jetBlue's Neeleman Makes Personal Apology To Passengers; Details On a New Passenger 'Bill of Rights' To Follow This Afternoon

In an extraordinary public apology and statement early this morning, jetBlue CEO David Neeleman "asks for your business and trust" and calls the meltdown of his company's flight operations last week an "aberration" he's taken steps to make sure never happens again.

Sometime this afternoon, the airline will post on its website its own passenger "bill of rights" that Neeleman yesterday described in a conversation with me on NPR's "Talk of the Nation" as a "living document."  By that he meant the airline will feel free to modify and add to its new corporate policy regarding what passengers can expect in terms of service.  One revolutionary promise expected to be included in this afternoon's statement will be a vow to pay customers should they ever have to wait longer than three hours aboard a plane stuck on the ground for whatever reason.

As I mentioned in numerous media interviews yesterday, Neeleman's quick apologies, extensive outreach to both print and broadcast reporters, and mea culpas are unprecedented in the airline industry, where chief executives are better known for going to ground when things go wrong.  Being an airline, to twist a cliche from that '70s sappy novel, Love Story, usually means never having to say your sorry.

I'll be on an airplane headed to a speech in Kansas City when jetBlue posts its "bill of rights," but I'll address it here as soon as I have a few minutes to review it this evening.