JFK Airport merchants are begging Port Authority Chief and coronavirus patient Rick Cotton to grant a temporary rent reprieve as travelers steer clear of planes thanks to growing coronavirus fears.

A stark dip in sales is weighing on the bottom-lines of merchants and their employees, the companies say.

“It’s a level of high concern that we haven’t felt since 9/11,” said Matt Greenbaum of International Shoppes, which operates a number of businesses in Terminal 1, 5, and 8.

Greenbaum said business at his company has fallen in half since the outbreak of the coronavirus crisis — and he has been forced to slash employee hours as a result.

He said the uncertainty surrounding the outbreak is only making the situation worse.

“It’s lasting longer [than 9/11] already, and who knows how deep we are in terms of this health crisis. It’s the uncertainty of the situation that makes it worse,” he said.

On Wednesday, Congressman Greg Meeks and state Sen. Todd Kaminsky (D-Nassau) implored Cotton to cut merchants some financial slack.

“We urge Port Authority to consider granting temporary relief such as allowing amended rental breaks, to tenants who are suffering at no fault of their own,” the politicians wrote in a letter to the exec.

“This poses a direct and drastic threat to the service industry at JFK, particularly the many stores there who rely on traveler-transactions,” they said.

Meeks and Kaminsky called the ensuing financial hardship an “unacceptable result that should be mitigated whenever possible.”

Port Authority spokeswoman Lindsay Kryzak confirmed the Port Authority had received the letter and plans to respond, but declined to comment further.