I don't know if this was posted before but came across the story that is=20 about a week old... 03/31/2003 - Updated 11:40 AM ET Onboard TVs, service have helped young air carrier turn a profit By Jay Loomis, The (Westchester, N.Y.) Journal News NEW YORK =97 Four years ago, Bill Basher expected to lose his job as an=20 air-cargo pilot. The carrier where he worked was cutting payroll following= =20 a buyout. But at 53, Basher didn't feel good about his chances of landing=20 another job in the cockpit. Then he heard about startup JetBlue Airways. Heavy-hitters backed the=20 airline, including billionaire investor George Soros. But it was no sure=20 thing. The airline didn't have government approval to fly. In fact, it=20 didn't have an airplane. Still, Basher signed up as one of the first 24=20 pilots. "I rolled the dice," said Basher. "It's been seventh heaven ever=20 since." Since its inaugural flight in February 2000, JetBlue has bucked the= =20 conventional wisdom, not only with televisions in each leather seat, but=20 with its financial performance. Profits jumped 37% in the fourth quarter of= =20 2002 as sales nearly doubled. In three years, the Queens-based airline=20 became the largest domestic carrier at John F. Kennedy International=20 Airport. JetBlue flights transported 5.7 million people nationally last=20 year, nearly double the 3.1 million it carried in 2001. "They have done a=20 great job of identifying niche markets that other airlines aren't serving=20 well," said Jim Corridore, an analyst with Standard & Poor's in New York.=20 "They are doing it with new planes, good service and reasonable fares." JetBlue's competitors are reporting record losses, filing for bankruptcy=20 relief, retiring planes and laying off tens of thousands. Thanks to the=20 lowest costs in the industry, JetBlue has weathered an economy racked by=20 terrorism, rising fuel prices and war worries. "Working here is a totally=20 different experience than most airlines," Basher said. "It is almost like a= =20 family. You have open lines of communication to all levels of management."= =20 Chief Executive Officer David Neeleman tries to keep those communication=20 channels open by flying once a week. On those flights, he will chat with=20 passengers, hand them snacks and greet them over the intercom. In the=20 office, he ponders such ideas as separate restrooms for men and women. "The= =20 hallmark of JetBlue is not just the TVs but the service," Neeleman said.=20 "It's the way people feel when they fly the company, when they check in."=20 Passenger loyalty has helped JetBlue planes fly with an average of 80=20 percent of their seats full, better than the 70% industry average,=20 according to Pincavage & Associates. "The TVs have turned out to be more popular than anyone expected," said=20 Raymond Neidl, an analyst with Blaylock & Partners in New York. A beachhead= =20 at JFK was an important part of JetBlue's strategy from the beginning.=20 "What we found in this market was that after the demise of People Express=20 (in the 1980s) that there really was no low-fare competition," Neeleman=20 said. "We also found an airport that was very underutilized in Kennedy. You= =20 have 5 million people who live closer to that airport than any other=20 airport." Of the airline's 182 daily flights, 74 are based at JFK. JetBlue= =20 now serves 20 cities nationally. The company went public in April 2002. Its= =20 stock trades around $25 a share. Rival stocks are trading at $5 a share and= =20 less. Neeleman is optimistic about JetBlue's future. "We have 40 airplanes= =20 today, and we have a total of 137 on order," Neeleman said. "People always= =20 ask, what keeps you up at night? What worries you? How big can this get? It= =20 depends on how good a job we do going forward." Analysts said the biggest risk for JetBlue is overexpansion into=20 money-losing markets. "They have been intelligent in how they have expanded= =20 so far," Corridore said, "but there is always a potential risk." *************************************************** The owner of Roger's Trinbago Site/TnTisland.com Roj (Roger James) escape email mailto:ejames@xxxxxxxxx Trinbago site: www.tntisland.com Carib Brass Ctn site www.tntisland.com/caribbeanbrassconnection/ Steel Expressions www.mts.net/~ejames/se/ Site of the Week: http://www.carstt.com TnT Webdirectory: http://search.co.tt *********************************************************