Another Airline Will Grow in L.A. Despite the Pandemic
Earlier this month, JetBlue Airways announced that it would abandon its focus city in Long Beach, California this fall after nearly two decades. Instead, the carrier plans to shift nearly all of its remaining Long Beach flights to Los Angeles International Airport (LAX): the region's primary airport. It then plans to embark on an ambitious effort to more than double its schedule at LAX by 2025.
However, JetBlue won't be the only airline looking to grow at LAX in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic later this year. Last week, Alaska Air (NYSE: ALK) announced a meaningful growth push of its own in this strategically important market.
Several years ago, Alaska Air bought smaller rival Virgin America to expand its footprint in California. Soon after completing the acquisition, the company embarked on an aggressive expansion in California, including lots of new transcontinental routes. On many of these new routes, Alaska struggled to gain market share profitably from entrenched competitors.
Source Fool.com
