JetBlue airline bans passenger for life over COVID-19

JetBlue Airlines has banned a passenger from flying on its airline for life. This passenger flew from New York to Florida while waiting on test results of the COVID-19 coronavirus without disclosing to the airline that such results were pending.

The JetBlue flight left John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York and landed at West Palm Beach in Florida as scheduled on Wednesday night.

Upon flight arrival, the passenger found out the test results had come out positive. S/he then told the flight crew about confirmation of test results coming out positive for the COVID-19 coronavirus.

Fire rescue officials say the Palm Beach County Health Department spoke to all passengers on board. Those passengers who were near the infected passenger were given instructions on monitoring their health and were then allowed to leave the airport without seeing a doctor. The rest of the passengers were told to call the health department with any medical concerns as they were released.

The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey confirmed that the areas the passenger went through were checked on security camera footage and cleaning immediately began. The areas included gates, security checkpoints, check-in counters and kiosks, elevators, and restrooms.

The airport is operating normally after it temporarily closed down Concourse A for cleaning after all passengers on board the flight had gone through the area.

JetBlue said the decision to ban the passenger for life was made for the safety of the crew and other passengers.

In a statement the airline said: “The event put our crew members, customers, and federal and local officials in an unsettling situation that could have easily been avoided, and as such this customer will not be permitted to fly on JetBlue in the future.”

The condition of the passenger or where s/he is being quarantined is not known.