JetBlue Airways (B6, New York JFK) and the Massachusetts Port Authority (Massport) have received preliminary approval to redevelop Terminal C at Boston airport, a project valued at more than USD1 billion that will modernise the airline’s primary Boston facility over an expected four-to five-year construction period.

Approved by Massport's board, the proposal will replace the terminal's ageing 1960s infrastructure with a larger, more modern facility featuring higher ceilings, skylights, redesigned gate areas, expanded seating, retail, and dining areas, and improved passenger circulation. The redevelopment will increase the terminal's size from around 220,000 to 300,000 square feet (20,438 to 27,870 square metres), while maintaining the current number of gates, The Boston Globe reported.

JetBlue will partner with Vantage Airport Group, the company behind the redevelopment of New York Newark, to deliver the project. Under the proposed financing structure, Vantage will fund the construction and JetBlue will lease the completed terminal from Massport over an estimated 30-35-year period. Massport has said it does not currently expect to contribute direct funding.

Terminal C is mostly used by JetBlue, but also by Aer Lingus, Cape Air, Etihad Airways, Royal Air Maroc, and TAP Air Portugal. JetBlue is the second-largest airline at Boston by weekly capacity, holding a 24.2% market share, behind Delta Air Lines with 27.4%, ch-aviation schedules data shows.

JetBlue said the project remains in its early planning stages and will be subject to further regulatory reviews and approvals. Construction is expected to begin in about a year, with Massport anticipating limited disruption to airport operations during the works.