New Yorkers and Londoners are spoiled for choice. Between British Airways, Virgin Atlantic, Delta, United, American and even Norse Atlantic plying transatlantic routes, I’m not sure anybody was begging JetBlue to toss its hat into the ring. But New York-London is, after all, the world’s most profitable air route.
Using an Airbus A321LR narrowbody, JetBlue in 2021 operated its first transatlantic flight to London Heathrow with its new doored Mint business class suite product, including biz-plus Mint Studio suites in the front row. I finally got the chance to experience Mint Studio on a recent business trip.
Even a morning cup of coffee would have required a lengthy wait on a very long Starbucks line. Perhaps JetBlue could open something similar to United Club Fly in the meantime, providing quick bites and drinks for premium passengers until a full lounge is available.
JetBlue was an early adopter of the business class-plus concept, branding the slightly larger and more well equipped bulkhead seats as Mint Studio and pricing them at a premium to Mint. The Mint Studio experience includes no additional ground or inflight soft product perks.
The airline worked with Thompson Aero Seating to customize the Vantage Solo seats with enough JetBlue touches and visual flair to avoid the grey thermoplastic trap that so many other airlines have fallen into.
Between the Airbus Airspace ceiling lighting and customizations to the seat, JetBlue has crafted a very visually appealing interior.
A plastic bottle of water was tucked away in a dedicated storage spot, but the bottle was too tall for the cover to close.
The blanket has snaps built in for use in multiple ways, but the metal snaps on my blanket were impossible to use. Good idea, bad execution.
The Mint Studio suite has enough power to keep virtually any road warrior charged up, with two full AC power outlets, a USB-A and USB-C port.
A flat Qi wireless charging pad is present, with a thoughtfully sticky surface so the passenger’s device doesn’t slide away.
Mint Studio also includes a secondary seating area for another passenger or for a change of pace, but the secondary tray table on this relatively new aircraft was damaged and sloped at a 9 degree angle, making it useless for most companion uses, had I needed it for such.
After boarding, passengers are immediately prompted to use the Thales AVANT entertainment system to order their meals for the flight after a quick pre-departure beverage service. While many airlines allow their passengers to pre-order their selection before flying, JetBlue incorporates that into its onboard digital experience.
While I understand the appeal of this method when there are a multitude of options available, this step ended up feeling like an unnecessary task. For this breakfast service, passengers were prompted to choose up to three “small plates” out of just four. Essentially, I was choosing between a plate of strawberries or chia pudding.
For sides, the choices were maple bacon or nothing. The pre-arrival meal provided what felt like the illusion of choice, as the only two items on offer were a cheese plate and a cookie.
This catering experience was clearly crafted to present more choices to passengers, but those were either unavailable on my flights or have been pared back over time.
Breakfast is a difficult meal for airlines to do right. JetBlue did quite well with some room for improvement. The french toast was tasty, as was the somehow crispy side of bacon. The baked egg was extremely overdone and is not something I’d order again. Compared to my very first Mint domestic flight over a decade ago, the quality and quantity of the breakfast has diminished a bit.
My return flight from London offered a lunch service that again asked passengers to choose three of only four main items, but each item was delicious. The pre-arrival meal for the return flight also offered only two items. That said, it’s great to see what dishes are supposed to look like on the IFE screen.
The Mint Studio seat includes a slightly larger screen than found in the rest of the Mint cabin, and I appreciated that it could be tilted down for better viewing when the seat is reclined.
The content selection itself was on the weaker side for JetBlue, with many movies offered without the rest of their series. For example, only Avengers: Infinity War was offered, but not Endgame, and only Casino Royale from the Daniel Craig era of the 007 movies. The much touted Peacock content partnership proved annoying, as it still led to the same old hodgepodge of three random episodes of many shows being available. I was left wanting for more to watch.
One standout item on both flights was the cabin crew. It really felt like they all wanted to be there and to offer a top-notch experience.
Service was quick and well executed, and the crew always seemed to be attending to the cabin and making themselves available for a new drink order or to clear items off the furniture. The narrowbody cabin also just made the experience feel more personal than a widebody cabin.
Even with the current lack of a lounge at its airports and only a handful of destinations and frequencies across the pond, JetBlue continues to offer a very compelling experience up front. If the price is right, at least, I’ll certainly be looking to fly JetBlue across the Atlantic again in the future.
As far as the Studio seat upgrade, though, I don’t think it provided enough added benefit for me to pay the $299 premium to Mint. But with both seats sold on both of my flights, JetBlue must be doing something right!
All images credited to the author, Jason Rabinowitz
