Boutique semi-private carrier JSX has spent nine months proving a point: American travellers, famously sceptical of propeller planes, actually like flying on its ATR turboprops. CEO Alex Wilcox says passenger response has been strong enough that the airline is weighing a major turboprop order — and plotting new routes that only a propeller plane can reach.

The numbers back him up. ATR's own presentation at the Regional Airline Association conference in Washington, D.C. showed JSX's ATRs scoring 2.5 points higher on net promoter score than the Embraer regional jets that made the carrier's name. Those jets offer a roomy 1-1 seat layout and Starlink Wi-Fi from private terminals, so beating them on satisfaction is no small feat.

Still, the rollout hasn't been smooth. Supply chain and maintenance hiccups delayed JSX's plan to have four 30-seat ATR 42-600s flying by summer; the fourth only entered service on Aug. 30. That pushed back hoped-for mountain service to Telluride Regional Airport in Colorado and possibly Truckee Tahoe in California to at least summer 2027. Both airports restrict jet operations, so turboprops are the only way in — making the ATR fleet the key to some of the most scenic ski-country approaches in the West.

Right now, the turboprops fly from Santa Monica Airport to Las Vegas, Napa, Scottsdale and, since Sept. 14, Oakland. JSX has also started running an ATR alongside its jets on the busy Burbank–Las Vegas route as a live comparison test: same route, two aircraft types. The turboprop takes roughly 10 minutes longer, but the satisfaction data will help Wilcox decide whether to firm up an order for up to 25 more ATR 42-600s — a call now expected by mid-2027 rather than the end of this year.

There's a longer-game bet, too. JSX has put down a deposit for 50 Heart Aerospace ES-36 hybrid-electric turboprops, a planned 36-seater with roughly 40% lower operating costs than conventional planes and a range of about 745 miles — enough to link Santa Monica and Telluride nonstop. If certification lands by 2031, it would be the first all-new aircraft in this size class in decades, and JSX hopes to fly it by the early 2030s. United and Air Canada have also committed to the type, and Heart flew a demonstrator in August, which Wilcox took as proof the company is 'more than a paper organization.'

For travellers, the takeaway is simple: if you're in Southern California or the Bay Area and value skipping mega-terminals, JSX keeps getting more useful — and its Club JSX points work on every flight, with United MileagePlus earning available too. If the Telluride and Truckee routes materialise in 2027, flyers could reach two of the West's trickiest mountain airports without a jet restriction workaround or a long drive.