Skift Take
The 94-page ruling methodically knocks down the argument from American and JetBlue that their alliance boosts competition to benefit flyers.
His tone was measured, but Judge Leo T. Sorokin made it clear he wasn’t buying the argument from American and JetBlue that their “Northeast Alliance” promoted competition and was good for flyers.
Instead, in a 94-page ruling Friday afternoon, Sorokin laid out the history of the so-called NEA in which the two airlines share revenue and coordinate schedules and other practices in servicing New York and Boston. Sorokin said it harms consumers by effectively removing one competitor from the market.
In short, Sorokin wrote: “Through the NEA, American and JetBlue cease to compete and, instead, operate as a single carrier in the northeast. That is the core of the relationship, and it is a naked assault on competition.”
The U.S. Department of Justice sued to block the American Airlines-JetBlue Northeast Alliance in September 2021. On Friday, U.S. District Court Judge Sorokin said the partnership “substantially diminishes competition in the domestic market for air travel," and ruled that the two airlines must unravel the part