Road Warrior

JetBlue cuts flights as frigid air mass swallows US

JetBlue reducing operations at some airports
VIDEO2:0202:02
JetBlue reducing operations at some airports

JetBlue said Monday it will gradually shut down all flights out of New York and Boston as a precaution against a massive blanket of cold air threatening the East Coast.

JetBlue's stock, traded on the Nasdaq, tumbled 4 percent in midday trading.

In a statement, JetBlue said that as of 1 p.m. EST, it was reducing operations at the New York City region's three major airports—JFK, LaGuardia and Newark—as well as at Boston's Logan Airport. "This will progress to a 100 percent reduction by 5pm today, and last through 10am Eastern Time Tuesday," the airline added.

A Jet Blue plane is de-iced during a winter storm in this file photo.
AP

East Coast weather forecasts are calling for potential record low temperatures and flash freezing.

JetBlue said affected customers should make sure the airline has their contact information so that they can receive updated flight information. It said passengers phoning its call center can expect long waits.

"JetBlue is committed to operating safely; further cancellations are possible. We regret the impact to our customers," it said, adding that it intended to be "100 percent operational" by 3pm Tuesday.

The airliner has been grappling with grounded flights since Friday, when snow blanketed much of the East Coast and snarled air traffic.

By early afternoon, JFK, Newark and Logan reported about 30 minute departure delays overall, according to flightaware.com. On a related note, inclement weather also forced Southwest Air to suspended flights at Chicago Midway airport until 5pm Central time on Monday.

—By CNBC.com. Reuters contributed to this article.