Two dead bodies were discovered inside a JetBlue plane&#8217;s landing gear after it flew from New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport to the Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport in Florida on Monday night.
The bodies were found during a routine post-flight maintenance inspection when Flight 1801 landed in South Florida after 11:00 p.m., The New York Post <a href="https://nypost.com/2025/01/07/us-news/2-found-dead-in-jetblue-planes-landing-gear-after-nyc-flight/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reported</a>. Authorities have not identified the two people found dead as they continue to investigate the incident.
&#8220;The circumstances surrounding how they accessed the aircraft remain under investigation,&#8221; JetBlue said, according to <a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/news/two-people-found-dead-in-jetblue-plane-landing-gear-at-fort-lauderdale-hollywood-international-airport/?ftag=CNM-00-10aab7e&amp;linkId=707314746" target="_blank" rel="noopener">CBS News</a>. &#8220;This is a heartbreaking situation, and we are committed to working closely with authorities to support their efforts to understand how this occurred.&#8221;
The JetBlue Airbus A320 departed New York City at 8:20 p.m. and arrived in Fort Lauderdale less than three hours later, CBS News reported. The plane began its day in Jamaica before flying to JFK in New York, then flew to Salt Lake City, and then back to JFK before its flight to South Florida. Broward County, Florida, Sheriff homicide detectives are seeking to determine how the two people accessed the landing gear compartment before the flight took off.
The JetBlue incident is similar to when a <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/body-found-in-wheel-well-of-plane-after-9-hour-flight-to-hawaii" target="_blank" rel="noopener">body was discovered</a> in the wheel well of a United Airlines flight that landed in Maui after taking off from Chicago on Christmas Eve. Authorities are still investigating how the person got onto the tarmac and then accessed the wheel well of the plane in Chicago.
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In the past, people attempting to hitch a ride on an airplane have been crushed in the wheel well when the landing gear retracts, CNN <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2024/12/25/us/united-airlines-plane-body-found-hawaii/index.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reported</a>. The wheel well is a compartment under an aircraft that stores the landing gear and is usually a tight space — often smaller than the trunk of a car.
Dozens of stowaways have attempted to hitch illegal rides on airplanes by climbing into the wheel well, but multiple factors make it nearly impossible for a stowaway to survive a ride in that space. As a plane reaches higher altitudes, oxygen levels drop, and stowaways lose consciousness. Temperatures can also drop to 75 degrees below zero. Nearly 80% of the roughly 130 people who have attempted to catch a ride on the outside of an airplane since 1947 have died, <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2019/07/06/us/airplane-stowaways/index.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">according</a> to the Federal Aviation Administration.

JetBlue Airbus

2 People Found Dead In Plane’s Landing Gear After Flight From NYC To Florida

2 People Found Dead In Plane's Landing Gear After Flight From NYC To Florida

Air and Space

Florida

JetBlue

New York

U.S.

Daily Wire Investigative Reporter Luke Rosiak appeared on <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/fox-news">‘Tucker Carlson Tonight’</a> Monday evening to share a story he broke for the Daily Wire about <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/jetblue-wont-hire-the-unvaxxed-but-hired-violent-felon-to-fly-planes">bizarre hiring practices at JetBlue</a>.
The show began by assessing the widespread mass protests across China against the regime of Xi Jinping and his repressive ‘Zero COVID’ policies, which appear to be the largest internal outcry against the Chinese Communist Party in decades. The program also condemned several U.S. public officials and various corporate entities and prominent citizens, such as John Kirby of the National Security Council, the NBA and reporter Taylor Lorenz.
Carlson claimed that greed or complicity had caused them to stay silent on China’s crackdown against its own citizens, noting that some of them had advocated for the kind of COVID policy that Xi had put into practice and a few had even praised the authoritarian regime for its approach to the pandemic.
Carlson later brought on Rosiak to discuss the case of John Perrys, a convicted felon and reported employee of JetBlue who in 2005 broke into a judge’s home and assaulted his daughter as she came out of the shower. Perrys was released in 2014 and according to the <a href="http://www.dc.state.fl.us/offenderSearch/detail.aspx?Page=Detail&amp;DCNumber=A50372&amp;TypeSearch=AO">Florida Department of Corrections</a>, he will be on felony probation until 2044.
Perrys&#8217; hiring has caused controversy because his employer is unwilling to hire pilots who have not been vaccinated against COVID in the name of ‘safety.’
“Apparently JetBlue won’t hire unvaccinated pilots, but they will hire violent convicted felons to fly their airplanes,” one pilot said, speaking on condition of anonymity.
Roughly a year ago JetBlue implemented a company-wide vaccine mandate, arguing in public that as a federal contractor they were required to do so by a Biden Administration rule. The relevant rule, however, has been delayed, then blocked by an injunction which was only lifted last month, and even now is <a href="https://www.saferfederalworkforce.gov/contractors/">not actively being enforced</a>.
Rosiak and Carlson both lambasted the mandate and characterized it as incoherent and counter productive, since new data indicates that a <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/report-vaccinated-now-make-up-majority-of-covid-deaths">majority of people currently dying from COVID-19 are vaccinated.</a>
“They won’t hire you if you haven&#8217;t had the vaxx, but they did hire John Perrys,” Rosiak noted, “And interestingly enough, I thought you would get a kick out of this, the crime he was convicted of was assault with a deadly weapon while wearing a mask.”

