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Tracking JetBlue's Latin America Takeover

Early adopters may remember all the way back to before 9/11, when all JetBlue seemed to do was ferry people from Upstate New York to JFK. Now, nearly nine years after its first flight, the carrier is pushing ever-southward, with its latest new route, between Orlando and San Jose, Costa Rica, set to start March 26, 2009.

It's one of many new Caribbean and Latin American routes JetBlue has planned for the coming months. Next week, flights leave both Tampa and DC for Cancun for the first time, and Dulles will also get a connection to San Juan, Puerto Rico. In addition to Costa Rica, the airline will also start flying to Bogota and Nassau from Orlando early next year.

Why the big push at a time when other airlines are cutting service? We think it might have something to do with another LCC: Spirit has heaps of flights to the Caribbean and Latin America on Airbus 319s with 31 inches of seat pitch. But JetBlue is planning to fly E-190s--complete with live TV, two-by-two seating and at least 32 inches of pitch--to Costa Rica. With both carriers offering low fares to San Jose, who would you choose?

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[Photo: Cubbie_n_Vegas]