Newsstand - JetBlue’s C.E.O. Is ‘Mortified’ After Fliers Are Stranded

JetBlue’s C.E.O. Is ‘Mortified’ After Fliers Are Stranded (http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/19/business/19jetblue.html) Feb 19, 2007The founder and chief executive of JetBlue Airways, his voice cracking at times, called himself “humiliated and mortified” by a huge breakdown in the airline’s operations that has dragged on for nearly a week, and promised that in the future JetBlue would pay penalties to customers if they were stranded on a plane for too long.

David G. Neeleman said in a telephone interview yesterday that his company’s management was not strong enough. And he said the current crisis, which has led to about 1,000 cancelled flights in five days, was the result of a shoestring communications system that left pilots and flight attendants in the dark, and an undersized reservation system.
...
Mr. Neeleman said he would announce a compensation system for passengers tomorrow. He is hoping to win quick forgiveness from customers and to demonstrate that he takes the airline’s failings seriously.

“This is going to be a different company because of this,” Mr. Neeleman said. “It’s going to be expensive. But what’s more important is to win back people’s confidence.” He did not say if higher fares might be in the offing.
...
Gordon M. Bethune, the former chief executive of Continental Airlines, said that little other than low fares would do much to win back customers, but if an airline makes a bad judgment call, “you better be good at recovery no matter what.” He called last week’s JetBlue meltdown “a byproduct of their past and their growth.”I wonder what they'll do for prospective passengers, those who were strung along for hours on end by clueless JetBlue staff members while waiting to depart. One relative of mine was supposed to fly on a JetBlue flight last Thursday that eventually left 11 hours late. I expect (and have experienced) that from Amtrak, not from an airline. And what's with canceling flights on Monday? The ice storm was last Wednesday. They sure are screwed up.

It sure took him long enough to admit to being "humiliated and mortified", although I guess better late than never... :(

Admittedly, I don't know much about the airport's operation, especially the ways airports taxiing the planes around; however, I don't understand couple of things related to the Jet Blue delays.

Once the plane leaves the terminal it is controlled by the airport crew and not by the airline, at least that seems logical. This is also the case when the plain arrives. If that's true then how come only Jet Blue flights were affected at JFK on Valentine's day?

In some respect I could somewhat understand the delays for the flights leaving JFK; the pilot didn't want to loose its position for take-off or whatever, that decision most certainly was a bad one in retrospect. The arriving planes are a different story; why a pilot wouldn't want to taxi to the terminal? He/she most certainly wants to get off the plane just as much as the passengers probably for similar reasons.

I'm must be missing something about the airport operation and I'd appreciate if someone would describe it to me in plain English. Again, I am new to this forum and just curious about the Jet Blue delays and their actual reason.
TIA...

Cr00zng

JetBlue’s C.E.O. Is ‘Mortified’ After Fliers Are Stranded (http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/19/business/19jetblue.html) Feb 19, 2007I wonder what they'll do for prospective passengers, those who were strung along for hours on end by clueless JetBlue staff members while waiting to depart. One relative of mine was supposed to fly on a JetBlue flight last Thursday that eventually left 11 hours late. I expect (and have experienced) that from Amtrak, not from an airline. And what's with canceling flights on Monday? The ice storm was last Wednesday. They sure are screwed up.

That's pretty sad of B6 and adding to their woes they cancel more flights because of hours worked by crew, on a holiday Monday to boot :rolleyes:.

The so-called legacy carriers must be loving this. It's a perfect illustration of the one advantage they still have over the smaller LCC's (not so much WN, of course). One of B6's big problems is the inability to get crew to where they need to be. I'm sure that having no contracts with other carriers hurts them in that area.

Canada's Jetsgo had a simliar incident back in Christmas 2004 in Toronto. The airline operation basically fell apart two days before Christmas due to snow storm and stranded many customers. This created a lot of bad publicity and their bookings fell sharply in the months following. This incident, and coupled with the intense price war with Westjet in early 2005, led to Jetsgo's demise in March 2005.

Let's hope that Jetblue won't face something similiar.

They are about to become a carrier with legacy carrier costs but without legacy carrier revenue.

Once the plane leaves the terminal it is controlled by the airport crew and not by the airline, at least that seems logical. This is also the case when the plain arrives. If that's true then how come only Jet Blue flights were affected at JFK on Valentine's day?
Cr00zng

They weren't. Delta had lots of delays and canceled flights too. Jet Blue was affected more because they are a dominant carrier at JFK. In other words, if another airline normally has 20 flights a day at JFK and had to cancel 8 of them it wouldn't make the news. But when you have 200 a day and cancel 120 of them people definitely notice!Especially when you leave 7-8 of those planes sitting on the ground for hours! (Not sure what exact stats are for Jet Blue but it's somewhere in that area I think)

None of the other carriers at JFK had residual delays and cancellations lasting five additional days.

The founder and chief executive of JetBlue Airways, his voice cracking at times, called himself “humiliated and mortified” ...
Good. That's a start. If this were Japan the CEO would resign. At least.

His minions at JFK, however, weren't too mortified to scream at, abuse, and threaten passengers in some of the most hair-raising bad-airline horror stories I've ever read... they are all over the FT JetBlue forum... they make a mockery of all that "bringing humanity back to air travel" stuff.

His minions at JFK, however, weren't too mortified to scream at, abuse, and threaten passengers in some of the most hair-raising bad-airline horror stories I've ever read... they are all over the FT JetBlue forum... they make a mockery of all that "bringing humanity back to air travel" stuff.

Well said.

They weren't. Delta had lots of delays and canceled flights too. Jet Blue was affected more because they are a dominant carrier at JFK. In other words, if another airline normally has 20 flights a day at JFK and had to cancel 8 of them it wouldn't make the news. But when you have 200 a day and cancel 120 of them people definitely notice!Especially when you leave 7-8 of those planes sitting on the ground for hours! (Not sure what exact stats are for Jet Blue but it's somewhere in that area I think)

That's not an excuse. When ATL or CVG are shut down for snow DL is not canceling flights 5 days later from the event.

An IROPS recovery plan that takes 5 days to implement cannot be considered a recovery plan.

A perfect recovery plan results in full system stability within 4-6 hours; a decent plan within 24-36 hours and a bad plan stretches to 48 hours. Anything beyond that should result in people getting fired.

An IROPS recovery plan that takes 5 days to implement cannot be considered a recovery plan.

A perfect recovery plan results in full system stability within 4-6 hours; a decent plan within 24-36 hours and a bad plan stretches to 48 hours. Anything beyond that should result in people getting fired.

yeah, I think I agree with 747-437B. Some of few B6 employees is considered to being fired from the job. Because it was too long delays more hours when the passengers is being strucks at JFK. Does FAA will givem out the bill of rights. That mean it is no longer waits more than hours to cause flight is delays. It does not good wait for 2 hours or less before flight is leave. Jetblue is imagination their job what David is doing at work the airlines. It would be spent more entire times when B6 employees should be bring back normal level. It would be reduce wait times when passengers is leave from JFK.