NEW YORK CITY — JetBlue is canceling service at three area airports — JFK, LaGuardia and Newark — as well as Boston's Logan airport starting Monday as temperatures drop to dangerous lows, a spokesman said.
New airline industry rules, in effect this past weekend, also require pilots to get a minimum amount of rest, creating a perfect storm of delays and disruptions.
The cancellations, which began at 1 p.m. Monday and will last through 10 a.m. Tuesday, come as a blast of arctic air is set to hit the city Monday evening. A wind chill advisory is in effect from midnight Monday through 6 p.m. Tuesday, with gusts making it feel as cold as 15 below zero, according to the National Weather Service.
Temperatures could reach as low as 8 degrees without the wind chill.
"The best advice is to stay put and to stay inside" on Monday night, AccuWeather senior meteorologist Tom Kines told DNAinfo New York. "If you do have to venture out, this is the type of weather you have to keep your body protected."
The cold will, in part, produce icy conditions that can be dangerous for flying, according to JetBlue.
"Today, less than a week into the year, we’re watching a polar vortex wreak havoc on flight schedules across the industry, as rainy weather prepares to turn airports in the Northeast into ice rinks once again," the company said in a blog post.
The airline also needs to give crew members proper rest time after last week's storm caused delays and cancellations.
"This plan allows for 17 hours of rest for our equipment and crewmembers and time to service aircraft," JetBlue said in a statement.
The carrier expects to be fully operational by 3 p.m. Tuesday.
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