Summary of Significant Accounting Policies

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2021

Summary of Significant Accounting Policies

Basis of Presentation

JetBlue Airways Corporation, or JetBlue, provides air transportation services across the United States, the Caribbean and Latin America, and between New York and London. Our condensed consolidated financial statements include the accounts of JetBlue and our subsidiaries which are collectively referred to as “we” or the “Company”. All majority-owned subsidiaries are consolidated on a line by line basis, with all intercompany transactions and balances being eliminated. These condensed consolidated financial statements and related notes should be read in conjunction with our 2020 audited financial statements included in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2020, or our 2020 Form 10-K.

These condensed consolidated financial statements are unaudited and have been prepared by us following the rules and regulations of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, or the SEC. In our opinion they reflect all adjustments, including normal recurring items, that are necessary to present fairly the results for interim periods. Certain information and footnote disclosures normally included in financial statements prepared in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles in the United States, or GAAP, have been condensed or omitted as permitted by such rules and regulations; however, we believe that the disclosures are adequate to make the information presented not misleading.

Due to the impacts from the coronavirus ("COVID-19") pandemic, seasonal variations in the demand for air travel, the volatility of aircraft fuel prices, and other factors, our operating results for the periods presented herein are not necessarily indicative of the results that may be expected for other interim periods or the entire fiscal year.

Investment Securities

Investment securities consist of available-for-sale investment securities and held-to-maturity investment securities. When sold, we use a specific identification method to determine the cost of the securities.

Available-for-sale investment securities. Our available-for-sale investment securities include investments such as time deposits, equity securities of publicly traded companies, and convertible debt securities. Our investments in equity securities of publicly traded companies are classified as Level 1 in the fair value hierarchy as their fair values are based on unadjusted quoted prices in active markets for identical assets. The fair values of our time deposits and convertible debt securities are based on observable inputs in non-active markets, which are therefore classified as Level 2 in the fair value hierarchy. We did not record any material gains or losses on these securities during the three and nine months ended September 30, 2021 or 2020. Refer to Note 8 to our condensed consolidated financial statements for an explanation of the fair value hierarchy structure.

Held-to-maturity investment securities. We did not have any held-to-maturity investments as of September 30, 2021 and December 31, 2020. We did not record any gains or losses on these securities during the three and nine months ended September 30, 2021 or 2020.

The aggregate carrying values of our short-term and long-term investment securities consisted of the following at September 30, 2021 and December 31, 2020 (in millions):


	September 30, 2021		December 31, 2020
Available-for-sale securities
Time deposits	$	1,060	$	1,130
Equity securities	36		—
Debt securities	5		7
Total available-for-sale securities	1,101		1,137
Total investment securities	$	1,101	$	1,137

Other Investments

Our wholly-owned subsidiary, JetBlue Technology Ventures, LLC, or JTV, has equity investments in emerging companies which do not have readily determinable fair values. In accordance with Accounting Standards Update ("ASU") 2016-01, Financial Instruments-Overall (Subtopic 825-10): Recognition and Measurement of Financial Assets and Financial Liabilities, we account for these investments using a measurement alternative which allows entities to measure these investments at cost, less any impairment, adjusted for changes from observable price changes in orderly transactions for

identifiable or similar investments of the same issuer. The carrying amount of these investments, which is included within other assets on our consolidated balance sheet, was $67 million and $40 million as of September 30, 2021 and December 31, 2020, respectively. We recognized a gain of $37 million on these investments during the three and nine months ended September 30, 2021. The gain was triggered by an observable transaction for a similar security issued by a company within the JTV investment portfolio which indicated a change in overall valuation. We estimated the fair value of our investment in the company using third party valuations and considered specific circumstances such as our expectation of a potential exit from the company, prices from previous issuances of equity securities, the rights and obligations of holders of similar securities within the company, and estimates of volatility. Due to the use of significant unobservable inputs, our investment is classified as Level 3 in the fair value hierarchy. In August 2021, we recognized a one-time gain of $17 million in connection with the initial public offering of a company within the JTV investment portfolio. The carrying value of this investment, which is included within short-term investment securities on our consolidated balance sheet, was $36 million as of September 30, 2021.

We have an approximate 10% ownership interest in the TWA Flight Center Hotel at John F. Kennedy International Airport and it is also accounted for under the measurement alternative. The carrying amount of this investment was $14 million as of September 30, 2021 and December 31, 2020.

Equity Method Investments

Investments in which we can exercise significant influence are accounted for using the equity method in accordance with Topic 323, Investments - Equity Method and Joint Ventures of the Financial Accounting Standards Board (the "FASB") Accounting Standards Codification (the "Codification"). The carrying amount of our equity method investments was $33 million and $34 million as of September 30, 2021 and December 31, 2020, respectively, and is included within other assets on our consolidated balance sheets.

Recently Adopted Accounting Standards

New accounting rules and disclosure requirements can impact our financial results and the comparability of our financial statements. The authoritative literature which has recently been issued and that we believe will impact our consolidated financial statements is described below. There are also several new proposals under development. If and when enacted, these proposals may have a significant impact on our financial statements.

In December 2019, the FASB issued ASU 2019-12, Income Taxes (Topic 740): Simplifying the Accounting for Income Taxes. The update eliminates, clarifies, and modifies certain guidance related to the accounting for income taxes. We adopted the requirements of ASU 2019-12 as of January 1, 2021. The adoption of ASU 2019-12 did not have a material impact on our condensed consolidated financial statements.

In August 2020, the FASB issued ASU 2020-06, Debt —Debt with Conversion and Other Options (Subtopic 470-20) and Derivatives and Hedging—Contracts in Entity's Own Equity (Subtopic 815-40): Accounting for Convertible Instruments and Contracts in an Entity's Own Equity ("ASU 2020-06"). This update simplifies the accounting for certain convertible instruments by removing the separation models for convertible debt with a cash conversion feature and for convertible instruments with a beneficial conversion feature. As a result, more convertible debt instruments will be reported as a single liability instrument with no separate accounting for embedded conversion features. Additionally, this update amends the diluted earnings per share calculation for convertible instruments by requiring the use of the if-converted method. The treasury stock method is no longer available. Entities may adopt the requirements of ASU 2020-06 using either a full or modified retrospective approach, and it is effective for interim and annual reporting periods beginning after December 15, 2021. Early adoption is permitted for interim and annual reporting periods beginning after December 15, 2020. We adopted the requirements of ASU 2020-06 as of January 1, 2021. The adoption did not have an impact on our condensed consolidated financial statements as we did not have any convertible instruments outstanding as of December 31, 2020. As discussed in Note 3 to our condensed consolidated financial statements, in March 2021, we completed a private offering for $750 million of 0.50% convertible notes due 2026. We evaluated the conversion feature of this note offering for embedded derivatives in accordance with ASC 815, Derivatives and Hedging, and the substantial premium model in accordance with ASC 470, Debt. Based on our assessment, we concluded that separate accounting for the conversion feature of this note offering is not required. The carrying value of this convertible note was included within long-term debt and finance lease obligations on our consolidated balance sheet as of September 30, 2021.