The U.S. Department of Transportation has penalized JetBlue $2 million for operating "multiple chronically delayed flights" from June 2022 through November 2023, the agency announced Friday. It is the first time DOT has fined an airline for such delays.
A "chronically delayed flight" is defined by DOT as one being operated at least 10 times in a month and that arrives more than 30 minutes late, including canceled flights, more than 50 percent of the time during the month.
The four JetBlue routes flagged by DOT as being chronically late include flights between New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport and Raleigh-Durham, N.C., and flights between Fort Lauderdale and each JFK, Orlando, Fla., and Windsor Locks, Conn.
JetBlue agreed to the settlement with DOT "to avoid the expense and uncertainty of litigation," according to the agency's Jan. 3 consent order.
JetBlue in a statement said it has "invested tens of millions of dollars to reduce flight delays" and improved its on-time performance, but it criticized what it called "ongoing air traffic control challenges in our largest markets in the Northeast and Florida."
"We urge the incoming administration to prioritize modernizing outdated ATC technology and addressing chronic air traffic controller staffing shortages to reduce ATC delays that affect millions of air travelers each year," according to the carrier.
Of the $2 million penalty, $500,000 is due to the U.S. treasury within 60 days of the date of the consent order, with another $500,000 due within one year after the first payment, according to the order.
The remaining $1 million will be credited to JetBlue "for costs that the carrier incurred or will incur for good will compensation already paid to affected passengers during the timeframe covered by this investigation," according to the order, and "goodwill compensation payable within one year of the date of this order to passengers who are affected by future controllable cancellations or delays of three hours or more, provided that any vouchers payable to passengers are valued at a minimum of $75."
The Bureau of Transportation Statistics estimates that the carrier was responsible for about 80 percent of the disruptions for the four chronically delayed flights, according to DOT. The agency also noted that its rules provide airlines with "adequate time" to adjust their schedules once a flight is identified as chronically delayed "to avoid illegal unrealistic scheduling," according to the agency. "JetBlue failed to do so."
The carrier, however, noted in the consent order that it "recently learned that DOT has eliminated its prior practice of providing written warnings to the air carriers that multiple months of chronically delayed flights have occurred, and in the future, JetBlue will no longer rely on the receipt of such timely warnings by DOT."
DOT noted that it also is investigating other airlines for unrealistic flight schedules.