Neeleman Extends Contrition Tour

Like most fiascos, this one began with a single wrong decision. JetBlue sent planes from the gate to the runway in bad weather at Kennedy on Feb. 14, hoping snow would turn to rain. Other airlines at the airport that morning were generally more cautious.

Caution is not the same as wisdom. But in this case, weather conditions worsened. The winter storm that came through the area created sheets of ice on the runway, Neeleman said. Nine JetBlue planes were stuck on the tarmac for more than five hours, and most of the rest of its operations at its single hub were also halted.

In phase two of the crisis, the impact of a single bad day cascaded through JetBlue's infrastructure. The carrier couldn't get enough employees to the airport, couldn't get enough reservations agents to work overtime and, most importantly, couldn't identify flight crew members whose allowable flight time had not been used up during the delays.

That led to cancellations. JetBlue called off 1,096 flights between Feb. 14 and Feb. 19, about one-third of the total. Unfortunately for JetBlue, it all happened in the world's media capital, vastly increasing the coverage.

The next phase of the crisis began Tuesday, when normal operations were finally restored. Since then, Neeleman has held conference calls with reporters and analysts, and JetBlue has released earnings guidance regarding potential first-quarter losses.