2022 FOX Nation Patriot Awards

‘Is This A Real Story?’: Tucker Carlson Flabbergasted By JetBlue’s Felon Pilot

Tucker Carlson Flabbergasted By JetBlue's Felon Pilot

Airlines

COVID-19

Tucker Carlson

Vaccine Mandate

Some JetBlue pilots are outraged after the airline hired a violent felon to fly planes even as it refuses to hire people who haven’t taken the <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/covid" target="_blank" rel="noopener">COVID</a> vaccine, citing safety.
Two pilots told The Daily Wire that JetBlue has hired John Perrys, who was sentenced to 10 years in prison for breaking into the home of a judge and attacking his daughter as she left the shower. Perrys was released from prison in 2014 and is on felony probation until 2044, according to the <a href="http://www.dc.state.fl.us/offenderSearch/detail.aspx?Page=Detail&amp;DCNumber=A50372&amp;TypeSearch=AO" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Florida Department of Corrections</a>.
“Apparently JetBlue won&#8217;t hire unvaccinated pilots, but they will hire violent convicted felons to fly their airplanes,” one pilot said, speaking on condition of anonymity to protect his job.
In 2005, The Associated Press reported that Perrys, then an Air Force captain, was charged in Florida with burglary and assault with a deadly weapon while wearing a mask, and that he faced up to life in prison. Perrys allegedly entered the home of a judge and beat the judge&#8217;s daughter, who was his former fiancée, with a metal baton as she left the shower.
Police said that when he was arrested, he was wearing a bulletproof vest and his vehicle contained knives, handcuffs, parachute cord, a shovel, and a mask, according to <a href="https://www.ocala.com/story/news/2005/08/21/pilot-charged-in-attack-at-judges-home/31342281007/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">the AP</a>. Perrys was eventually convicted of aggravated battery with intent to cause death or great harm. He served nine years behind bars, including more than five years in pretrial detention.
JetBlue’s <a href="https://careers.jetblue.com/job/Orlando-First-Officer-FL-32827/939859900/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">job applications</a> say, “Every decision JetBlue has made throughout the pandemic has been with our safety value front and center. Whether it’s requiring masks, or many of the other health and safety protocols we’ve had to navigate during the pandemic, all of these efforts have been focused on making the workplace and air travel safer for you and our Customers. As part of our commitment to health and safety, COVID-19 vaccines are required for all JetBlue employees. New hire employees must be fully vaccinated prior to the start of training.”
In November 2021, JetBlue said it was <a href="https://www.foxbusiness.com/lifestyle/jetblue-nearly-all-staff-will-be-vaccinated-mandate-deadline" target="_blank" rel="noopener">requiring</a> nearly all of its 21,000 crew members to take the COVID vaccine, saying it had no choice because it qualified as a federal contractor and was therefore obligated to abide by a Biden administration rule.
But the government never actually enforced that rule. It was delayed, then blocked by an injunction from a judge. Last month, the injunction was lifted, but the following day, the government <a href="https://www.saferfederalworkforce.gov/contractors/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a>, &#8220;Despite the lifting of the nationwide bar to enforcement on October 18, 2022, at this time agencies should not: (1) take any steps to require covered contractors and subcontractors to come into compliance with previously issued Task Force guidance; or (2) enforce any contract clauses implementing Executive Order 14042.”
JetBlue did not respond to requests from The Daily Wire about its vaccine policies or the hiring of Perrys.
A screenshot of an internal JetBlue web page reviewed by The Daily Wire listed Perrys as a &#8220;Pilot Trainee&#8221; and a &#8220;Crewmember since July 20, 2022.&#8221; Another picture showed him beneath a banner that said &#8220;Congratulations Class 34-22,&#8221; referring to his training. Perrys did not return a request for comment.
The first pilot who spoke with The Daily Wire said that the airline was training Perrys to fly the Airbus A320, and that “several instructors have refused to train him. Many captains have told management they’ll refuse to fly with him.”
A second pilot said he is “on the line as a flying pilot in control of a plane with up to two hundred paying and oblivious souls on board.”
Editor&#8217;s Note: A previous version of this story misstated the state in which Perrys was arrested, omitted the fact that a substantial portion of his time in custody occurred before his trial, and did not include the charge for which he was ultimately convicted. The story has been updated.

