Review of JetBlue Airways flight Los Angeles Boston in Economy

Airline JetBlue Airways
Flight B6 288
Class Economy
Seat 23D
Aircraft Airbus A320
Flight time 05:15
Take-off 25 Oct 15, 07:30
Arrival at 25 Oct 15, 15:45
B6   #20 out of 95 Airlines A minimum of 10 flight-reports within the past two years is required to appear in the rankings. 60 reviews
NGO85
By SILVER 3742
Published on 28th November 2015
Background:

This series will cover a recent trip back to the US that required me to be in the greater Los Angeles and Boston areas.

Part 1 – NGO-NRT [JL 3084, Boeing B737-800, ClassJ] – http://flight-report.com/en/report-12225.html
Part 2 – NRT-LAX [AA 170, Boeing B777-200ER, Business] – http://flight-report.com/en/report-12253.html
Part 3 – LAX-BOS [B6 288, Airbus A320, Economy] – You are here
Part 4 – BOS-NRT [JL 7, Boeing B787-800, Business] – http://flight-report.com/en/report-12421.html
Part 5 – NRT-NGO [JL 3087, Boeing B767-300ER, Economy] – http://flight-report.com/en/report-12450.html

This report will cover the transcon segment from LAX to BOS. This ticket was booked separately and the travel agent gave me the option of B6 or DL given my time constraints; I needed to be in BOS by 4pm. I went with B6 for their 34” seat pitch in Y and better IFE. At the end, there will be a special bonus for the B707 lovers out there.


Pre-flight:

I woke up at 4am in order to drive back to LAX. I reached LAX by 5:30am, quickly returned my car and took the shuttle back to Terminal 1, which is used by B6. At the check-in area for B6, 2 agents were working and they were pretty efficient. It took about 10 minutes to get checked in. I was handed my boarding passes and given directions to the security line. It’s worth noting that at this point in time, B6 no longer offers a free checked bag. That was a change they made over the summer since I last flew with them; however, they have retained their service amenities onboard.

photo 1

The escalators up to TSA.

photo 2

Artwork as I wait in line for security. It was very slow and took about 30 minutes.

photo 3

FIDS entering Terminal 1.

photo 4

The waiting room. Not a fan of the design of this terminal, not very attractive visually.

photo 5

Some spotting. VX A320.

photo 6

An ugly NK A320 leaving for LAS.

photo 7

B6 A321 leaving for JFK.

photo 8

VX A320.

photo 9photo 10

VX A320 with sharklets.

photo 11




——————————-

JetBlue Airways, B6 288
Equipment: Airbus A320 [N729JB “If you can read this you are blue close”, delivered August 2008]
Departure: 7:30 (ATD: 7:44)
Arrival: 15:44 (ATA: 15:22)
Flight time: 4:38


I couldn’t even see my plane from the terminal. Unfortunate because my plane actually had a pretty good name: “If you can read this you are blue close.” Boarding was called on time in typical US “crowd the gate” style.

photo 12

Down the blind jetbridge.

photo 13

Boarding the plane a big welcome from a big friendly FA.

photo 14

Some cabin strafing as I make my way back to my seat.

photo 15photo 16

My seat.

photo 17

As soon as I sit down, my seatmate shows up and takes the middle seat. The 34” pitch is obviously comfortable and a big perk of B6.

photo 18

Another perk is the free IFE, which I’ll talk about later.

photo 19

The middle seat has a small entertainment box under it, so be warned.

photo 20

The service guide and BOB menu on B6.



Recline is on the left armrest.

photo 21

The IFE controls are on the right armrest. Poor design since I changed the channel or volume several times by accident by resting my arm on top of it.

photo 22

Boarding finished and the window seat remained empty, my seatmate casually slid over to the window as I grumbled to myself. We had some fantastic early morning views on departure and I missed it. The take-off was smooth and we quickly made a U-turn to head towards BOS.

photo 23

Drink service started as soon as we leveled off. I requested a water and coffee. The friendly male FA handed me my bottle of water out of his apron and told me he’ll bring the coffee in a little bit. B6 does not use carts for drink service. Orders are taken by row and then the FA will go to the galley to prepare the drinks for that row. It’s a pretty slow, inefficient process.

photo 24

As promised, my coffee was brought to me.

photo 25

After drinks were distributed. The FAs came through the cabin with the snack baskets and you are free to take as much or little as you want. I just grabbed a bag of chips.

