Airlines that "hold passengers hostage" -- and fail to enact a passenger bill of rights -- would not be allowed to land at O'Hare and Midway airports under a crackdown proposed by three influential aldermen Wednesday to prevent a repeat of the JetBlue fiasco.

Aldermen Edward M. Burke (14th), Danny Solis (25th) and Issac Carothers (29th) say they are determined to ensure humane treatment for airline passengers.

Although the Federal Aviation Administration controls the air and approves the routes airlines can fly, the city controls the runways and gates airlines need to land at O'Hare and Midway.

JETBLUE'S ACTION

"We're suggesting that any airline that lands at facilities owned by the City of Chicago should adopt a passenger bill of rights. If they don't . . . . then the airlines should not be permitted to use City of Chicago gates or City of Chicago runways," Burke said.

"O'Hare is the busiest airport in the nation. No airline is going to not want to do business in the city of Chicago."

For years, consumer advocates have been prodding major airlines to enact a bill of rights for airline passengers, only to have proposed federal legislation grounded by the airline lobby.