By Ben Fractenberg
DNAinfo Reporter/Producer
MANHATTAN— JetBlue won’t be moving its headquarters out of New York City afterall.
The nation's seventh largest airline announced on Monday that it planned to stay put, after flirting with a move to Orlando, Fla. The decision means nearly 1,000 local jobs will be saved.
"New York and JetBlue are made for each other," said Dave Barger, JetBlue Chief Executive Officer, in a statement. "After an exhaustive study to determine the best location for our corporate offices, we have decided that remaining in our hometown of New York makes the most sense for our company. The city is an important part of our heritage and culture, our brand and our customer connection, as well as our operation, with our base at JFK's Terminal 5."
JetBlue was considering a move to Orlando, Fla., after that city offered the 10-year-old airline a package of financial incentives. New York would have its only locally-based airline.
"New York City prevailed, and both our city and the airline are better off for it," said Mayor Michael Bloomberg said in a statement.
The airline is planning to move from Forest Hills, Queens, to the Citigroup building in Queens Plaza. JetBlue also plans to move an additional 200 jobs to the new location, a corporate statement said.