photo 26

I then napped until Denver.

photo 27

Some cabin shots since my seatmate went to the bathroom.

photo 28photo 29

The IFE is really good on B6 (for domestic standards). I watched the Manchester derby and then some Bundesliga action (Wolfsburg vs. someone, can’t remember).

photo 32

Mid-flight, there were snacks and drinks available in the galleys. You just helped yourself to whatever you want. They also had the BOB menu if you wanted a more substantial amount of food. The second drink service started around Buffalo.

photo 30

Again, I asked for water and a cup of Earl Grey tea. Both were promptly delivered.

photo 31

After the second drink service, wet towelettes were distributed. I thought this was a nice touch by B6 to freshen up before arrival.

photo 33

The landing into BOS was smooth and we quickly taxied to our gate. Deplaning was friendly. Both the pilot and first officer were in the galley thanking passengers for flying. Bags were circulating by the time I got to the baggage claim. I got my bag and took a taxi to the hotel for 3 days in Boston (MA), Providence (RI), and New London (CT).



——————————–
BONUS: I had a free afternoon on the Saturday I was there, so I drove up to Simi Valley to visit the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library.

photo 70photo 71

I’ll keep the political aspect to a minimum since US Presidents have varying international reputations.

photo 72photo 73

I didn’t really research the museum before I went there, but it turns out it actually had a nice surprise for AV enthusiasts. Part of the museum contains a hanger housing Air Force One (SAM 27000), which was in service from 1972 to 2001. Okay not a real B707, but the VC-137C is based off of it. It was transferred to the museum in 2005 and has been housed here since. Unfortunately, no photography was allowed inside, so you guys will just have to live with the outside shots.



Views of Simi Valley from the museum.



Thanks for stopping by this report and series! I’ll continue this series as I begin the trek back to Japan.
See more

Verdict

JetBlue Airways

8.4/10
Cabin8.5
Cabin crew9.0
Entertainment/wifi9.0
Meal/catering7.0

Los Angeles - LAX

7.4/10
Efficiency6.5
Access8.0
Services7.0
Cleanliness8.0

Boston - BOS

7.5/10
Efficiency7.5
Access8.0
Services7.5
Cleanliness7.0

Conclusion

My second time on B6 and it doesn’t disappoint. It feels so different from the legacy carriers and shows that you can still find some full service aspects on domestic carriers. Yes, expecting a meal is a thing of the past, but providing humane seat pitch, free drinks/snacks, free WiFi, and free DirecTV is head shoulders above their rivals. If you aren’t alliance bound and they fly a route you need, then I would definitely give them a look.

Cabin comfort: Good seat pitch and the middle seat remained empty (very lucky since there were only 2 empty seats on the whole plane). The seats are comfortable enough for a transcon, I didn’t get that restless feeling during this flight.

Crew: Good old-fashioned American crew. They were all smiles throughout the flight and were talking with passengers. It was also nice to see the pilots out of the cockpit thanking passengers during deplaning.

Meal and catering: Complimentary drink and snack on a domestic flight in the US, better than the rest. There is also a BOB menu, but I didn’t need anything. Prices seem on par for US carriers.

Entertainment: Standard seatback literature. IFE with moving map, I’m a happy camper. There are also a good number of TV programs and music available on-demand. Luckily I was flying on a Sunday morning so I got to watch some soccer.

On-time performance: Perfect.

Information on the route Los Angeles (LAX) Boston (BOS)

Les contributeurs de Flight-Report ont posté 5 avis concernant 3 compagnies sur la ligne Los Angeles (LAX) → Boston (BOS).


Useful

La compagnie qui obtient la meilleure moyenne est JetBlue Airways avec 8.1/10.

La durée moyenne des vols est de 5 heures et 15 minutes.

  More information

18 Comments

If you liked this review or if you have any questions, don’t hesitate to post a comment below !
  • Comment 151393 by
    airberlin GOLD 1872 Comments
    I find the offer to be very solid. As you said only a meal service is missing but this is something I can live with if I know about it before boarding. Thanks for sharing.
    • Comment 329289 by
      NGO85 SILVER AUTHOR 1963 Comments
      Thanks for your comment.