JetBlue Won’t Hire The Unvaxxed, But Hired Violent Felon To Fly Planes

Air Travel

Business

COVID

COVID-19 Vaccine

Crime

Thanksgiving

<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/jetblue">JetBlue</a> and Spirit Airlines announced a $3.8 billion merger on Thursday, one day after merger negotiations between Spirit and Frontier Airlines collapsed.
Together, JetBlue and Spirit would control about 9% of the domestic flight market, which would make JetBlue the 5th largest airline in the country. The four largest airlines – American, Delta, United, and Southwest – <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2022/07/28/jetblue-airways-reaches-deal-to-buy-spirit-airlines.html">control</a> about three-fourths of the market.
The Justice Department has expressed concern that competition in the sector has declined after previous mergers, and the Biden administration generally has taken a hard stance on anti-trust policies. JetBlue executives have argued that combining their fleet with Spirit’s would allow it to more effectively compete with the industry’s larger players, and that such competition would help drive down fares. JetBlue has also <a href="https://abcnews.go.com/Business/wireStory/jetblue-buys-spirit-38-billion-87538962">offered</a> to surrender some of Spirit’s gates and take off/landing slots at various airports, creating opportunities for other airlines.
“Our view is that the best way that you can bring more competition to the sector is to create an exciting, new, low-fare, high-quality national airline that can compete with the big four,” JetBlue Chief Executive Robin Hayes <a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/jetblue-agrees-to-buy-spirit-for-3-8-billion-11659005196">said</a>. “So we will be making those arguments.”
Many prominent members of Spirit’s board had previously disagreed, and publicly argued that the prospective deal with Frontier was more likely to receive regulatory approval, despite the lower offered price — the final offer was <a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/jetblue-agrees-to-buy-spirit-for-3-8-billion-11659005196">reportedly</a> $1 billion less than JetBlue’s bid.
Frontier and Spirit had been discussing a potential merger for years, and had reached a tentative agreement in February of 2022, but an aggressive bid by JetBlue in April disrupted those plans. Spirit executives were unable to secure enough support from shareholders to close the deal, and now find themselves in the somewhat awkward position of advocating for a merger they had vehemently opposed for months.
“Where we are today is we’ve got an exciting merger agreement with JetBlue. It’s going to create a very large, national low-cost carrier,” Spirit Chief Executive Ted Christie <a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/jetblue-agrees-to-buy-spirit-for-3-8-billion-11659005196">said</a> in an interview. “Many things were said, but business is business.”
JetBlue will purchase Spirit shares for $33.50 per share, and the deal is expected to close in the first half of 2024.
The two companies have <a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/how-the-pilot-shortage-shattered-frontiers-dream-to-buy-spirit-11659002170?mod=article_inline">very different</a> business models, and JetBlue has announced that it will raise employee salaries and reconfigure seating at Spirit to align with its own standard practices — which will inevitably raise fares. Some observers have speculated that Alaska Airlines, which has a more similar structure to JetBlue, would have been a better fit for a merger. However, Alaska Airlines uses Boeing aircraft, while JetBlue and Spirit have predominantly Airbus fleets, and in a time of <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/u-s-airlines-desperate-for-pilots-consider-cutting-training-requirements">desperate pilot shortages</a>, an awkward merger is probably cheaper than cross-training and certifying limited personnel on different planes.
The Justice Department is <a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/justice-department-preparing-to-challenge-american-jetblue-alliance-11632232697?mod=article_inline">currently</a> suing JetBlue and American Airlines to break up an agreement between the two companies limiting competition between them in key hub airlines in the Northeast, fueling concerns that future deals may not be approved. If regulators block the merger, JetBlue has agreed to pay Spirit a $400 million break up fee.

