Government weighs mandatory schedule caps at New York JFK

In preparation for a meeting with airlines and airport officials this week on how to solve congestion problems at New York’s Kennedy Airport, the Transportation Department has proposed setting mandatory hourly limits on the number of flight operations permitted there. DOT has its eye on a limit of 80 to 81 total flights per hour – which would meet the existing capacity of the airport. Currently, up to 100 arrivals and departures per hour are scheduled at some times during the day – and as a result, JFK’s on-time arrival rate has recently fallen as low as 59 percent. The department did not indicate how it might apportion arrival and departure slots among competing airlines. The Air Transport Association, the trade group for major airlines, called the proposal “a disappointing decision.” According to ATA, “Slashing operations at JFK alone will not solve the congestion problem but will shut the door n growth for our country’s leading international gateway.”