In a long overdue move, JetBlue Airways Corp. (NASDAQ: JDBLU) replaced founder David Neeleman as chief executive officer. Shares of the discount airline soared 6 percent.

Neeleman, who will remain as chairman, was replaced by chief operating officer Dave Barger, who will remain president. Barger certainly has his work cut for him.

As I've argued before, JetBlue's brand has been damaged by service snafus that left thousands of passengers stranded on airport runways for hours on planes that didn't take off.

In response to the negative press, Neeleman established the "Customer Bill of Rights" which promises vouchers for future flights for passengers that find themselves in the same situation. I'm not sure if people that have experienced poor service on an airline would want to fly that same airline again even with a discount.

When it comes to customer service, talk is cheap and actions speak louder than words. If Barger can convince the flying public that the "Bill of Rights" really means something, then JetBlue will be able to expand into other markets and be a serious competitor to Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE: LUV).

But that's a big if.