Press Release

Gillibrand Praises JetBlue’s Decision To Stay In NYC

Mar 22, 2010

New York, NY – U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) praised JetBlue’s decision today to keep their corporate headquarters here in New York City.

“I’m very pleased that JetBlue is cleared for landing. The airline’s decision to keep their world headquarters here in New York City is welcome news,” Senator Gillibrand said. “JetBlue has grown into the seventh largest airline in no small part due to the hard work of the nearly 1,000 local employees at its world headquarters that are among the more than 5,000 crewmembers that also work at airports and maintenance facilities across New York State. I was proud to work with officials at all levels to present JetBlue with a very strong offer. I look forward to working with them in the years to come as they remain one of New York City’s premier corporations.”

During the discount carrier’s search for an alternative location for its operations base in 2009, Senator Gillibrand met with JetBlue CEO David Barger, encouraging him to keep the airlines here at home. In a letter to Mr. Barger this past January, Senator Gillibrand urged JetBlue to save hundreds of city jobs and accept the state and city’s generous retention package.

New York’s hometown airline will move its offices from Forest Hills, Queens to Long Island City and add dozens of additional jobs. The passenger carrier, employing more than 5,000 JetBlue employees across New York, opened its new primary hub at JFK International Airport in 2008. This $800 million project helped create jobs and provided long-term investment to the city’s economy.

###