Current JetBlue president Robin Hayes will take over as airline CEO in February replacing Dave Barger who is stepping down.
Hayes will take over on February 16, when Barger’s contract expires and will become only the third CEO in the company’s 14-year history.
Barger founded JetBlue in 2000 and had been CEO since 2007.
Barger said a mutual decision was taken to step down after a board meeting and was not because of any specific event.
"You just kind of know when you need the next level of ideas, innovation, evolution and it made sense to me and it made sense to the board," Barger said.
Hayes, a former British Airways executive took over as president in January and the signs were he was being groomed for the top job, especially after recently gaining US citizenship.
A change at the top has been long expected by analysts, as although JetBlue is profitable, earning have fallen well short of rival airlines.
The airline has steadfastly refused to follow trends by charging for the first checked bag.
When asked about strategy for increasing revenue, Hayes would only say: "results would bear out the earnings growth that our shareholders expect."