Spirit Airlines Airbus A321-200 aircraft seen at Newark

JetBlue Buys Spirit Airlines For $3.8 Billion

Anti-trust

Biden Administration

Heavyweight boxing legend <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/mike-tyson">Mike Tyson</a> won&#8217;t be charged for delivering a beatdown to a fellow airline passenger in an incident that was <a href="https://youtu.be/V3C4pWwDqps">caught on video</a> and went viral last month.
San Mateo County District Attorney Steve Wagstaffe said the decision was made in part based on the behavior of the person Tyson pummeled over a row of seats in the April 20 incident. Witnesses said the man was drunk and was provoking the retired boxer as the JetBlue plane prepared to take off for Fort Lauderdale from San Francisco International Airports
&#8220;We have reviewed the police reports of the San Francisco Police Department and the San Mateo County Sheriff&#8217;s Office and have viewed the various videos collected by law enforcement from others on the airplane,&#8221; Wagstaffe said. &#8220;Our decision is that we will not file any charges against Mr. Tyson based on the circumstances surrounding the confrontation.&#8221;
&#8220;These include the conduct of the victim leading up to the incident, the interaction between Mr. Tyson and the victim, as well as the requests of both the victim and Mr. Tyson that no charges be filed in this case.&#8221;
<iframe loading="lazy" title="Mike Tyson Repeatedly Punches Man In Face On Plane, Bloodies Passenger | TMZ Sports" width="500" height="281" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/V3C4pWwDqps?feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen></iframe>
TMZ Sports first posted the video, which showed Tyson punching the man and then showed the man with blood on his forehead.
A spokesperson for Tyson later told ESPN that the passenger had been &#8220;harassing him and threw a water bottle at him.&#8221;
A witness at the time told TMZ that Tyson took a selfie with the man, who then continued to pester the ex-heavyweight champion.
“Eventually, though, we’re told Tyson had enough of the guy behind him talking in his ear … and told him to chill. When the guy didn’t, that’s when the witness says Tyson started to throw several punches at the man’s face,” TMZ <a href="https://www.tmz.com/2022/04/21/mike-tyson-repeatedly-punches-man-face-plane-bloodies-passenger/">reported</a>. “Video we obtained shows Tyson throwing a flurry of blows at the man, which you can see bloodied the passenger’s forehead. The witness says Mike walked off the plane just seconds later.”
San Francisco police interviewed and then released both men at the time.
Tyson, 55, who went by the nicknames &#8220;Iron Mike&#8221; and &#8220;The Baddest Man on the Planet&#8221; during a 20-year career that began in 1985, compiled a record of 50-6-2 and became the heavyweight champion of the world in 1986 at age 20. He later served three years in prison in the 1990s for rape.
Tyson now focuses on his cannabis line along with his podcast, &#8220;Hotboxin&#8217; With Mike Tyson.&#8221;

