Hi Bob,
I have not tried air layering pine, although I have heard it is possible.
Other options may be to graft roots, although no one will offer me much info on this, or torniquet the trunk with thick wire and earth it up to let it ground layer.
I also have a JWP with crappy roots, so I will be interested to hear if any senior students have any advice. If not, I will be growing it as a landscape tree.