JetBlue
is making a big change to how passengers board its flights ahead of the busy
summer travel season.
Starting April 29,
the airline will roll out a revamped boarding process that replaces its current
groups with a simpler, numbered system. The goal, according to the airline, is
to make boarding easier to follow and less confusing at the gate.
“Effective April
29, 2026, JetBlue is simplifying its boarding process by transitioning from
branded and lettered groups to a numbered system. Customers will continue to
board in a familiar order, with early access continuing for Mint, Mosaic and
EvenMore customers,” the airline said in a statement given to Fox
News.
JetBlue says the
shift is all about improving the experience. The airline added that the change
“reflects JetBlue’s ongoing commitment to delivering a smoother, more seamless
experience for customers across their travel journey.”
Under the new
setup, passengers will be assigned to one of eight numbered groups:
- Group 1: Mosaic 3 and 4 members, and
Mint passengers
- Group 2: Mosaic 1 and 2 members, and
travelers who pay for extra-legroom “EvenMore” seats
- Group 3: Credit card holders and
select fare types with early boarding perks
- Groups 4-8: General boarding, based
largely on seat location
Pre-boarding will
still be offered to customers with disabilities, and courtesy boarding will
continue for active military members and families traveling with strollers or
car seats.
"All JetBlue
flights will board in numbered boarding groups (groups 1–8), to make boarding
more intuitive, consistent, easier to follow along at the gate—and easier to
hear and understand during boarding announcements," the airline said on
its website.
Gary Leff, a
travel industry expert and author of the blog “View From the Wing,” said the
changes may also be aimed at earning more revenue.
“JetBlue is
reducing the number of boarding groups, moving from letters to numbers, and
people buying better seats get earlier boarding bundled in,” he said. “Premium
credit card customers get a better boarding group.” He added, “This is meant to
incentivize high-margin extra revenue that customers add to JetBlue.”
Leff also
suggested the airline is trying to simplify what can sometimes be a convoluted boarding process.
“My general
experience is that JetBlue is quite good in the air, but a bit confused on the
ground,” he said. “They’re streamlining boarding a bit and standardizing ... while
moving to more effectively use boarding as part of their monetization stream.”
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