By The Associated Press
Thursday, November 10, 2011
JetBlue Airways Corp. said Thursday that traffic and revenue per mile rose in October, and the airline continues to add flights.
The New York-based airline said passenger revenue per available seat mile climbed 11 percent in October. That's slightly more than United and nearly double the increase reported by Southwest Airlines.
The figure indicates that JetBlue and other airlines are still benefiting from fare increases levied earlier this year. U.S. airlines have boosted fares about 10 times in 2011, taking advantage of relatively strong travel demand.
Paying passengers on JetBlue flew 2.51 billion miles last month, up 7.6 percent from 2.33 billion in October 2010.
The airline increased its passenger-carrying capacity by 6.5 percent. Airlines raise capacity by adding flights or using bigger planes.
JetBlue's expansion stood in contrast to shrinking capacity at industry leader United Continental Holdings Inc. Many airlines are cautious about expanding out of fear that the weak economy will hurt demand for travel, but JetBlue was able to add enough traffic to cover the growth.
The average flight was 83.5 percent full, up from 82.6 percent a year earlier.
For the year through 10 months, traffic was up 7.7 percent, capacity increased 6.1 percent, and the average flight was 82.6 percent full, compared with 81.4 percent a year earlier.
The shares fell a penny to close at $4.11.