Mike Tyson

Mike Tyson Won’t Face Charges For Beatdown Of Fellow Airline Passenger

Prosecutors Decline To Charge Ex-Heavyweight Champ Tyson In Plane Scuffle

San Francisco

Longtime talk show host Bill O&#8217;Reilly, who resigned from Fox News after the network settled five lawsuits involving women who accused him of misconduct, was caught on video berating an airline employee after his flight to the Caribbean was delayed, The Daily Mail <a href="https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10731909/Youre-gonna-lose-job-Bill-OReilly-threatened-airline-worker-delayed-flight.html">reported</a> with exclusive video.
&#8220;The conservative commentator can be heard in the video asking a JetBlue employee to find out why his flight from New York to Turks and Caicos is &#8216;three hours late now,'&#8221; The Washington Examiner <a href="https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/watch-bill-oreilly-confronts-jetblue-employee-after-five-hour-flight-delay">reported</a>. &#8220;Seconds later, after a barely audible back-and-forth, O&#8217;Reilly calls the employee a &#8216;f***ing scumbag&#8217; and tells him, &#8216;You&#8217;re going to lose your job.&#8217; The JetBlue agent is heard in the <a class="Link" href="https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10731909/Youre-gonna-lose-job-Bill-OReilly-threatened-airline-worker-delayed-flight.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">video</a> accusing O&#8217;Reilly of threatening him with violence.&#8221;
<iframe loading="lazy" id="molvideoplayer" title="MailOnline Embed Player" src="https://www.dailymail.co.uk/embed/video/2666203.html" width="698" height="573" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
&#8220;You&#8217;re going to get that information,&#8221; O&#8217;Reilly said before storming off.
The video was filmed at 9:24 am on Sunday, April 3, the Daily Mail <a href="https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10731909/Youre-gonna-lose-job-Bill-OReilly-threatened-airline-worker-delayed-flight.html">reported</a>. That was two and a half hours after the flight to the Turks and Caicos Islands was scheduled to take off.
O&#8217;Reilly defended himself in an email to the Mail, saying &#8220;it was the airport worker who was arrogant, not him.&#8221;
&#8220;The guy was arrogant and falsely accused me of threatening him and I said: &#8216;You&#8217;re lucky I didn&#8217;t do that,'&#8221; he said in the email.
O&#8217;Reilly also took to Twitter to defend himself. &#8220;The character assassins on social media completely lying about my interaction with a JetBlue guy who misled passengers during a five-hour delay,&#8221; O&#8217;Reilly <a href="https://twitter.com/BillOReilly/status/1516767993354723331">tweeted</a> after the video surfaced on Tuesday.
&#8220;The 72-year-old former host of The O&#8217;Reilly Factor <a class="Link" href="https://www.mediaite.com/tv/bill-oreilly-speaks-out-against-jetblue-after-being-caught-on-camera-calling-employee-a-scumbag/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">told</a> a news outlet on Tuesday that he handled the situation &#8216;poorly&#8217; but did not apologize to the worker, reiterating that the JetBlue flight was delayed for hours without explanation, leading to frustration. He also accused JetBlue of fraudulent behavior, claiming the airline is selling tickets to flights that the company knows cannot arrive on schedule,&#8221; the Examiner reported.
O&#8217;Reilly also gave a <a href="https://www.mediaite.com/tv/bill-oreilly-speaks-out-against-jetblue-after-being-caught-on-camera-calling-employee-a-scumbag/">statement</a> to Mediaite. &#8220;The real story beyond the exchange caught by Daily Mail, O’Reilly said, is staffing shortages airlines like JetBlue are not being honest about, leading to numerous cancellations and delays for their flights,&#8221; the website wrote.
&#8220;&#8216;The story is JetBlue can’t get their flights off the ground. It was crazy in the terminal,&#8217; O’Reilly added, joking frustration among passengers was so fierce he may have prevented a riot by saying something,&#8221; Mediaite reported.
&#8220;JetBlue, O’Reilly argued to Mediaite, is committing &#8216;fraud in the inducement,&#8217; meaning they are selling tickets to flights they know they cannot complete, but are not being honest about it.&#8221;
Joseph Curl has covered politics for 35 years, including 12 years as White House correspondent, and ran the Drudge Report from 2010 to 2015. Send tips to josephcurl@dailywire.com and follow him on Twitter @josephcurl.

Time Magazine’s 100 Most Influential People 2006 – Inside

Bill O’Reilly In JetBlue Delay Rant, ‘You F***ing Scumbag!’

