I heard about this offer on WTOP this morning, but I didn't realize it was for military only.

Yeah that's all well a good. Let's look at it from the Service members POV.

1. All leave requests ( barring emergency leave ) must be submitted 2 weeks prior to SM taking leave.
with such a small window for purchase I can't see many members taking advantage of this.
2. SM must provide flight itinerary along with leave request.
Again with such a small window I can't see members taking advantage of this.
3. Although MAC flights are more expensive than 1$ at least you have a wider variety of choice in where you can go.

Nice try Jet Blue. Looks good on paper, as well as for you, but you fail.

Because the only active military bases are in DC and Virginia? Thanks for screwing over military on the West Coast that have family on the East Coast.

A load of rubbish!! Since when did the "Reserves" become "Non-military??? Either give the deal to ALL Military and be appreciative for all they've done or none at all. Someone needs to talk sense with their marketing department - sheeez

Sounds like a nice gesture on their part. Given how bad airlines are doing, I think this is great they're even doing it. Sucks it's so limited, but this is better than nothing at all...

@GretaDandradeine:

when i said "ALL they've done" I meant " ALL MILITARY" not just reserves..(just wanted to clear that up) :)

Just use Grayhound buses. ALL Military $198 round trip. Not too bad.

A PR stunt with limited real-world value, nothing more.

@aerick79: Looking at their past record of customer "service", I wouldn't trust them.

@Nick1693: I never had a problem with them. Sure its a bus, but if everyone follows the #1 rule(not to shit on the bus) there shouldn't be problem.

There should be no distinction between retired and active. This is one of my biggest pet peeves. If you offer a MILITARY discount, someone who used to dodge bullets for your country and lived, and someone that currently dodges bullets for your country are one in the same.

@ShelbyPhegeus: exactly! My husband just got out of the Marines, and getting his leave approved was a huge hassel even months in advance. I wouldn't be surprised if less than a dozen people actually took advantage of this.

@simplegreen:

Agreed. Both groups make incredible sacrifices.

Congrats to the 1 or 2 Marines or soldiers who can hop on this deal.

There is no number of restrictions on a $1 airfare that I would find surprising.

@aerick79: I took a bus out of Orlando to West Palm Beach a couple years ago because my car up and died at Disney.
I think I'd rather sign up for another tour in Iraq than deal with that steaming hot mess ever again.
The bus stank. The ac unit didn't work. The windows didn't open. The driver drove like an old woman. We actually lost someone at a rest stop. Total wtf'ery through the whole ride. And don't even let me get started at the stop in Fort Pierce.

It's nice that they give something.

To all those that would complain: The men/women in the military choose to join and do what they do. If they do it for want of recognition then they do it for the wrong reasons.

@simplegreen: I understand your point but JetBlue is a business and what they're offering is rather incredible so you have to draw the line somewhere. Just from a revenue standpoint, opening up the deal to retired military people would be chaotic and insane.

@aerick79: if everyone follows the #1 rule(not to shit on the bus)

Isn't that the #2 Rule?

.

... I'll just get my coat and be going, then...

@AliyaBabasaur: That and if I read it correctly, that would seem like a 1 way flight. How much does the return trip cost?

@aerick79: Meh. I suppose, but flying on a discount carrier like airtran can be cheaper.

well despite the only few airports.... i hope this trend will catch on to other airlines with a wider time line and more aiports. I'll vote for Palin in 2012 or Obama or whoever gets the airlines to roundup a "Dollar Menu" for us military folk. also reservists should also be allowed.

-dave

@VidaBlueBalls: True. plus i bet that plane would be realy cranky, or very interesting by the stories that would be told/memories remembered.

@Chumas:

When I was a freshman in college I went with some buddies from Cincinnati to New Orleans for Mardi Gras, and being the poor college kids we were, we decided to go Greyhound. It took a little over 1 1/2 days to get there, and we stopped in some really shady areas in the Deep South.

