Jetblue Airways

JetBlue Airways blamed a computer glitch for an 18-month-old girl being removed from a plane in Fort Lauderdale , Fla., because the carrier's employees thought she was on the no-fly list. The girl and her parents were removed after the flight bound for Newark, N.J., had boarded, media reports say. In a statement made Thursday, JetBlue said it was looking into the incident that happened Tuesday. It also said its employees "followed appropriate protocols" and included an apology to the family.

Here's a nice freebie to get you to and from Bob Hope Airport (BUR) in Burbank: JetBlue Airways fliers get a free Metrolink ride by showing their boarding pass. The deal: The free ride is good to or from anywhere Metrolink goes in Southern California -- Lancaster, Oceanside, Oxnard, San Bernardino, Riverside and points in between -- only on the day of the flight. Trains run Mondays through Fridays, with very limited service on weekends (check out train schedules here.)

Two brothers are launching an airline to serve executives and others who are willing to pay a hefty monthly membership fee for unlimited travel up and down the California coast. Surf Air in Santa Monica began enrolling members Thursday to fly between airports in Los Angeles, Santa Barbara, Monterey and Palo Alto starting in May. It's not a new concept; larger commercial airlines have tried the all-you-can-fly concept on a limited basis. Surf Air will charge a monthly fee, starting at $790, for unlimited flights between the four destinations on small eight-passenger aircraft.

Three of the top four airlines in 2003 were low-cost carriers, with JetBlue Airways Corp. leading the pack with the best overall performance, according to an annual study released Monday. The study's authors say the report showed why low-fare airlines are gobbling up market share from traditional carriers: They're on time more, they bump fewer passengers, they mishandle less baggage and they generate fewer complaints.

Violating its own privacy policy, JetBlue Airways gave 5 million passenger itineraries to a Defense Department contractor that used the information as part of a study seeking ways to identify "high risk" airline customers. The study, produced by Torch Concepts of Huntsville, Ala., was titled "Homeland Security: Airline Passenger Risk Assessment."

Travelers ranked JetBlue Airways Corp. their favorite low-cost carrier and Continental Airlines Inc. the best traditional full-service carrier, according to a survey released Thursday. Fliers value easy check-in and friendly service over such factors as in-flight meals and other amenities, according to the survey conducted by J.D. Power & Associates in conjunction with Aviation Week magazine.

The U.S. government will investigate why passengers were stranded so long on JetBlue Airways Corp. and American Airlines planes, increasing pressure on carriers to improve service. "I have serious concerns about airlines' contingency planning that allows passengers to sit on the tarmac for hours," Transportation Secretary Mary E. Peters said Tuesday in Washington. Peters asked her department's inspector general, Calvin Scovel, to look into incidents at JetBlue this month and at AMR Corp.'

Southwest Airlines Co. and rival low-cost carrier JetBlue Airways Corp. said Wednesday that they planned to increase fares this year to help cover higher fuel costs. JetBlue Chief Executive David Neeleman said the New York-based carrier needed to raise fares by an average of $5 to $10. JetBlue had its first loss as a publicly traded company in the fourth quarter. Southwest has said its fuel costs will rise by $600 million this year.

JetBlue Airways Corp. said Wednesday that the 1,102 flight cancellations triggered by an ice storm last week would result in a wider first-quarter per-share loss and a reduced profit for the year. The Forest Hills, N.Y.-based carrier said it expected to have an operating loss of 2% to 4% of revenue in the quarter. It had forecast a profit of 2% to 4% of revenue, JetBlue spokesman Bryan Baldwin said in an interview. The company declined to say what the loss would be in dollars.

JetBlue Airways Corp. on Wednesday posted a wider fourth-quarter loss than Wall Street expected as increased revenue could not offset the effect of sharply higher fuel costs. The airline also forecast losses for the first quarter and all of 2006. The weak results and outlook sent shares tumbling. Its shares shed $1.86, or 14%, to $11.18. JetBlue's fourth-quarter loss was $42.4 million, or 25 cents a share, reversing a year-earlier profit of $1.5 million, or a penny a share.