JetBlue defines Aer Lingus partnership

JetBlue has rapidly expanded its reach recently, by defining its ticketing agreement with Aer Lingus and announcing the advent of fully refundable airfares.

First announced last February, JetBlue and Aer Lingus have finally formalized the details of their partnership, which will begin on April 3. Travelers departing from the U.S. can fly to New York’s JFK airport on JetBlue and connect to Ireland on Aer Lingus without re-checking bags.

Unlike a true codeshare, customers will purchase tickets using “a sophisticated, easy-to-use booking process” on JetBlue’s website, and will be transferred to Aer Lingus’s site to complete their booking. When flying to the U.S. from Ireland, customers will exit customs, and re-check their bags at Aer Lingus’ transfer station. The agreement is the first of its kind in the industry, and as such, its success (or failure) is hard to predict.

In other news, JetBlue is targeting business travelers with the arrival of refundable fares, fully flexible tickets that allow unlimited changes, including name changes. Through February 13, JetBlue is offering quadruple TrueBlue points to travelers who book refundable fares online, and triple points for booking other ways.