JETBLUE AIRWAYS CORPJBLU
JETBLUE AIRWAYS CORP Leases Disclosure
Leases
Operating lease assets represent our right to use an underlying asset for the lease term, and lease liabilities represent our obligation to make lease payments arising from the lease. Operating lease assets and liabilities are recognized at the lease commencement date based on the estimated present value of lease payments over the lease term. When available, we use the rate implicit in the lease to discount lease payments to present value. For leases that do not provide a readily determinable implicit rate, we estimate our incremental borrowing rate to discount the lease payments based on information available at lease commencement.
Leases with a term of 12 months or less are not recorded on the balance sheet. Our lease agreements do not contain any residual value guarantees. For facility leases, we account for the lease and non-lease components as a single lease component.
The table below presents the lease-related assets and liabilities recorded on our consolidated balance sheets as of December 31, 2025 and 2024 (in millions):
| As of December 31, | ||||||||||||||||||||
| 2025 | 2024 | |||||||||||||||||||
| Assets | Classification on Balance Sheet | |||||||||||||||||||
| Operating lease assets | Operating lease assets | $ | 868 | $ | 550 | |||||||||||||||
| Finance lease assets | 444 | 115 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Total lease assets | $ | 1,312 | $ | 665 | ||||||||||||||||
| Liabilities | Classification on Balance Sheet | |||||||||||||||||||
| Current: | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Operating lease liabilities | Current operating lease liabilities | $ | 79 | $ | 93 | |||||||||||||||
| Finance lease liabilities | 79 | 15 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Long-term: | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Operating lease liabilities | Long-term operating lease liabilities | 839 | 510 | |||||||||||||||||
| Finance lease liabilities | 370 | 101 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Total lease liabilities | $ | 1,367 | $ | 719 | ||||||||||||||||
| As of December 31, | ||||||||||||||||||||
| 2025 | 2024 | |||||||||||||||||||
| Weighted average remaining lease term (in years) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Operating leases | 14 | 8 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Finance leases | 6 | 7 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Weighted average discount rate | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Operating leases | 7.0 | % | 7.1 | % | ||||||||||||||||
| Finance leases | 6.3 | % | 5.8 | % | ||||||||||||||||
Flight Equipment Leases
We operated a fleet of 288 aircraft as of December 31, 2025. Of our fleet, 10 aircraft were accounted for as operating leases and three were accounted for as finance leases. These aircraft leases generally have long durations. The remaining terms on these leases as of December 31, 2025 are one month to three years. As of December 31, 2025, we had 34 and 41 spare engines accounted for as finance leases and operating leases, respectively.
The Company completed eight and two engine sale-leaseback transactions for the years ended December 31, 2025 and 2024, respectively, which resulted in a gain of $84 million and $17 million, which is included within other operating expenses on our consolidated statements of operations. These sale-leasebacks are accounted for as operating leases and are included in operating lease assets and operating lease liabilities on our consolidated balance sheets. There were no sale-leaseback transactions for the year ended December 31, 2023.
Facility Leases
Our facility leases are primarily for space at the airports we serve. These leases are classified as operating leases and reflect our use of passenger terminal service facilities consisting of ticket counters, gate space, operations support area, and baggage service offices. We lease space directly or indirectly from the local airport authority on varying terms dependent on prevailing practices at each airport. The remaining terms of our airport leases vary from two months to 17 years. Our leases at certain airports contain provisions for periodic adjustments of rental rates based on the operating costs of the airports or the frequency of use of the facilities. Some of these leases also include renewal options and/or termination options that are factored into our determination of lease payments when appropriate. Because of the variable nature of the rates, these leases are not recorded as operating lease assets and operating lease liabilities on our consolidated balance sheets.
We also have leases for our corporate offices, training center, and various hangars and airport support facilities at our focus cities.
Other Ground and Property Equipment
We lease certain IT assets, ground support equipment, and various other pieces of equipment. The lease terms of our ground support equipment are less than 12 months. The amount of other equipment we have is not significant.
Lease Costs
The table below presents certain information related to our lease costs during the years ended December 31, 2025, 2024, and 2023 (in millions):
| 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Operating lease cost | $ | 133 | $ | 139 | $ | 167 | ||||||||||||||
| Short-term lease cost | 5 | 5 | 2 | |||||||||||||||||
| Finance lease cost: | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Amortization of assets | 27 | 7 | — | |||||||||||||||||
| Interest on lease liabilities | 16 | 3 | — | |||||||||||||||||
| Variable lease cost | 594 | 607 | 614 | |||||||||||||||||
| Sublease income | (20) | (23) | (20) | |||||||||||||||||
| Total net lease cost | $ | 755 | $ | 738 | $ | 763 | ||||||||||||||
Other Information
The table below presents supplemental cash flow information related to leases during the years ended December 31, 2025, 2024, and 2023 (in millions):
| 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Cash paid for amounts included in the measurement of lease liabilities | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Operating cash flows for operating leases | $ | 155 | $ | 162 | $ | 168 | ||||||||||||||
| Operating cash flows for finance leases | 16 | 3 | — | |||||||||||||||||
| Financing cash flows for finance leases | 67 | 6 | 2 | |||||||||||||||||
Lease Commitments
The table below presents scheduled future minimum lease payments for operating and finance leases recorded on our consolidated balance sheets, as of December 31, 2025 (in millions):
| As of December 31, 2025 | ||||||||||||||
| Operating Leases | Finance Leases | |||||||||||||
| 2026 | $ | 139 | $ | 105 | ||||||||||
| 2027 | 128 | 60 | ||||||||||||
| 2028 | 110 | 60 | ||||||||||||
| 2029 | 89 | 60 | ||||||||||||
| 2030 | 84 | 60 | ||||||||||||
| Thereafter | 938 | 219 | ||||||||||||
| Total minimum lease payments | $ | 1,488 | $ | 564 | ||||||||||
| Less: amount of lease payment representing interest | (570) | (115) | ||||||||||||
| Present value of future minimum lease payment | $ | 918 | $ | 449 | ||||||||||
| Less: current obligations under leases | (79) | (79) | ||||||||||||
| Long-term lease obligations | $ | 839 | $ | 370 | ||||||||||
Historical Timeline
| Fiscal Year | Filed | |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Feb 12, 2026 | Showing above |
| 2024 | Feb 14, 2025 | |
| 2023 | Feb 12, 2024 | |
| 2022 | Feb 27, 2023 | |
| 2021 | Feb 22, 2022 | |
| 2020 | Mar 2, 2021 | |
| 2019 | Feb 18, 2020 | |
| 2018 | Feb 21, 2019 | |
| 2017 | Feb 16, 2018 | |
| 2016 | Feb 17, 2017 | |
| 2015 | Feb 17, 2016 | |
About Leases Disclosures
Lease disclosures under ASC 842 provide a comprehensive view of a company's leased asset portfolio, including the split between operating and finance leases, discount rates used to present-value future payments, and the maturity schedule of lease obligations. This section reveals a significant source of off-balance-sheet commitments that were largely hidden before the current standard.
Key signals: the weighted-average discount rate affects the size of recorded lease liabilities — a higher rate reduces the reported obligation, so compare the chosen rate against the company's incremental borrowing rate. The operating versus finance lease mix affects both EBITDA and operating income presentation. Watch the maturity table for concentration risk: large payment cliffs in specific years may create cash flow pressure. Variable lease payments excluded from the liability measurement represent real obligations that do not appear on the balance sheet. Compare total lease costs against prior-year operating lease expense to assess the true economic burden.