JetBlue adds extra flight
Published:Wednesday | December 29, 2010 | 12:00 AM
Christopher Thomas, Gleaner Writer
WESTERN BUREAU:
JetBlue Airways added an extra flight for passengers from the United States to facilitate visitors to Jamaica yesterday, despite the current weather conditions in New York.
The arrangement was made to make up for flight cancellations at the Sangster International Airport in Montego Bay, St James on Monday.
Elizabeth Brown-Scotton, chief commercial officer of MBJ Airports Ltd, which operates the airport, told The Gleaner there had been six cancellations on Monday among five airlines, including JetBlue, US Airways and Air Jamaica, due to the weather conditions.
"We do understand that there was a lot of weather in the northeast area of the US yesterday. We saw a lot of delays and some cancellations on a number of flights yesterday," said Brown-Scotton.
"When this type of weather delay happens, it's a busy Christmas season, so it's very difficult for the airlines to just put another aircraft there to try and add extra frequencies, to try and catch all the people that were affected. What they generally do is try to rebook their passengers on the next available flight that they can."
She noted that JetBlue, which carries approximately 140 passengers per trip, tends to operate very full aircraft and might find it difficult to displace passengers to other flights.
"Passengers inevitably are uncomfortable and unhappy when these things happen, but they do understand that it's weather. It's not the fault of the airline or of the airport operator or the hotel; it's an unfortunate thing that just tends to happen," Brown-Scotton acknowledged.
"Passengers tend to be very understanding, and the airlines try to work very hard to accommodate them on the next possible flight."
JetBlue Airways usually flies daily from Orlando, Florida and the JFK airport in New York, and twice a week from Boston.
Snowfall disrupts JFK
Heavy snowfall in New York had caused the cancellation of several flights at the JFK airport over the past 48 hours, including a number of American Airlines connections.
Wayne Cummings, president of the Jamaica Hotel and Tourist Association (JHTA), noted that Jamaica's hotels are working with the airlines and travel agencies to adjust departure times for visitors whose travel plans have been affected by the weather in New York.
"It (the weather) is causing some dislocation because the northeast coast is our main hub of activity, New York in particular, Boston, etc," Cummings said.
"So when you have delays of this kind, it means that there are a few people who are not coming in, as well as people who are not going out on the flights when they turn around. It's nobody's fault, and we just have to do the best we can."