      A meal on a US carrier is a thing of the past, even flights in F shorter than two hours don't get meals. An east-bound transcon is pretty short (at least relative to TPACs) so the snacks provided were enough to tie me over until dinner on arrival.
  • Comment 151411 by
    marathon GOLD 10115 Comments
    I love the cabin strafing expression. Flight Reporters know what this means :)
    I can't understand how a seat designer can place IFE controls on top of an armrest (on the side of it is bad enough). Did whoever approved the design ever fly economy ?
    Too bad for the missed window seat. Is seat selection available, at a fee ?
    The Air Force One bonus is great. I can't understand why they prohibit inside pictures; confidentiality and flash sensitivity seem both dubious justifications to me.
    Thanks for this great report !
    • Comment 329290 by
      NGO85 SILVER AUTHOR 1963 Comments
      Bonjour Marathon,

      Did whoever approved the design ever fly economy ?
      - Placing the controls on the inside of the armrest could make it inaccessible to some people (considering American demographics), we all aren't built the same :) Really, there is no perfect place to put them other than making it a touch screen IFE.

      Too bad for the missed window seat. Is seat selection available, at a fee ?
      - Seat selection is free (other than the MoreSpace seats which cost a varying amount of money). When my ticket was booked 6 days in advance, there was only one aisle seat and a couple of middle seats left so I went with the aisle. The plane was announced to be 100% full, but there must have been 2 no-shows hence the empty window seat in my row that my seatmate quickly pirated.

      I can't understand why they prohibit inside pictures
      - It forces you to buy the picture book in the gift shop ;)
  • Comment 151413 by
    KL651 TEAM 4534 Comments
    Thanks for this FR.
    Was JetBlue cheaper than DL?
    I agree that they do offer a great product compared to legacies, the only issue being they're not part of any alliance.
    • Comment 329291 by
      NGO85 SILVER AUTHOR 1963 Comments
      Merci KL651,

      I didn't book the ticket so I'm not sure what the fare difference was between B6 and DL. There was an even earlier AA flight that I would have taken for alliance reasons (related to your point about B6 being non-allianced), but I was worried about getting to LAX in time and that was a more important factor when picking flights. The B6 fare was $280 for the one-way fare based on my e-ticket, which I think is very reasonable considering it was booked 6 days before travel.

      B6 does have an extensive partner network: http://www.jetblue.com/airline-partners/
  • Comment 151422 by
    Numero_2 TEAM BRONZE 10415 Comments
    Thank you for sharing Michael !

    That's the US carriers paradox : LCCs inflight service is usually better than the one you get when flying a legacy airline.

    The seats don't look bad at all and the free snack service can be easily completed with the BoB offering.

    And the cherry on the cake (lol) : A free IFE !
    • Comment 329292 by
      NGO85 SILVER AUTHOR 1963 Comments
      Comme toujours, mercie pour vos commentaires Clement^^

      LCCs inflight service is usually better than the one you get when flying a legacy airline.
      - This is only in the past 10 years, when I was a kid, flying a legacy carrier meant better service :(

      The seats don't look bad at all and the free snack service can be easily completed with the BoB offering.
      - For an east-bound transcon, the flight is not so long (~4.5h), so I think a meal is not necessary if you eat before/after the flight. I don't think anyone in the area around me ordered anything off of the BOB menu, many people carried on breakfast they bought in the airport. The seats remind me a lot of AZ visually, lol^^

      A free IFE !
      - Now, carriers are moving to the BYOIFE approach where they allow you to connect to streaming media, but you have to bring your own device and keep it powered up (power outlets are not standard). But I prefer the DirecTV offering so that I can watch soccer ;)
  • Comment 151465 by
    757Fan 632 Comments
    Great photos from your flight with JetBlue and your photos of the Reagan Library. I'd love to visit there!

    JetBlue is one airline I have never flown before, but they look pretty good for a cross-country flight. Free snacks that look tasty, and wet towels before landing? Nice touches!

    Thanks for sharing!

    • Comment 329401 by
      NGO85 SILVER AUTHOR 1963 Comments
      Hi Matthew, thanks for the comments.

