Fri, Mar 16, 2007
All Eyes On JetBlue's Reaction
Once
bitten, twice shy. Seeking to avoid a repeat of this winter's tales
of stranded passengers and scheduling nightmares, on Friday
low-cost carrier JetBlue cancelled 215 of its flights -- about
one-third of its entire schedule -- ahead of a winter storm on the
East Coast.
They had some company -- as American, Northwest, and Delta also
cancelled significant numbers of their flights out of New York's
John F. Kennedy International and LaGuardia, Newark International,
and Boston's Logan International Airport.
"We began proactively canceling flights yesterday, which is
pretty standard procedure for us in advance of significant wintry
weather like this," Delta spokeswoman Gina Laughlin told The
Associated Press.
While few airlines escaped the need to cancel flights, most of
the emphasis was on JetBlue's reaction to the impending storm.
Memories of the carrier's handling of a Valentine's Day winter storm
crisis last month are still fresh on the minds of many
travelers.
"We've always tried to take a wait-and-see approach with the
weather ... believing that people want to get to their destination
late, rather than never," JetBlue spokesman Sebastian White said.
The subsequent breakdown in the airline's schedule resulted in "a
shift in thinking," White added.
"We're hopeful the plans we have in place will be effective and
allow us to recover quickly," he said Friday morning.
The cancellations came as the National Weather Service forecast
up to six inches of sleet and snow around New York, meteorologist
Pete Wichrowksi told the AP. The storm was expected to pass by the
weekend.
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