fares, a great product, and great service,” said Geraghty. “You shouldn’t have to choose between both. You can have a great product and a low fare, and that’s what we’re going to do with Spirit.”

In addition, JetBlue plans to challenge the September 2021 lawsuit brought by the United States’ Department of Justice claiming that the Northeast Alliance, a partnership between JetBlue and American Airlines, will bring positive change for legacy carriers in the region. The lawsuit by the DOJ has halted JetBlue’s domestic expansion and partnership with Spirit Airlines. JetBlue and American Airlines attended a trial with the DOJ in late September and a second trial was held in discussion about the purchase of Spirit Airlines and the subsequent addition of the airline to the Northeast Alliance.

In the meantime, JetBlue is focused on reorganizing its internal infrastructure. The reconfiguration of the airline followed a significant infrastructure and staffing decline post-COVID pandemic. At this moment, JetBlue is dedicated to building up its staff as well as a new, more fragile infrastructure for the company as travel booms during the fall 2022 season.

“We’ll be configuring Spirit to the JetBlue brand and the experience that you know and love when you fly JetBlue,” Geraghty said. “But we also intend to offer and continue to offer great low fares, which is really part of I think what’s made JetBlue so special.”