JSX appears to have survived the lobbying onslaught against it by American Airlines, Southwest Airlines, and the Air Line Pilots Association. They tried to get the Biden administration to shut down JSX because (1) passengers like flying an all-business class product out of private terminals better, and (2) they aren’t subject to the occupational licensing rules designed to limit the number of pilots and drive up pilot wages.

Now JSX appears to be back in growth mode.

• A year ago, the Biden administration FAA said they would regulate the JSX business model out of existence while being sensitive to the needs of small communities. They planned to release a rulemaking by the end of 2024 and didn’t. Some of that may have been the realization that one of their top priorities – electric-powered aircraft – required part 135 operators to become a reality

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• The other front that the airlines waged war against JSX was at TSA (former American Airlines CEO Doug Parker says he buttonholed TSA Administrator Pekoske to push for this, roping in Southwest COO Andrew Watterson). Ultimately TSA will require JSX to enforce liquid rules and buy new scanners, which will require reconfiguring some private terminals, but won’t put them out of business as American and Southwest had hoped.

  

JSX currently operates Embraer 135 and 145 aircraft, with the 135s flying largely within California. They’re adding a third aircraft type to the fleet – bringing ATR 42-600 turboprops into the fleet “reaching more private terminals…and underserved airports across the United States.”

These planes will be configured with ATR’s HighLine interior with 30 seats and they’ll add StarLink internet (JSX was the launch customer for StarLink in commercial aircraft).

ATR HighLine Interior

As JSX CEO Alex Wilcox explains,

The ATR -600 series will bring over 1,000 new airports into reach for JSX, expanding access to reliable public charter flights across the great United States. Many of these airports were, until now, reserved only for those who had the means to fly private.

I am confident that our Customers will love the ATR product, not just for the variety of new routes it allows JSX to operate, but also for its quiet cabin and comfortable seating. When paired with our award-winning JSX hospitality, the addition of the ATR marks an innovative step forward in our company’s unyielding mission to increase the safety, speed, and convenience of air travel that moves our country forward.

JSX will initially lease just two of the planes, however they’ve also signed a letter of intent for 15 plus 10 options on either ATR 42-600s or ATR 72-600s. One Mile at a Time points out that we don’t know if these are new aircraft being purchased (he wonders if the initial ones are ex-Silver Airways planes) although I’d been under the impression that those were spoken for already.

I wonder how real that letter of intent is at this point. ATR wants to get into the U.S. market with these planes, and into the charter market here, and may be heavily incentivized to offer strong terms. However since we’re hearing about a letter of intent rather than firm order I have to discount certainty beyond the leased planes they plan to bring into service within the next six months.

After all, they’ve announced orders for a href=”https://viewfromthewing.com/from-private-terminals-to-electric-wings-jsx-announces-order-for-up-to-332-evtol-aircraft/” target=_blank>several electric planes that aren’t yet certified for operation, including from one manufacturer who’s no longer in business. And while they would certainly open up markets that cannot be served by Embraer 135/145 planes, and would have appealed to the Biden administration, ATRs open up new markets too.

Credit: Aura Aero

Perhaps this replaces the electric aircraft future at JSX, perhaps this is a hedge in case those planes don’t have a future, or maybe it will be something else. Surely there’s still growth opportunities that JSX has yet to exploit under their current model and with planes they haven’t yet brought into service – more flights in the Northeast for instance.