JetBlue announced on Wednesday that it plans to introduce a first-class section across its domestic fleet over a two-year period starting in 2026.
My quick take? I’ll believe it when I see it.
JetBlue and First Class: A Long Time Coming
Since its inception, JetBlue has not had a differentiated first-class product on the vast majority of its planes. For most of its fleet, the only noticeable upgrade from economy seating is the “Even More Space” category, which offers extra legroom and a few additional perks. Depending on the price difference and the flight length, I’ll occasionally opt for these seats.
The Introduction of Mint
It was a little over 10 years ago when JetBlue launched its Mint class on transcontinental flights, quickly gaining recognition for offering one of the best domestic first-class products. Over time, Mint was extended to Caribbean flights and even transatlantic routes to Europe. The airline recently introduced an updated Mint product on its Airbus A321 NEOs and LRs. The first row in these cabins offers larger suites with space for up to two people and extra benefits. This upgraded seating comes with a $299 price difference from the rest of the Mint cabin.
JetBlue’s Retrofit Challenges
Despite introducing the Mint class, JetBlue hasn’t been particularly quick with retrofitting older planes. In 2018, the airline announced plans to refresh the interior of its A320 fleet, but as of late 2024, several A320 Classic planes are still flying, including one we traveled on earlier this year. Here’s a look at that experience.
I checked FlightAware, and sure enough, these older planes are still in operation, flying between the East Coast and the Caribbean. One is currently in El Salvador, where JetBlue performs repairs and retrofits. While this could signal the start of another round of updates, it may also be routine maintenance.
Bringing First-Class Seats to the Fleet
JetBlue plans to install first-class sections on all its planes that currently lack the Mint premium product. The Airbus A320 planes will feature three rows of first-class seats, while the Airbus A220s will have two. However, this move will come at the expense of legroom in the rest of the cabin.
According to Live and Let’s Fly, the updated legroom specs are as follows:
- Even More Space (extra legroom economy): 35 inches
- Core (regular economy): 30 inches
Currently, Core seats offer 32 inches of pitch, an industry-leading feature that will likely be sacrificed to accommodate the new “Mini Mint” seats.
The oldest A320s will receive the updates first, starting in 2026, followed by newer jets without Mint cabins. Currently, there’s no indication that JetBlue will add premium cabin seating to its 100-seat Embraer E190 jets, typically used on short routes but occasionally fly longer, like when we flew on one from Orlando to New York.
Will JetBlue Meet the Deadline?
Given JetBlue’s track record of taking over eight years to almost complete the A320 retrofit, the remaining 11 planes in the fleet will likely keep their well-worn leather seats until at least 2026. After that, it could take another two years or more before the entire fleet is updated with either Mint or the new “Mini Mint” first-class cabins.
During this transition, JetBlue may face challenges in swapping planes between those with the new and older layouts. We’ll likely look for planes with the older layout, offering more room in the back until the fleet-wide updates are completed.
We’ll see what happens.
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