Bill O'Reilly

Fox News

New York City

A group of pilots from JetBlue, American Airlines, and Southwest have filed a lawsuit against the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Department of Health and Human Services after the mask mandate for airports and airlines was extended.
The pilots allege in their <a href="https://lucas.travel/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/Carlin-v-CDC-Complaint.pdf">lawsuit</a> that the CDC acted “without providing public notice or soliciting comment,&#8221; <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/jetblue-american-airlines-southwest-pilots-sue-cdc-federal-mask-mandate-2022-3">according to</a> Business Insider.
“By mandating masks for all American travelers and employees in the transportation sector, the defendants have acted without statutory authorization or following the rulemaking process required by the Administrative Procedure Act (“APA”). This mandate also raises serious constitutional concerns. Because of the FTMM [Federal Transportation Mask Mandate], numerous state, local, and regional transportation and airport authorities are told to enforce a federal mandate that is in direct conflict with the laws and policies of all 50 states that prohibit mask mandates or do not require face coverings,” the pilots alleged.
The pilots go on to say that the CDC “ignored countless scientific and medical studies and articles showing that face masks are totally ineffective in reducing coronavirus spread but are harmful to human health in at least 68 ways.” The pilots cited an article from Lucas Wall, an opponent of the federal mask mandate who has filed several lawsuits against the CDC and airlines regarding the policy.
&#8220;Wearing a mask before and during flight causes us numerous medical deficiencies,&#8221; the pilots said in their lawsuit. &#8220;Extended wearing of a mask, which has become a part of routine life, has led to the emergence of &#8216;mask fatigue.&#8217; Mask fatigue is defined as the lack of energy that accompanies, and/or follows prolonged wearing of a mask.&#8221;
The pilots also claimed that the mask mandate has caused “chaos in the sky” with the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) reporting thousands of instances of “unruly” passenger behavior since the mask mandate went into effect on February 1, 2021. The pilots noted that nearly all of the reports were related to masks, adding that 2021 was the &#8220;worst year on record for buffoonish behavior on planes.&#8221;
Business Insider reported that the FAA noted there were 4,290 mask-related incidents in 2021, which made up more than 75% of reports regarding unruly passengers. “Since January of last year, the agency proposed fines of more than $682,000 against unruly passengers,” the outlet reported.
The FTMM applies to public transportation, not just airlines, but that is where it is most felt and discussed. The mask mandate was set to expire earlier this month, but on March 10 was extended through at least April 18.
The Transportation Security Agency (TSA) said that the extension “will be based on the COVID-19 community levels, risk of new variants, national data, and the latest science.”
The pilots requested the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia vacate the mask mandate and remove all signs requiring masks from airports and other transportation hubs.

US-AVIATION-TRANSPORTATION

10 Pilots From Major Airlines Suing CDC Over Mask Mandates On Airplanes

American Airlines

Mask Mandate

Southwest Airlines

JetBlue plans to cancel 1,280 flights between December 30 and January 13.
“We have seen a surge in the number of sick calls from Omicron,” a JetBlue spokesman said, according to <a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/jet-stream-adds-to-airline-challenges-as-flight-cancellations-continue-11640810810?mod=article_inline">The Wall Street Journal</a>. “We entered the holiday season with the highest staffing levels we’ve had since the pandemic began and are using all resources available to cover our staffing needs.”
“This past week has been one of our most difficult operating periods during the pandemic,” three JetBlue department leaders wrote on Tuesday in a note to staff seen by <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2021/12/30/jetblue-cuts-flights-through-mid-january-expecting-more-omicron-covid-sick-calls.html">CNBC</a>. “The exponential growth in Omicron cases over just a couple of days is at a level that no one could reasonably prepare for.”
The move comes as other airlines anticipate staff shortages due to the Omicron variant of COVID-19. CNBC explained:
<blockquote>New York-based JetBlue and other airlines, including United Airlines, Delta Air Lines and American Airlines, have canceled more than 8,000 flights since Christmas Eve, according to airline data firm FlightAware, as carriers were hit with bad weather and a surge in sick calls from crews. The disruptions cap another rocky year for travel as airlines at times struggled to ramp up flying to meet a resurgence in demand after a paltry 2020.
More than 1,100 flights were scrubbed nationwide on Thursday, according to FlightAware. JetBlue canceled 175 flights or 17% of its schedule. United, meanwhile, canceled 192 flights, or 9% of its mainline schedule, while regional airline SkyWest dropped 198, or 8%. Seattle-based Alaska Airlines canceled 95 flights, 14% of what it planned to fly.</blockquote>
The Omicron-driven flight cancellations also occur as airlines grapple with an economy-wide labor shortage. During recent testimony to Congress, American Airlines CEO Doug Parker <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/american-airlines-to-hire-18000-people-as-unexplained-flight-cancellations-continue">said</a> that his company — which has about 130,000 workers — has already onboarded more than 16,000 employees in 2021, and will continue to seek additional talent through 2022.
“We believe this positive momentum will continue into next year, as we’ve set a target of hiring an additional 18,000 team members in 2022,” Parker explained. “Each time we add to our ranks, it’s like a dividend payment on the investment made in our team through the [payroll support program]; instead of building back from collapse, we’re growing to provide more promising careers in good-paying jobs to hard-working individuals who are the lifeblood of our nation’s economy.”
Airlines’ vaccine mandates are also a factor in flight cancellations. The Freedom Flyers — an organization of airline and transportation workers working to oppose the mandates imposed by airlines and the federal government — recently <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/flight-crews-have-reached-their-breaking-point-anti-vaccine-mandate-group-responds-to-mass-flight-cancellations">disagreed</a> with American Airlines’ claim that a spate of cancellations in November was attributable to high winds.
“The system is stressed as it is and now we have unions coming out and gaslighting their members that if they are unvaccinated, they need counseling and education,” Freedom Flyers founding member Jason Kusinich told The Daily Wire, citing an email from the president of the American Airlines Pilots’ Union, which said unvaccinated crew members need “education and counseling.”
The Daily Wire is fighting Joe Biden’s vaccine mandate in federal court. Join us in this fight by signing our <a href="https://lp.dailywire.com/osha-petition/">petition</a> to OSHA, telling them that you will not comply with this mandate.

