JetBlue

JetBlue says A320 software update, government shutdown, and Hurricane Melissa negatively impacted its capacity in Q4

JetBlue's A320 was involved in the pitch-down safety event that triggered the emergency directive that affected over 6,000 A320 family aircraft.

Photo: JetBlue

In an update to investors, JetBlue has said that while demand, except for a blip during the mandated flight reductions in early November, has been in line with expectations, its Q4 2025 capacity has been impacted by external events, including the Airbus A320 family aircraft software and/or hardware update that affected one of the on-board computers.

On December 2, 2025, JetBlue provided an update on its Q4 2025 performance to investors, saying that demand during the quarter has been “healthy,” adding that the quarter’s bookings “have been trending in line with expectations, except during the limited timeframe” when the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) mandated flight reductions at 40 airports across the United States.

However, the airline’s operational performance was impacted by Hurricane Melissa and by the shutdown-related cancellations in early November, resulting in the carrier’s capacity growth projections dropping by around 1% “due to operational cancellations and schedule reductions” in Q4.

Consequently, the change in capacity, measured in available seat miles (ASMs), has also impacted non-fuel unit cost growth by around 1%.

JetBlue detailed that the final external event, the emergency airworthiness directive (EAD) from the FAA, which was first published by the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA), that mandated software and/or hardware updates to A320 family aircraft elevator aileron computers (ELAC), should reduce its quarterly ASM growth by around 0.25%.

It continues to “evaluate any potential financial impact,” adding that it has already resumed normal operations.

When JetBlue presented its Q3 results on October 28, it estimated that its Q4 capacity would either be 0.75% lower or 2.25% higher year-on-year (YoY), while revenue per ASM (RASM) would either be down up to 4% or remain flat compared to Q4 2024.

Cost per ASM, excluding fuel (CASM-ex) would be up between 3% and 5%, it estimated at the time.

Marty St. George, the President of JetBlue, said at the time that the airline was “optimistic the demand environment will continue to improve through the end of the year.”

“Peaks are expected to remain strong while troughs remain challenging, and we continue to expect relatively stronger demand for our premium offerings versus core.”

JetBlue ended Q3 with revenues of $2.3 billion, 1.8% lower YoY, an operating loss of $100 million, and a net loss of $143 million (all unaudited). The airline’s Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Joanna Geraghty, said that despite the loss, its “progress toward profitability is gaining momentum as a result of the swift actions we've taken to implement our JetForward strategy and set a strong foundation for 2026.”