JSX, a public rental operator that brings a semi-private experience to travelers, will debut its ATR turboprop on its November flight in California.
JSX CEO Alex Wilcox confirmed at an event hosted by ATR in Washington, D.C. on Wednesday that its launch details for ATR-42-600 did not say exactly the golden state where the plane will fly. The maximum length of the aircraft is about two hours and is installed in a 30-seat layout throughout the journey.
“It will be another controversial,” he said of the new airport or airport that will serve the ATR. The controversy he mentioned was the lawsuit JSX faced the establishment and expansion of actions at places like John Wayne Airport (SNA) in Orange County, California and Westchester County Airport (HPN) in White Plains, New York.
As close as possible to private: New routes to fly JSX
Wilcox added that JSX will eventually take ATRS to Telluride Regional Airport in Colorado (TEX) and Truckee Tahoe Airport in California (TKF) – the latter without commercial aviation services today – Wilcox added. He declined to provide more details about the airline’s plans for any airport.
JSX is known for going from usually smaller, more convenient airports to popular destinations such as Harry Reed International Airport (LAS) from Southern California to Las Vegas, a step in flying over standard commercial airlines. Flights often arrive at standard private terminals with amenities only in premium airline lounges, while travelers can choose from free premium snacks and drink transfers.
The airline operates under a public charter certification, which enables it to operate on aircraft with 30 seats less than the cost of large regional airlines such as Republic Airlines and Sky Airlines.
JSX calculates JetBlue, Qatar Airways and United among investors and has partnered with JetBlue and United. The airline launched its own loyalty program, JSX Club in July.
Currently, JSX is driving the All-Coin ERJ Regional Jet fleet.
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Behind the Scenes: Touring JSX’s Super Spacious 1-1 Matched Jet
ATR: “Half, half and double”
Wilcox said JSX’s new ATR-42S will open up more markets at a lower cost.
“From my point of view, the plane is half, half and twice as much,” he said. The ATR takes half the runway, burns half the fuel, and makes the number of airports that JSX can use compared to the airline’s Embraer jets. Alexis Vidal, chief commercial officer of ATR, said Wednesday that aircraft manufacturers’ turboprops are about 30% cheaper than 50-seat regional aircraft.
The question is: Will our travelers be willing to fly in turboprops like they are flying a zone jet?
Turboprops like the ATR dominate the U.S. regional fleet – think of the U.S. Hawks and Delta connections in the world – until they drove the market to the faster, larger regional aircraft in the 2000s. “We have harmed the public with regional jets,” Rick Leach, CEO of United Airlines’ affiliate Gojet, said Wednesday.
He added: “People still see props and go ‘oh, old technology’.
Horizon Air, a subsidiary of Alaska Airlines, is the last regional branch of major U.S. airlines flying turboprops (Bombardier Dash 8-Q400). The airline retired in January 2023.
When asked if senior travelers at JSX would fly on turboprops, Wilcox joked: “I want to [you’ve] Never been to St. Bartes,” referring to Gustav III Airport (SBH) on the luxurious Caribbean island of St. Barcely, which is provided only by turboprops.
JSX’s ATR plan
JSX is adopting a low-risk ATR approach. The airline’s initial commitment targeted only two leased ATR-42S, after it was flying by the deactivated Silver Airlines, which will debut in November. Wilcox said it will add two more leased aircraft in the first quarter of 2026.
“We need to prove that our customers will be on a turbo plane,” Wilcox said. “For reasons I have outlined – because it will be more convenient for them, because the airport we are going to choose is closer to where they live and where they want to go – I’m very confident that this will happen, but we still need to prove it before we can put it in real money.”
If everything works as expected, JSX can finalize a letter of intent for up to 25 new ATRs to unveil in June, Wilcox said. JSX can then launch turboprops to bases throughout the United States through its own estimates, and turboprops can provide air service to hundreds of airports instead of flying today.
But first, JSX needs to go beyond ATR’s debut – as Wilcox says, demonstrating their survivability in the semi-private, peer-to-peer market where the carriers are located.
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