JetBlue Airways has reportedly planned to cut its summer schedule to prevent further flight disruptions as it strives to hire ahead of a massive peak travel season.
Joanna Geraghty, the President and COO of JetBlue stated that the airline has already reduced the may capacity by 8% to 10% and it expects to witness a similar-sized capacity pull for the rest of the summer.
Over the weekend, JetBlue canceled over 300 flights, one week after bad weather in Florida commenced several flight delays and cancellations on JetBlue and other carriers.
Airlines are striving to hire to handle the rise in travelers this summer and spring. Last summer, shortages in staffing contributed to many flight delays and cancellations, which the airlines executives have been trying to avoid.
Citing further, Geraghty stated that the best plan is to cut capacity now despite these challenges and the tight schedule. She believes everyone identifies that the airline industry is currently recovering and considers this step appropriate.
Last week, Alaska Airlines stated that it would cut its schedule by 2% through June end to manage pilot shortage after canceling several flights earlier this month owing to staffing shortages.
The airline cited that it recently disappointed some of its special guests by canceling an unprecedented number of flights. The main cause of cancelations is the dearth of pilots available to fly against its planned April schedule in January.
So far, JetBlue has hired around 2,500 people this year and is still short on staff. Geraghty added that the airline will share other plans to prevent disruptions with staff over the coming weeks.
Executives of U.S. airlines will commence their staff and capacity plan detailing this week when Delta Air Lines reports the results of the first quarter.
For the record, JetBlue is an award-winning travel firm that was born in 2000 at JFK.
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