JetBlue Blog

In celebration of our annual One Thing That’s Green campaign, our Portland, Oregon crewmembers and their family members cleaned up the streets in the St. John’s neighborhood. They collected nearly six full bags of garbage and had a few laughs along the way as they gave back to their city. Even the rain stayed away!

On Sunday, April 21, Nassau County Executive Edward P. Mangano honored firefighters from across Nassau County at the Firematic Awards Ceremony. Rich Smyth, our Vice President of Corporate Real Estate, attended the ceremony on behalf of JetBlue to thank these first responders for all of their hard work following Hurricane Sandy. We also provided the 50 honorees each with a travel certificate to show our appreciation.

Honorees included brave first responders who have gone above and beyond the call of duty and consistently risked their own lives to protect Nassau County residents as well as members who have served Nassau County for more than 50 years.  From saving fellow firefighters to evacuating neighborhoods during Hurricane Sandy, many of the honorees have demonstrated true courage and heroism that is truly deserving of recognition.

News 12 Long Island coverage

We celebrate Congress for so quickly passing bipartisan legislation to bring an end to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) air traffic controller furloughs. While delays are still expected in the near term, we’re hopeful that air traffic controllers will resume their normal operations soon.  We’ll continue working to minimize any inconvenience and recommend customers regularly check the status of their flights.

To the controllers who will soon be returning to work, we’d like to take this opportunity to thank you for what you do. We know this furlough impacted you in a much more direct way. We’re looking forward to business as usual.

Even our Boston and New York planes are making nice, as our Red Sox and I Heart New York liveries spend some quality time at JFK in a show of support following the tragedy in Massachusetts .

In the airline world, we call today a “severe clear” day. The skies are blue, the sun is sharp, the winds are calm, and yet we’re still looking at delays and possible cancellations due to the FAA furloughs.

If you’re flying with us today, be sure to check your flight status before heading to the airport, and follow @AirlinesDotOrg for the latest information on what regions are most impacted by the delays caused by the sequestration.

We’re working to minimize the operational impact, and working the political angle as well with our partners at Airlines for America and with the government directly to try to mitigate these frustrating budget cuts that are causing us to delay and cancel flights.

If you’re as frustrated as we are, please help by:

• Reaching out to the White House, the Department of Transportation, the FAA and Congress at: www.dontgroundamerica.org
  • Feel free to use this text:
  • I oppose FAA-imposed flight delays because it’s an unnecessary and reckless action that will disrupt the air travel for millions of Americans, cost jobs and badly damage our already fragile economy.
• Share this post on your favorite social network and ask your friends and family to communicate with their elected officials as well.

Check out which airports are experiencing delays at the Air Traffic Control System Command Center

I was traveling to Boston this week for a day trip – a quick up and back for a meeting.  Before boarding began, I was chatting with our Airport Opertions crewmembers at the gate in Orlando when a young man named Andy came to the counter with a concerned look on his face.  He explained he was a nervous flier and wanted to know when we would be boarding.

As we waited to board, I inquired about his seat assignment and found out he was in the front row.  This made me happy because in my past experiences as both a flight attendant and traveler, nervous fliers feel better when they can see the flight attendant during take-off and landing, or when there is turbulence.  Customers tend to read the body language of the crew for indications if they should be worried about the small bumps in the air or noises they may hear at takeoff and landing, which are common to the crew but may concern people who don’t travel much.

Andy told me about a recent flight he had taken with another airline that ended with an emergency landing – an experience that had left him fearful about flying.

When we boarded, I told the Inflight crewmember at the front about Andy’s experience and asked her to check in with him before takeoff and landing.  She was awesome – she introduced herself, and even had the Captain come out of the flight deck to speak with Andy before we left the gate.

About an hour into our flight, Ian, our Captain, came on the PA to let us know that he was receiving an indicator light and as a precaution, we would be making an unscheduled landing in Jacksonville to have it checked.  My first thought was about Andy seated up front and how we would react to the news.  As we stowed our belongings for landing, I made my way to the front to take the empty seat across the aisle from him.

I assured him that safety is JetBlue’s number one value and that while it was an unplanned landing, it was not an emergency and would still be a normal landing.  As we made our approach I could see the tension in his arms as he gripped the seat and so I began to ask him questions about his work and his family.  Before long, his seat mate joined in and together we talked to him through the landing.  Even the couple seated in the row behind him gave words of encouragement.  I know he appreciated the support.  The landing was uneventful and once the problem was fixed, we were on our way.

Captain Dan recently wrote a letter to our customer Leslee inflight when he learned that she was a nervous flyer on Flight 201 from New York’s JFK

The unity and support demonstrated by our customers and crew for Andy reminded me of the images in the news this past week of strangers who came together to assist others in their time of need.  I saw many demonstrations of that humanity within JetBlue.  When Boston was on lock-down and the city’s transportation came to a halt, crewmembers from a number of our cities flew into Boston to assist our airport crewmembers and take care of our customers.

During the moment of silence this past Monday, our Boston crewmembers stood shoulder to shoulder on the tarmac, heads bowed. At JFK in New York, our Operations team arranged for our Boston Red Sox branded aircraft to be on the ground next to our I love NY aircraft as a show of unity and support between our two largest JetBlue cities; and we allowed travelers to reschedule trips in and out of Boston without penalties or fees.

