Slippery slope
December 14, 2006: New JetBlue Airplane Configuration. "JetBlue will offer at least 36-inch pitch in rows 1-11, and 34-inch pitch in rows 12-25." Me, commenting on del.icio.us: "Very nice, but what will happen to JetBlue's 'sit in back, get more legroom' come-on?"
March 19, 2008: JetBlue to Charge $10 to $20 for Legroom. "The new seats -- situated in rows two through five and in emergency exit rows 10 and 11 -- will provide 38 inches of pitch."
Between this and the airline's new refundable-business-fare policies, we have the answer: premium economy. (UpgradeTravel predicted this last year, and they're exactly right.)
The slippery slopes here are numerous. For one thing, JetBlue is getting more and more traditional; it's only a matter of time before they shoehorn an extra row or two back into the cabin, killing their industry-leading seat pitch. For another, those "$10-20" legroom seats will quickly cost $50 or more each way, in much the same manner as JetBlue's fares quickly went from low-cost-carrier range to $399-each-way-to-Florida-at-Christmas levels, sometimes costing more than American and Continental.
Once upon a time I was a JetBlue shareholder. I always enjoy the time I spend on their planes, particularly when compared with other domestic airlines. But it's hard to root for the clever underdog when the innovations are increasingly pulling them into the realm of same-old, same-old.