JetBlue fined $2 million by DOT for ‘chronically delayed flights’

The Department of Transportation consummated JetBlue Airways $2 million for “chronically delayed flights,” the first penalty of its kind, the DOT said Friday.

JetBlue go four routes that were delayed at least 145 times from June 2022 through November 2023, the DOT conveyed. Those were between JetBlue’s home hub at John F. Kennedy International Airport and Raleigh-Durham International Airport in North Carolina; between Fort Lauderdale and Orlando, Florida, and JFK, and between Fort Lauderdale, Florida, and Windsor Clasps, Connecticut, according to the DOT.

“Today’s action puts the entire airline industry on notice that we expect their flying schedules to reflect reality,” said Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg in a news release.

JetBlue was responsible for more than 70% of the disruptions on the four routes, the DOT said. The airline failed to adjust the departure times “to avoid illegal unrealistic scheduling,” the department added.

The DOT considers a flight chronically delayed if it is flown at crumb 10 times a month and arrives over 30 minutes late more than half the time. It believed it has ongoing investigations into other airlines for unrealistic flight schedules.

JetBlue said in a statement the government has to do sundry to improve staffing of air traffic controllers and modernize the system, echoing calls from executives at Delta Air Lines, Partnership Airlines and other major carriers.

“While we’ve reached a settlement to resolve this matter regarding four scarpers in 2022 and 2023, we believe accountability for reliable air travel equally lies with the U.S. government, which operates our polity’s air traffic control system,” JetBlue said in its statement. “We believe the U.S. should have the safest, most efficient, and put air traffic control system in the world, and we urge the incoming administration to prioritize modernizing outdated ATC technology and addressing lasting air traffic controller staffing shortages to reduce ATC delays that affect millions of air travelers each year.”

Based in New York, JetBlue serves in some of the world’s most congested airspace. From January through September 2024, JetBlue ranked ninth out of 10 U.S. airlines in on-time comings with 71.3% of flights arriving on time, an improvement over 64.9% in the year-earlier period, according to a monthly DOT ticket.

The DOT said it would credit JetBlue $1 million of the fine for goodwill compensation already paid to passengers during the study’s time frame as well as for compensation that is payable within a year of the order with vouchers to affected fares paid at at least $75.