LaGuardia Shuffle: JetBlue to Marine Air Terminal


a sign on the side of a road

The reconstruction of LaGuardia’s passenger terminals requires many airlines to shift operations. As part of those changes JetBlue is moving in to the Marine Air Terminal as Delta moves to its Terminal C/D complex and American Airlines consolidates into the Central Terminal Building (a/k/a Terminal B). The shifts will take place on 8 December 2017.

JetBlue expects to operate from the Marine Air Terminal until 2022 when the major LaGuardia construction work is completed. The company also expects significant cost savings from operating in the new terminal and, as an added bonus, will benefit from Delta, American and the Port Authority paying for the move and improvements to the space.



In a message to employees JetBlue executives indicated that the Marine Air Terminal will see several improvements, “while being mindful to maintain the facility’s historic character.” These changes include a conversion to the new JetBlue standard lobby arrangement with self-tagging kiosks, an additional security lane and upgraded concessions inside the terminal.

(Nearly) Everyone Wins

For Delta the move is also a significant benefit. While the Shuttle flights theoretically benefit from operation at a dedicated terminal the reality for the carrier is that more passengers are connecting to those routes at LaGuardia. More than three years ago Delta moved its Boston Shuttle flights to the main terminal citing increased connecting flow. At that time the carrier indicated a preference to move all the Shuttle flights into the same terminal as the rest of its operations. Now that will finally come to pass.



Read More: The Delta Shuttle Shuffle

Similarly, American Airlines now can consolidate its operations in a single building rather than split between the legacy US Airways and American terminals. That’s definitely better for the airline in terms of consolidating operations and employees to a single part of the airport. For passengers it is mostly good news, too, though operations will remain split across multiple different TSA security areas within the Central Terminal Building. And it is unlikely we’ll see that change before the construction is completed.

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Seth Miller

I'm Seth, also known as the Wandering Aramean. I was bit by the travel bug 30 years ago and there's no sign of a cure. I fly ~200,000 miles annually; these are my stories. You can connect with me on Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn.

12 Comments

  1. I loved the Marine Air Terminal for the Delta Shuttle up to Boston in ’99-’03 (especially pre-9/11). Marched right up to that gate, front door to my seat in about 8 minutes.

    1. Yup. My favorite was leaving my office at 40th & Lex @ 12:03p and making the 12:30p shuttle. Including buying the ticket from an agent at the counter.

  2. JetBlue has had their eye on the MAT for awhile, what they don’t realize is there is not enough space there for multiple a320s worth of Florida bound families and wheelchairs, and the 1-2 security lanes will likely be very slow!

    sad to lose the DL Shuttle there. As an NY based flier, it is so convenient, but I get DL likely benefits much more from consolidating ops, gaining connecting traffic, and hopefully getting rid of those hard stands in favor of the AA gates they now pick up in C

  3. I just flew Jet Blue from Terminal B and it was nice that the AMEX Centurion Lounge was close to their security area and gates. I rarely use LGA and am not at all familiar with the current configuration of the airport, but I would imagine that visiting the lounge prior to taking a Jet Blue flight will no longer be a practical option once the change is made.

    1. You’ll definitely not be visiting the AmEx lounge on a JetBlue itinerary going forward. I don’t see that as nearly a big a loss as the decreased public transit access to the MAT.

  4. I’m gonna miss the DC and Chicago shuttles from MAT. It made one day trips so convenient with the parking right in front. Only business travelers made the security move much faster. With the construction going on, taking the shuttle out of “C” will be a pain.

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