Originally Posted by
hockeypilot44
Jetblue never should have been allowed to start a hub in JFK to begin with. It's an oversaturated airport that needed to cut service, not add it. You can't operate a hub with no flights after 4pm. It seems whenever Jetblue needed more slots, the city just created them adding to the congestion with no regards to the other airlines. How many flights a day does Jetblue operate out of LGA now? Don't tell me LGA was underserved also.
At the time of JBLU's creation, JFK was an underutilized airport which was used almost exclusively for international flights.
JBLU got a sweetheart deal with the Port Authority (at the blessing of Mayor Giuliani) as part of a deal to lower airline ticket prices. I even remember Giuliani making a comment along the lines that NYers' air service was like getting hamburger at steak prices.
The congestion that you mention wasn't at the airport level; it was all of the arriving and departing traffic along the east coast. I haven't turned a wheel for quite a while so I don't know if they've worked things out but I've spent plenty of time sitting in a conga line at PHL/EWR because all of the airspace along the east coast was saturated.