JetBlue, together with partners and leaders in New York on Thursday, celebrated the groundbreaking of a new multi-billion dollar project to develop a new terminal at New York John F. Kennedy International Airport. The project comes as a key milestone of an ongoing transformation of the airport by the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey.
The new Terminal 6 will reportedly house international flights, allowing passengers to connect seamlessly with JetBlue’s current home at Terminal 5. When completed, the terminal will add more gates and the opportunity for the airline to add flights, destinations and partner airline connections.
New & state-of-the-art
The groundbreaking celebration was held at JetBlue’s maintenance hangar with the carrier’s CEO Robin Hayes in attendance. New York Governor Kathy Hochul was also at the event to mark the milestone.
Hayes spoke about the importance of the new terminal and why the groundbreaking could not be at a better time.
“It was 23 years ago that JetBlue launched our first flights from our home at JFK, eventually growing and taking over our modern Terminal 5 and now sending customers to more than 80 destinations, including London and soon Paris. At a time that JetBlue is set to grow significantly, we are excited to once again invest and further the governor’s vision as we build the new Terminal 6.
"As we move JFK into the future with a new, state-of-the-art, customer-focused facility, we are so pleased to have an opportunity to expand our presence with new gates in a new terminal. The team putting this project together is setting out to develop a terminal that New Yorkers, including our JetBlue crewmembers, can be proud of.”
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When will construction be completed?
The deal was closed successfully in November 2022 between the Port Authority and JFK Millennium Partners, giving the greenlight to construction of the 1.2 million square feet terminal. It will be located on the airport’s north side and will create approximately 4,000 jobs, including 1,800 union construction jobs and direct wages of $1.9 billion, according to the airline. Currently, more than 7,000 crew members are based at JFK.
JetBlue said the terminal will be developed in phases. The airline said.
“The new terminal will be developed in two phases, with the first new gates opening in 2026 and construction completion in 2028. The 1.2 million-square-foot Terminal 6, will have capacity for 10 gates -- including nine wide body gates. Customers will enjoy more than 100,000 square feet of world-class shopping and dining featuring locally based restaurateurs, craft beverage options and Taste of NY stores,”
New amenities
State-of-the-art technology will be featured at the terminal and is expected to improve the customer experience with touchless technology from check-in to gates and digital systems, streamlining the passenger’s journey throughout the terminal.
Advanced security systems will include automated TSA security lanes, biometric-based access control systems and a flexible design to accommodate future technology or regulatory changes, according to the carrier.
The news comes amid JetBlue’s challenges to move forward with its proposed merger with Spirit Airlines. Despite pushback from the Department of Justice, the airline indicated earlier this week that it would go to court, if needed, to ensure the merger is approved.