JetBlue Airways continues its push from Florida to Latin America and ups competition with US rivals

JetBlue continues to leverage positions of strength in the Florida market when it debuts new flights to Mexico City in late 2015 and service to Quito, Ecuador in early 2016. The airline will largely face foreign competitors in those markets, which means it can tap its point-of-sale strength in both Fort Lauderdale and Orlando for US-based travellers.

The new service to Mexico City helps JetBlue fill a gap in its growing network from Florida to Central and South America and to the Caribbean. Ecuador is a popular and growing tourist destination from the US, so it seems reasonable that JetBlue has the potential to post a solid performance in the market.

JetBlue is also continuing to flesh out its domestic service from Florida in 2015 with new planned service from Orlando to Baltimore and from Fort Lauderdale to Philadelphia, increasing its competitive overlap with Southwest and US Airways. All of the new service reflects JetBlue's intent to bolster its network in Florida as both Fort Lauderdale and Orlando serve key roles in its network.