By Ben Mutzabaugh, USA TODAY From First Coast News

JetBlue is expanding its Caribbean footprint from its base in Fort Lauderdale, announcing plans for two new routes.

Beginning June 14, JetBlue will launch service to Santiago in the Dominican Republic. The carrier will offer one daily round-trip flight on 150-seat Airbus A320 aircraft.

In October, JetBlue plans to launch non-stop service between Fort Lauderdale and Grand Cayman in the Cayman Islands. That service would feature one daily round-trip flight, pending regulatory approval.

“These new routes continue to solidify JetBlue’s leadership position in South Florida and in the Caribbean where we’ve built a robust and successful network over the years,” John Checketts, JetBlue’s vice president network planning, said in a statement. “With expanded Caribbean service in Fort Lauderdale we are laying the groundwork for even more growth in already popular destinations.”

The Fort Lauderdale route will become JetBlue’s fifth route from Santiago. It also expands JetBlue’s presence in the Dominican Republic, where the airline says “it operates more daily flights than any other carrier.”

For Grand Cayman, JetBlue’s planned Fort Lauderdale service would become its third route from the island. It already flies to its two biggest bases at New York JFK and Boston, the latter seasonally.

Both of the new routes also further JetBlue’s ongoing expansion at its Fort Lauderdale “focus city.” The carrier says Santiago and Grand Cayman become its 58th and 59th non-stop destinations from the airport and will allow connections for travelers headed to or from cities such as Washington, D.C., Philadelphia, Atlanta “and multiple west coast markets.”

IMAGE: NATION-NOW

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