From the Great Salt Lake to our five national parks, Utah is an incredible state with seemingly endless wonders to experience. It is no surprise then that visitors from across the country – and the world – want to see what makes Utah special. Fortunately for us, these visitors provide incredible economic benefits, with visitors to Utah in 2021 spending a record $10.56 billion and supporting 90,000 jobs in our travel and tourism industry.
Key to driving these numbers is the airline industry, which flies millions of visitors to Utah annually. And while there has been significant focus on the cost of airline tickets and the impact inflation is having on the family vacation, low-fare airlines are helping to make air travel more affordable. One such airline working to disrupt the market and lower the cost of travel is JetBlue, which recently announced plans to acquire Spirit Airlines.
While travelers have long been forced to choose between the high fares of legacy airlines and the no-frills service of low-cost airlines, JetBlue has found a way to deliver great service at a low fare. In fact, that is a core part of company’s identity. By acquiring Spirit Airlines, JetBlue would be able to expand their award-winning service to more markets and better compete nationally with the ‘Big Four’ airlines that today control about 80% of the U.S. market. The result: Utah travelers would have access to more of JetBlue’s product and legacy airlines would be forced to compete by lowering fares and improving service. A win-win for anyone who flies.
Unfortunately, the U.S. Departments of Justice and Transportation are seeking to block JetBlue’s merger with Spirit. As a result, it has now become the responsibility of those advocating on behalf of business communities, consumers, and local economies to address what is at stake if this merger is not approved.
Over the last five years, Utah’s GDP has grown by 19.1%, the second-highest growth rate among all states. Salt Lake City International Airport’s travel numbers prove this growth: the airport is among the 20 busiest commercial airports in the nation, surpassing New York’s LaGuardia Airport and Philadelphia International Airport. To continue building economic prosperity and support our region’s unprecedented growth, we need a reliable, service-oriented airline that can bring out-of-state business and vacation travelers to Utah – all at a lower fare. That airline is JetBlue.
By merging with Spirit, JetBlue will have the resources, planes, and crewmembers to expand its network, offering travelers more routes to destinations across the country and the world. And while JetBlue and Spirit can individually compete with legacy airlines that control most of flights in the country, together they can be a strong national competitor and help lower fares across the board. According to economic studies, when JetBlue enters a market with nonstop routes, fares on that route decrease by an average of 16%. Lowering fares is critical to making flights to destinations like Salt Lake City attractive and more affordable for families planning vacations, and we should do all that we can to support it.
Expanding low-fare options for travelers will advance our goal of bringing new tourists and business travelers to our state, thereby growing our economy. We need this merger to serve the needs of an active travel community, benefit the flying public, and advance Utah’s position as a great state for businesses and residents to thrive.
And while JetBlue will have an expanded presence in Utah after the close of the merger, we should not forget the commitment the company has already made to our state. JetBlue currently employs more than 1,000 crewmembers in Utah, including many in the company’s Salt Lake City Support Center, the only such facility for JetBlue outside of its east coast operations.
JetBlue has supported Utah’s economy, and it is important we offer our support in return. The federal government should reverse course and allow JetBlue to compete with the ‘Big Four’ and offer great service at a low fare. Utah needs a strong airline partner, and JetBlue’s merger with Spirit is precisely what our state needs to propel our vision for Utah’s economic future.
Troy Walker is the Mayor of Draper, Utah
