JetBlue Airways will be ceasing operations out of the Daytona Beach International Airport just seven months after its long-anticipated return. The airline was absent from Daytona for seven years, and it will be absent once again as of September 9.
The news of JetBlue's decision was first reported by The Points Guy, whose report was based on an employee memo they announced they obtained. Service will also be cut from V.C. Bird International Airport in the Caribbean nation of Antigua and Barbuda on October 31.
Beginning in December 2025, JetBlue has operated two nonstop routes to and from Daytona Beach: New York City's John F. Kennedy International Airport and Boston's Boston Logan International Airport.
Their reason for departure appears to be the same as the last time they left Daytona, in 2019: to prioritize areas seen as more profitable. Ironically, JetBlue announced the Daytona routes last year as being 'year-round', which will prove only partially true as the service will last less than one full year after launch.
The decision to pull out of Daytona Beach and Antigua appears to coincide with a new commitment to Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport. JetBlue is reportedly experiencing a fast increase in business in Fort Lauderdale since Spirit Airlines closed operations suddenly in May.
"Fort Lauderdale is one of the biggest opportunities in our airline's history and a cornerstone of building the best East Coast leisure network as part of JetForward," JetBlue said in the employee memo obtained by The Points Guy. "This winter, we'll take another step forward in Fort Lauderdale, growing from about 130 daily departures to over 150. To make that expansion possible, we need to free up aircraft time and redeploy those planes into Fort Lauderdale."
In their Fort Lauderdale expansion, JetBlue is adding routes to seven new cities:
JetBlue will also be adding new nonstop service to seven of their exiting cities:
JetBlue's employee memo details eight total route cuts affecting three Florida airports. Daytona Beach International Airport is losing all service. Fort Myers' Southwest Florida International Airport is losing its route to Providence, Rhode Island. Vero Beach Regional Airport is losing its route to New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport.
Daytona Beach International Airport will continue to serve several destinations with nonstop flights. Boston and New York will remain as available destinations until JetBlue cuts the routes in September.
