After nearly a decade of operation, JSX is all about loyalty. The semi-private airline was first launched in 2016 on a single route between Burbank, California and Concord. Currently, the company operates up to 140 public charter flights daily to 28 destinations across the west, south and east coast.
This gradual expansion and extensive scale has led to the time to invest in the Proprietary Loyalty program. Ben Kaufman is Senior Director of Customer Experience, Loyalty and Partnerships at JSX, and said in an interview with Afer only.
JSX has been working on developing the program since April 2024. “To make a loyalty program a success, the network needs to be large enough to support it,” Kaufman said. “We feel like we’re in a place where there’s enough routes and aircraft to make it actually work.”
A simple scheme called Club JSX is based entirely on spending, so there is no loopholes or availability of awards. All passengers will receive a 5% back as future flight credits on the ticket base fare along with seat and pet fees. Travelers can pool rewards with up to 5 people, providing greater flexibility when redemption. However, flight credits will expire after 12 months.
Previously, JSX customers had the option to earn miles with two major airline partner programs, United MileagePlus or JetBlue TrueBlue. Currently, travelers have additional options at Club JSX. (They can still choose to use their miles in the United or JetBlue program, if they like.)
“One of our findings in our customer survey was that almost 75% of people who wished that loyalty would come to JSX are partners, compared to their partners,” Kaufmann pointed out.
When US Airlines called on the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) to ban JSX and other semi-private carriers from operating, the idea of public charter jet services was raised question, but JSX survived the challenge and is now becoming more popular.
JSX is primarily operated at private air terminals. This saves a lot of time on flyers. In fact, the real luxury of flying a JSX is that you can check in just 20 minutes before a domestic flight without dealing with the long check-in procedure, security lines and terminal crowds. In addition to the benefits of time and comfort, the carrier also offers Wi-Fi within StarLink, offering free service on all flights since May 2023.
Current JSX destinations include Burbank, Orange County and Oakland, California. Scottsdale, Arizona. Las Vegas, Nevada. Salt Lake City, Utah. Boulder, Colorado. Taos and Sante FE, New Mexico. Dallas and Austin, Texas. Westchester, New York. Miami and Naples, Florida. Cabo San Lucas in Mexico.
The airline operates a fleet of 48 Embraer ERJ-145 aircraft, each equipped with 30 seats (located in a 1-2 configuration). Earlier this summer, company officials said they were planning to lease two turboprop aircraft (42-600s) that could carry up to 30 passengers before the end of 2025. The carrier signed a “Letter of Intent” to purchase 15 new ATR aircraft in 2026.
Turboprop aircraft are not as fast as commercial jets, but they can promote large scale expansion of JSX, bringing concrete benefits to flying people. “We think this can open a new kind of market because we can use these planes to enter small airports that don’t have services,” Kaufman said.
Authorities have stayed with their mother exactly what cities JSX could serve next, but the company has already expanded its network this summer with existing aircraft. A new non-stop service connecting Orange County, California (SNA) and Salt Lake City, Utah (SLC) began in mid-June, with flights between California’s Napa County Airport (APC), Burbank (Bar) and Orange County (SNA) beginning earlier this month.