Whether it’s a pleasantry exchanged at the boarding gate, or a helping hand with placing a suitcase in the overhead bin, we have many moments during our day to make a connection with one another. For me, it can be as simple as extending a hand across the aisle to assure someone that they’re going to be okay – something I also needed to be reminded of this week.

Learn more about Diane, read her previous columns and stay tuned for the next edition!

We’re excited to announce new daily nonstop service between Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport (FLL) and Jorge Chávez International Airport (LIM) in Lima, subject to receipt of government operating authority. Lima will be our 81^st BlueCity and our fourth destination in South America. Sale fares for U.S.-originating flights to Lima are available today and until May 3, 2013, at www.jetblue.com/new for as low as $139 one-way from Fort Lauderdale and $199 one-way from the New York Metros and Boston, for travel between November 21 and December 19, 2013

Image courtesy of James Preston on Flickr

Our schedule between Fort Lauderdale and Lima:

In addition to our nonstop service to South Florida, Lima customers will be able to conveniently connect onwards from Fort Lauderdale to other destinations in the United States and the Caribbean including: Austin, Texas; Boston, MA; Hartford, CT; New York (JFK and LaGuardia); Newark, NJ; San Juan, Puerto Rico; and Washington, DC (Reagan National).

Destinations in Latin America and the Caribbean now make up almost one-third of our route network. In South America, we also offers nonstop service between Bogotá and both Fort Lauderdale and Orlando, Florida, as well as nonstop service between Cartagena, Colombia and New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK). We also announced nonstop service between Fort Lauderdale and Medellín, Colombia, set to begin in June 2013.

Book your flight to Lima today! 

Today we reported our results for the first quarter 2013:

• Operating income for the quarter was $59 million, resulting in a 4.5% operating margin, compared to operating income of$89 million and a 7.4% operating margin in the first quarter of 2012.
• Pre-tax income of $23 million in the first quarter.  This compares to pre-tax income of $49 million in the first quarter of 2012.
• Net income for the first quarter was $14 million, or $0.05 per diluted share.  This compares to our first quarter 2012 net income of $30 million, or $0.09 per diluted share.

Read the full press release and tune in at 9:30 a.m. ET to hear the earnings call.

On Monday we celebrated our inaugural flight from New York to Albuquerque, New Mexico. Dave, our CEO, and other JetBlue leaders joined Albuquerque Mayor Richard Berry for the festivities. Our flight is the only nonstop service connecting the two cities. As our 77th BlueCity, ABQ launched service with Even More Speed options for customers, bringing the full JetBlue experience to a new state on day one. Welcome to the network, ABQ!

We are deeply frustrated by the negative impact government staffing reductions are having on the national air transportation system, and the inconvenience it’s causing our customers and crewmembers.

Customers should plan for possible flight delays and cancellations at most airports across the country. While delays related to the furloughs are possible throughout our network, the most significant impact is expected to be concentrated in the following cities:

• New York – JFK
• New York – LaGuardia
• Newark
• Fort Lauderdale
• Chicago O’Hare
• Los Angeles
• San Francisco

As always, our primary focus is running a safe and efficient operation and we will continue to do everything possible to mitigate delays throughout our network for our customers. While our teams are working hard to get customers where they need to be on time, delays can be compounded by a variety of complications. When multiple flights are delayed, the situation can quickly compound and put our crews or planes “out of position”—meaning they’re stuck in airports away from their next scheduled trip. At the same time, the delays can cause our crews to “time out” of their federally regulated duty times while waiting for clearance to depart. Finally, when flights run late into the evening, there are times when agencies like the TSA or CBP teams are not available.

Under normal circumstances, we plan ahead for delays and cancellations, but due to the dynamic nature of the sequestration and its impact on the industry, our crewmembers are finding out about operational impact with little advance notice. We apologize for the inconvenience this may add to your travel plans.

If you are planning on traveling, here are a few things you can do to minimize uncertainty:

• Check the status of your flight regularly and again prior to leaving for the airport (online, via mobile device or by calling 1-800-JETBLUE).
• Sign up for SMS and/or voice flight status notifications via your mobile device or our iPhone/Android apps
• Estimated departure times are not definite and are subject to change at any time, but we recommend that you arrive at the airport prior to their NEW estimated departure time as follows:
  • Domestic flights: at least 90 minutes prior to departure
  • International flights: at least 2 hours prior to departure

Please join us in communicating your frustration to officials in Washington, both your elected officials in Congress and at the FAA, asking for their assistance in resolving these unnecessary issues. Here are some ways you can get involved:

• Reach out to the White House, the Department of Transportation, the FAA and Congress at: www.dontgroundamerica.org
  • Feel free to use this text:
  • I oppose FAA-imposed flight delays because it’s an unnecessary and reckless action that will disrupt the air travel for millions of Americans, cost jobs and badly damage our already fragile economy.
• Share this post on your favorite social network.

We’re grateful for your continued patience as we all work through this situation together. We’ll continue to keep you informed as we address this ongoing operational impact.