I'll never ride with them again, but we do have some great stories about our journey.

It just seems to me like this is a PR move to make it look like they give a crap, when all you have to do is look at the stipulations to see that 99% of servicemembers will not be able to take advantage of the deal.

And the above comments are correct. I had to go through a crapload of red tape just to have my leave approved in the Marines, and by the time it was approved all the cheap airline tickets were sold.

@dave_coder:
Well dave, you're missing something here.
JetBlue is doing this as a promotional gimmick: Look how much we support the troops!

As pointed out by people actually in the military, this is next to useless to the people it's supposed to be helping. Most people won't look that far into it so JetBlue just comes out looking great.

This is not about the military getting recognition, it's about JetBlue trying to exploit people's patriotic spirit in order to look good (but then completely failing to do so in an actually helpful way).

A surprising number of restrictions? On MY airline ticket?

It's more likely than you thing.

Seriously though, the fact that there are a lot of restrictions really shouldn't be that surprising...

@ShelbyPhegeus: 1) "leave requests ... must be submitted 2 weeks prior"

When I was in the military (from 1998 to 2007) I could request leave anytime I wanted. It depends on if your supervisor is willing to let you go.

2) "SM must provide flight itinerary along with leave request."

To whom must they provide the flight itinerary along with their leave request? Their supervisor? Their personnel office? In what year was it a requirement that a servicemember tell their boss what airplane they are going to take when they go on leave? It wasn't the case in 1998. Or 1999. Or even 2000. In fact, between 1998 and 2007, I took leave a dozen times or more and not once was I asked to let my boss know what airline I was taking, what the flight plan was, or if I drove what highway I would use, or even exactly who I was going to see or where I was going to go or what I was going to do -- the only requirement was a general contact address and contact telephone number.

3) "Although MAC flights are more expensive..."

Only if they are commercial air. Military Airlift Command (MAC), headquartered at Scott AFB, IL, was disbanded more than a decade ago. It's been called "AMC" or "Air Mobility Command" since 1992. And a "Space-A" (space available) flight on an AMC MILITARY aircraft is usually free. Commercial flights may not be. I took a "hop" across the Atlantic myself -- from Dover AFB to Ramstein AB, Germany, and back on a C-5 Galaxy, and it didn't cost me a dime. But to use Space-A, you have to ALREADY be on leave. That means you'll be burning leave days while waiting in the PAX terminal for a slot to open.

@VidaBlueBalls: Opening up to past servicemen of the armed forces might mean that more than a handful of people will actually be able to participate in this offer. Other than that, it's just a stunt.

@ShelbyPhegeus: SM must provide flight itinerary along with leave request.

So you have to book your flight before you ask for leave? I know the military does things backwards once in a while and all, but I have a hard time believing that's military-wide SOP.

It's an empty PR move. Most of us non-military types would see it and thing "Gee, JetBlue sure does support our military! I'll buy from them next time." and all they have to do is maybe offer 50 flights for $1 at those restrictions. Cheap cheap good publicity, only at the cost of being shitty.

@militarydave: You'll sell your vote for cheap airline tickets?

A true patriot, ladies and gentlemen!

(I know, you're probably joking. If you were joking, then so am I.)

@VidaBlueBalls: Not if they do this knowing that not many sevrice members will acutally be able to take advantage of this deal. Then they are exploiting the pride and gratitude that fellow citizens have for service members to increase their brand while given basically nothing to the soldiers, sailors, and airmen.

@GretaDandradeine: Non-military? What are you talking about?

"All active duty military personnel currently serving in the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force and Coast Guard and aged 18 or older are eligible to take advantage of this promotion. All flights will depart out of Washington Dulles International Airport (IAD) or Richmond International Airport (RIC). Retirees, reservists and military families are not eligible for this offer."

Also, I searched the "May Military Offer" page for "non" and these are the only ones there:

nonstop
nonrefundable
non-transferable
nonprofit
non-authorized

Notice the NONexistence of "non-military".