Department Of Transportation Slaps Airline With 7-Figure Fine

The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) has fined JetBlue $2 million for chronic delays on multiple East Coast routes.

According to ABC7 New York, it’s the first time the agency has penalized an airline for flight delays.

“Illegal chronic flight delays make flying unreliable for travelers. Today’s action puts the entire airline industry on notice that we expect their flight schedules to reflect reality,” Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said, according to The Guardian.

$1 million of the fine will go to JetBlue customers impacted by delayed or disrupted flights within the next year.

The US Transportation Department has imposed a $2 million penalty on JetBlue Airways for operating four chronically delayed flights on domestic routes – the first time it has imposed such a fine on an airline for the prohibited scheduling practice https://t.co/Mya1Sp0O87 pic.twitter.com/nDElvPZkQn

— Reuters Legal (@ReutersLegal) January 3, 2025

From The Guardian:

The Department of Transportation defines “chronic delays” as flights that are flown at least 10 times a month and arrive more than 30 minutes late more than 50% of the time.

The DOT says an investigation into JetBlue found that the airline operated four chronically delayed flights at least 145 times between June 2022 through November 2023. Each flight was chronically delayed for at least five consecutive months.

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JetBlue had been previously warned by the DOT about persistent delays on its flights between Kennedy international airport and Raleigh-Durham international airport in North Carolina, according to the federal agency’s statement.

Despite the warning, JetBlue went on to operate three more repeatedly delayed flights between Fort Lauderdale and Orlando, Florida, and JFK; and between Fort Lauderdale and Windsor Locks in Connecticut, the DOT said. They found that there were a total of 395 delays and cancellations across these four chronically delayed flights.

JetBlue slapped with $2 million fine for chronic flight delays https://t.co/fn7wC6DMFZ

— Newsweek (@Newsweek) January 3, 2025

“Our department has urged airlines to step up their customer service game, and many have responded,” DOT stated.

WATCH:

Our department has urged airlines to step up their customer service game, and many have responded.

Visit https://t.co/EHOVpjmR22 for the latest on airlines’ commitments to passengers like you. pic.twitter.com/jvPlIpG2cv

— U.S. Department of Transportation (@USDOT) January 3, 2025

ABC7 New York reports:

A JetBlue spokesperson said in a statement that the airline appreciates how important it is for passengers to arrive at their destinations on-time, and that it works hard to operate its flights as scheduled. During the last two years, the airline said it had invested “tens of millions of dollars” to reduce delays, especially ones related to air traffic control shortages and challenges in the Northeast and Florida.

“While we’ve reached a settlement to resolve this matter regarding four flights in 2022 and 2023, we believe accountability for reliable air travel equally lies with the U.S. government, which operates our nation’s air traffic control system,” the statement read. “We believe the U.S. should have the safest, most efficient, and advanced air traffic control system in the world, and 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.”

In the latest DOT air travel consumer report for January to September of last year, 71.29% of JetBlue’s flights were on time, ranking nine out of 10 major U.S. air carriers. Hawaiian Airlines, for the same time period, flew 82.69% of its flights on time, ranking first among the reported airlines.

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The DOT has beefed up passenger protections in recent years, including new rules requiring airlines to disclose fees on airfares and rules that require airlines to provide automatic cash refunds to passengers when owed. President-elect Donald Trump has nominated Sean Duffy, a former congressman and Fox Business host, to lead the department in his next term.

This is a Guest Post from our friends over at 100 Percent Fed Up.

View the original article here.