JetBlue opens crew base in Puerto Rico, launches new route to St. Croix
The base in Terminal A opened Thursday, with San Juan-based pilots joining in early 2025.
Some seven months after announcing its plans, JetBlue Airways has opened its first crew base outside the continental U.S. at Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport (SJU, for its International Air Transport Association code), creating more than 400 related jobs.
That number will include more than 100 pilots and 300 inflight crew members, with flight attendants to be assigned to the base by next year, airline and government officials said during a news conference at the airport.
The crew base to support inflight crew members located in Terminal A opened Thursday, while San Juan-based pilots are expected to join in early 2025.
The base will allow crew members to begin and end trips from the island, supporting JetBlue’s operations in Puerto Rico, the Caribbean and beyond. It also ensures these workgroups can quickly respond in the event of operational disruptions. The crew base follows the opening of JetBlue’s Tech Ops maintenance base in San Juan in 2020.
“We are proud to celebrate this important milestone in Puerto Rico,” said Warren Christie, chief operating officer at JetBlue. “The new crew base reinforces our commitment to investing in the communities we serve, creating opportunities for crew members in San Juan and for those who want to return home to the island, while expanding our network to meet the growing demand for travel to the Caribbean and beyond.”
JetBlue has served Puerto Rico for more than 22 years and now flies to 18 destinations from the island. With over 50 daily departures during peak periods this winter, its recent expansion has added 70 jobs, bringing its team to more than 800 crew members across San Juan, Aguadilla and Ponce by 2025.
“This is an exciting day for JetBlue and for Puerto Rico. It’s special to be here as we open our very first crew base outside the continental United States right here in San Juan,” said Jeffrey Goodell, vice president of Government and Airport Affairs at JetBlue Airways
“Since our first flight to the island in 2002, just two years after Jetblue’s first flight ever, we have been committed to serving and growing with this community. We’re proud now to be the largest airline in Puerto Rico, and we take that responsibility very seriously. We’re thrilled to be here,” he said.
Gov. Pedro Pierluisi added, “We’re proud of this strategic alliance…, reinforcing the airline’s commitment to the island and its people. Our tourism had record growth numbers over the past four years, and this is one more sign of continued good news for our people.”
Jorge Hernández, president of Aerostar Airport Holdings, which operates the airport, said establishing a new base for flight personnel “is a big deal and we are confident that this initiative will contribute to the growth and positioning of Puerto Rico as an important, or more important, hub in our region.”
He added, “Not only are we the largest airport in our region with the largest volume of passengers in our region, but we can continue to grow through expansion and maximize our geographic positioning toward our neighbors in the south, South America, Central America, etc.”
In addition to opening its San Juan base, JetBlue announced new flights from Puerto Rico to St. Croix in the U.S. Virgin Islands.