      Unfortunately for most Americans, B6 is not a useful carrier since most of its routes are transcon and East coast only. They have a niche market and they do what they do well. The wet towellette was a very nice touch as we bagen descent, I can't think of any other domestic carrier that offers an oshibori in Y.
  • Comment 151469 by
    SKYTEAMCHC GOLD 10065 Comments
    Thanks for sharing this very good flight and great bonus with us : I would love to see this Air Force one plane !
    • Comment 329402 by
      NGO85 SILVER AUTHOR 1963 Comments
      Merci Christophe, the museum is a little far from LA (~1 hour drive depending on traffic), but it is worth your time to stop by if you are heading out towards Ventura or Santa Barbara. I enjoy flying B6, but understand it isn't practical for most people since it is not allianced.
  • Comment 152067 by
    KévinDC TEAM SILVER 6668 Comments
    That's one hell of a long flight in domestic Y, so it's a good thing you were on JetBlue, which makes it much better! I imagine VX would probably be pleasant as well.

    Reagan library, yikes...did you just indirectly admit that you're a Republican :-P
    That 707 is beautiful! I've been to the one in SEA (twice, this year actually), but this one looks to be in much better condition...probably because it's inside.

    Thanks for sharing!
    • Comment 330024 by
      NGO85 SILVER AUTHOR 1963 Comments
      so was everyone I went to college with, but he was still revered as a hero by them, which I always found funny
      - I don't think he was particularly unpopular as a President, at least he doesn't have a really negative legacy like some other Presidents...

      Not Boeing, the Seattle Museum of Flight. It has the other 707 Air Force one. It's a really great museum, they also have one of the first Dreamliners there.
      - Oohhhh, you meant you saw SAM26000! Gotcha, yeah, that one was only in service for a short period of time. At least you saw the plane that Kennedy used (also was his hearse :( ). I've only been to Seattle once and didn't go to that museum, I'll have to make a run up there at some point since it will be close.

      they also have one of the first Dreamliners there.
      - NGO has the first :P But they have no idea what to do with it so it just sits in the corner of the airport.
    • Comment 330027 by
      KévinDC TEAM SILVER 6668 Comments
      Yes, he has a positive legacy, it was just funny to be because they were all too young to actually remember his presidency.

      Yup, the Kennedy 707.

      Ah yes, interesting that Boeing donated the first one to NGO. So can you actually visit inside of it?
    • Comment 330031 by
      NGO85 SILVER AUTHOR 1963 Comments
      So can you actually visit inside of it?
      - Not yet. Not sure what their plans for it are. It was a nice gesture from Boeing to recognize the contributions of Nagoya to the development of the plane, but not sure if they will build a museum for it or something. They can always mount it on the Observation Deck like at AMS :)
    • Comment 329928 by
      NGO85 SILVER AUTHOR 1963 Comments
      Thanks for the comments Kevin!

      That's one hell of a long flight in domestic Y
      - Ironically, I didn't think it was that bad, but a transcon is child's play compared to TPACs ;)

      so it's a good thing you were on JetBlue
      - Much rather take B6 than DL on this route. The AA flight just didn't work into my schedule. For the domestic flight, I was stuck with a Y seat so I figured B6 has the best Y product. Never flown VX before, but their pitch is not as generous.

      Reagan library, yikes...did you just indirectly admit that you're a Republican :-P
      - Well aren't we jumping to conclusions. I merely was in the area and looked at TripAdvisor to see what the closest thing was. It was the Reagan Library or some classic car museum. I think I made the right choice given Air Force One's presence. I've also been to the Bush Library; too much info? I'm too young to have any memories of Reagen's presidency. And anyways, you are the one that flies out of Ronald Reagan Airport ;)

      probably because it's inside.
      - That and it is Air Force One... It was my first time inside of a B707. Interesting experience and worth the trip. The have some B707s at Boeing?
    • Comment 329937 by
      KévinDC TEAM SILVER 6668 Comments
      Yep, as far as seat pitch goes, B6 is the most generous in Y. When most legacy carrier's planes have 30 seat pitch on domestic flights--any flight in Y sounds uncomfortable on the US3, even more so on a tcon.

      Well aren't we jumping to conclusions. - Haha, I kid of course! And if you were who cares...just don't mention Trump to me ever :-P

      I'm too young to have any memories of Reagen's presidency - so was everyone I went to college with, but he was still revered as a hero by them, which I always found funny--Yeah, I went to school in the South.

      you are the one that flies out of Ronald Reagan Airport - Yeah, and I drive past the George Bush Center for Intelligence everyday and find that name to be an oxymoron, LOL...ok, that's enough politics haha

      The have some B707s at Boeing? - Not Boeing, the Seattle Museum of Flight. It has the other 707 Air Force one. It's a really great museum, they also have one of the first Dreamliners there.

Login to post a comment.