12:14 PM EDT, 07/30/2024 (MT Newswires) -- JetBlue Airways ( JBLU ) has reached an agreement with Airbus to defer the delivery of 44 A321neo aircraft to 2030 and beyond, reducing planned capital expenditures by about $3 billion, Chief Financial Officer Ursula Hurley said at the Q2 earnings call Tuesday.

This will lower Airbus aircraft commitments over the next five years to $2.3 billion from $5.3 billion, Hurley said.

The move is aimed at improving free cash flow and balance sheet health, addressing issues related to Pratt & Whitney GTF issues, Chief Executive Officer Joanna Geraghty said.

Hurley also said that the airline now expects "the average number of grounded aircraft in 2025 to be in the mid- to high teens with greater uncertainty in 2026 and beyond". Due to the grounding of aircraft, capacity for 2025 is expected to remain "roughly flat" compared with 2024, Hurley added.

JetBlue ( JBLU ) has also decided to cancel its fall investor day event and communicate its strategy now, to focus on the "execution of JetForward plan", Geraghty said.

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