LaGuardia Airport, New York City

JetBlue Cuts 1,280 Flights In First Weeks Of January

Omicron Variant

JetBlue has permanently banned a passenger after the individual failed to disclose that he was waiting for coronavirus test results, and then received a positive diagnosis in the middle of a flight.
According to <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/travel/2020/03/13/jetblue-passenger-with-coronavirus-didnt-admit-he-had-pending-test-airline-banned-him-life/">The Washington Post</a>, the passenger was flying from New York City to Palm Beach, Florida, when they received the results, and the other passengers were notified of the potential exposure.
“Last night’s event put our crewmembers, customers and federal and local officials in an unsettling situation that could have easily been avoided,” JetBlue said in a statement, reports the news agency. “As such, this customer will not be permitted to fly on JetBlue in the future.”
After deboarding the plane, passengers received advice from health officials called to the scene, but were allegedly not advised to self-quarantine, reports <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/video/2020/03/12/jetblue-coronavirus-case-another-passenger-on-flight-speaks-out.html">CNBC</a>.
“We were told that because he wasn’t sneezing or coughing at all, that we’re fine,” said the passenger, who was on a flight to visit his parents. “I personally went over to the woman, to the doctor, and asked and explained my exact story, and she said it’s a personal decision if you want to stay with them.”
The Post reports that the airport where the infected passenger landed has since been cleaned, and the gate at the airport from which the passenger departed has also been cleaned.
In response to the coronavirus outbreak, President Trump has declared a national emergency in a bid to free up billions of dollars in federal aid and remove certain legal barriers that can inhibit the ability of the federal government to act during a pandemic.
According to <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/13/us/politics/coronavirus-national-emergency.html">The New York Times</a>, the declaration “empowers the president to direct any federal agency to use its personnel, facilities and equipment to support state and local emergency efforts, disseminate public health and safety information, provide public health and safety measures, and distribute supplies like medicine and food.”
President Trump also announced Friday evening that the administration had reached a legislative deal with Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-NY), and encouraged Republicans to support the bill.
“This Bill will follow my direction for free CoronaVirus tests, and paid sick leave for our impacted American workers. I have directed the Secretary of the Treasury and the Secretary of Labor to issue regulations that will provide flexibility so that in no way will Small Businesses be hurt. I encourage all Republicans and Democrats to come together,” the president announced on Twitter.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
&#8230;.the Secretary of the Treasury and the Secretary of Labor to issue regulations that will provide flexibility so that in no way will Small Businesses be hurt. I encourage all Republicans and Democrats to come together and VOTE YES! I will always put&#8230;.
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) <a href="https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1238626530361847810?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 14, 2020</a></blockquote>
According to <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/politics/pelosi-announces-deal-with-white-house-on-coronavirus-bill">Fox News</a>, the legislation includes paid sick leave, enhancements to existing unemployment insurance, an increase in funding for government food-initiatives, more federal funding to Medicaid, and undisclosed coronavirus testing measures.
“This legislation is about testing, testing, testing,” said Pelosi, reports the news agency. “To stop the spread of the virus, we have secured free coronavirus testing for everyone who needs a test, including the uninsured. We cannot fight coronavirus effectively unless everyone in our country who needs to be tested can get their test free of charge.”

JetBlue Permanently Bans Passenger Who Tested Positive For Coronavirus Mid-Flight

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