American, JetBlue launch first phase of partnership even as investigations continue

American Airlines Group and JetBlue Airways said Thursday they are launching the first phase of their partnership with codeshares on nearly 80 routes from New York and Boston.<br/>The joint announcement came even as the US Department of Justice and attorneys general in New York, Massachusetts and other jurisdictions continue to review the proposed tie-up. “American and JetBlue intend to cooperate with those investigations, but are proceeding with plans to implement this alliance,” American said in its annual report released late Wednesday. JetBlue and American are hoping the partnership, announced in July, will give them more competitive heft in the US Northeast. “The alliance is also essential to getting our planes back in the air profitably and crewmembers working again,” said JetBlue’s head of revenue planning, Scott Laurence. The two airlines are also introducing 33 new routes in the first phase of their alliance, which American’s chief revenue officer, Vasu Raja, called “the first step to delivering the best customer proposition with the biggest network in New York and Boston.”<br/>