Supreme Court declines review of DOJ case against airline partnership

American Airlines appealed to the Supreme Court for a review of lower court decisions but was unsuccessful. According to USA Today, "the Supreme Court will not review the decision." The Justice Department noted that since JetBlue ended its partnership with American several years ago, pursuing the case further was unnecessary.

Following these developments, both airlines have had to navigate independently. For JetBlue, this included an unsuccessful merger attempt with Spirit Airlines and ongoing financial challenges within a competitive industry. Meanwhile, American Airlines continues to underperform compared to its peers despite being better positioned than JetBlue.

The Northeast Alliance aimed to bolster American's competitiveness in New York against dominant players like Delta Air Lines at JFK Airport and United at Newark Liberty International Airport. While Delta held a 33.40% market share at JFK as of March 2025, JetBlue had 32.28%, and American had 12.37%.

Despite regulatory intervention ending their alliance, both carriers found initial success through collaboration before returning to independent operations amidst stiff competition from incumbents like Delta and United.

JetBlue is now moving forward with its "Blue Sky" partnership with United Airlines announced earlier this year. This new alliance includes reciprocal benefits for elite travelers but notably excludes codeshares—a contentious issue in their previous alliance with American—which may help avoid regulatory scrutiny.