Capabilities Analysis of JetBlue Airlines
JFK Hub
The JFK Airport hub in New York City is a tangible physical resource of JetBlue. This hub provides significant size and location capabilities. The airport is a large population center, with 19 million people within the 60-mile radius. The hub is also at the heart of some underserved markets, including upstate New York and the New England region. This resource also has political support from the state government. This support allowed JetBlue to be exempt from the High Density Rule at JFK, a major barrier to airline operations at the airport. Going beyond the Harvard case, JetBlue has recently built an entirely new terminal at JFK, which provides customers with a differentiating experience. The JFK hub provides significant value to the company with all of these capabilities. However, the hub is by no means rare, or costly to imitate by competitors.
Airline Fleet
JetBlue’s airline fleet is another tangible physical resource of the firm. Unique to JetBlue, their fleet is owned solely by the firm, as opposed to the industry norm of leasing. Airbus is the main provider of these aircraft, which provides significant capability over Boeing. These advantages include better fuel efficiency, more cabin space, and better cabin technology. The JetBlue fleet of aircraft provides value to the firm. This resource is particularly rare, as JetBlue owns the fleet, and chose Airbus as the manufacturer. For competitors in the industry, it is not costly to imitate this Airbus resource.
I.T./Operations
The information technology and operations structure of JetBlue is an intangible technol ...