Spirit Airlines
Spirit Airlines, Inc. is an American ultra low-cost airline headquartered in Dania Beach, Florida, in the Miami metropolitan area. Spirit operates scheduled flights throughout the United States, the Caribbean, and Latin America. Spirit was the seventh largest passenger carrier in North America as of 2023 as well as the largest ultra low-cost carrier in North America. Spirit filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in November 2024 and emerged after financial restructuring in March 2025, before filing for bankruptcy again in August 2025.
History
Foundation and early years
The company started as Clippert Trucking Company in 1964. In 1974, the company changed its name to Ground Air Transfer, Inc. In 1983, the airline service was founded in Macomb County, Michigan, by Ned Homfeld as Charter One Airlines, a Detroit-based charter tour operator providing travel packages to entertainment destinations such as Atlantic City, Las Vegas, and the Bahamas.1990s
In May 1992, Charter One brought jet aircraft into the fleet and changed its name to Spirit Airlines. Scheduled flights between Detroit and Atlantic City began on June 1, 1992. Scheduled flights between Boston and Providence began on June 15, 1992.In April 1993, Spirit Airlines began scheduled service to Orlando, Fort Lauderdale, and St. Petersburg, Florida. Flights between Atlantic City and Fort Myers, Florida, began in September 1993. Service at Philadelphia began in 1994. During the next five years, Spirit expanded further, increasing service from Detroit and adding service in new markets such as Myrtle Beach, Los Angeles, and New York City.
In the summer of 1994, Spirit Airlines overbooked flights, and 1,400 customers' tickets were canceled. The overbooking occurred because Spirit Airlines had given incorrect instructions to travel agents, causing those tickets not to be valid, even though the customers had paid for the flights. In response to criticism, Spirit Airlines said it would make sure all paid customers would always be able to fly to their destination, even if Spirit Airlines had to book them on a competitor's airline.
In 1996, Janet Patton became Spirit Airlines' first female pilot. In 1998, she became the first female captain. At the time, Spirit was utilizing DC-9 and MD-80 aircraft.
Spirit initially had their headquarters in the Kennedy Building located in Eastpointe, Michigan, formerly East Detroit, in Metro Detroit. It relocated its headquarters in December 1999, moving to Miramar, Florida, in the Miami metropolitan area. Prior to the decision to relocate the headquarters to Miramar, Spirit considered Atlantic City, New Jersey, and Detroit, Michigan.
2000s
In 2000, the US Federal Aviation Administration fined Spirit Airlines $67,000 for violating federal regulations on cabin and seat markings and placards. Discrepancies were found in the marking and placarding of emergency equipment, passenger seats, storage areas and doors on eight of Spirit's DC-9 and MD-80 aircraft.In November 2001, Spirit inaugurated service to San Juan, Puerto Rico. They implemented a fully integrated Spanish-language customer service plan, including a website and dedicated reservation line.
In the fall of 2003, Spirit resumed flights to Washington, D.C.'s Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, which were suspended after the September 11 attacks. Spirit began service to Grand Cayman, San Francisco, and Boston in 2006. In 2007, Spirit filed DOT applications to offer service to Costa Rica, Haiti, the Netherlands Antilles, and Venezuela.
In January 2005, Ben Baldanza was hired as the President of Spirit, with the goal of making the company profitable. In 2006, following an investment by Indigo Partners, Baldanza was elevated to the CEO role and held the position for 10 years. This included a complete transformation of the business model and a public offering in 2011.
In 2006, Spirit exercised options to order 30 Airbus A320-200 aircraft for further expansion. Deliveries began in March 2010.
In June 2008, Spirit Airlines made a WARN application to potentially relocate or lay off hundreds of pilots and flight attendants, and the closure of their San Juan and LaGuardia crew bases. In September 2008, Spirit began placing advertisements on the side of aircraft, overhead bins, tray tables, seatback inserts and bulkheads.
In May 2009, after more than four years of inconclusive negotiations between the airline and the Air Line Pilots Association, Spirit pilots overwhelmingly voted in favor of strike action over compensation, work rules, and benefits. At that time, Spirit pilots were among the lowest-paid Airbus pilots in the United States. On June 12, 2010, Spirit grounded its flights when its unionized pilots walked out on strike, stranding thousands of passengers. This was the first passenger airline strike by American ALPA-represented pilots since Comair in 2001.
On June 15, negotiations between the airline and ALPA resumed. A tentative agreement was reached late in the evening on June 16. The tentative agreement, which Spirit pilots later ratified by a 74%, brought Spirit pilots' compensation and benefits in line with comparable Airbus operators in the US. Flights resumed on June 18.
In 2007, Spirit Plus was rebranded as "Big Front Seat" and business class service was discontinued. For an additional fee, a person could choose "Big Front Seat", or upgrade at the airport. In December 2010, Spirit Airlines introduced the Free Spirit World MasterCard.
2010s
In April 2010, Spirit Airlines became the first U.S. airline to charge passengers for carry-on bags. They were later followed by Allegiant Air and Frontier Airlines.In April 2012, Spirit refused to refund a terminally ill American military veteran, who had purchased a non-refundable ticket between Florida and Atlantic City before receiving orders from his doctor not to fly. The decision caused outrage among veterans' groups and the general public, some of whom threatened to boycott Spirit unless both a refund and apology were issued. In May, Spirit CEO Ben Baldanza apologized for how the situation was handled and personally refunded the man's ticket. The airline made a $5,000 donation to the Wounded Warrior Project in his name.
In August 2013, Spirit reached an agreement on a new five-year deal with the Transport Workers Union of America, who represent the airline's flight dispatchers.
In November 2014, Morgan Stanley named Spirit the top growth airline pick for investors.
In January 2016, former AirTran CEO Robert L. Fornaro replaced Baldanza as CEO. This prompted rumors of a merger with Frontier Airlines, which would have created the largest ultra low-cost carrier in the Americas. Fornaro announced the airline would be teaming up with the Disney Institute to "create a common purpose and a fresh set of service standards", and changing policies internally to create a more welcoming environment.
In November 2017, Spirit's on-time performance was second in the country, behind only Delta Air Lines, a significant improvement from December 2015, when it ranked last among thirteen airlines with 68.7% of flights arriving on time. In February 2018, Spirit was the only airline in North America to make the list of the top 10 safest in the world.
In May 2018, Spirit announced that they would be the first ultra low-cost carrier to fit their aircraft with high-speed WiFi access that started in the fall of 2018. All of their aircraft were expected to be equipped with WiFi by summer 2019.
In October 2019, Spirit Airlines announced plans to move their headquarters to Dania Beach, Florida. The new complex was planned to be around 500,000 square feet and will be equipped with flight simulators. The plans were changed in 2021 for the 6-story headquarters to be around 180,222 square feet, the training facility to be around 100,000 square feet and the parking garage to have 998 spaces.
In December 2019, Spirit Airlines announced its intention to purchase 100 new Airbus A320neo family aircraft. A February 2020 fleet plan outlines 293 aircraft planned by 2027.
2020s
In 2020, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Spirit Airlines received $334 million in aid in the form of grants and loans via the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act. The money was used to fund employees until September 30. In July 2020, the company announced that it would put 20–30% of its employees on leave of absence in October. In August, some pilots and flight attendants agreed to take a voluntary leave of absence or have their work schedule temporarily reduced to avoid layoffs.In July 2020, a passenger died of COVID-19 on a Spirit Airlines flight. Spirit Airlines claimed it notified the Centers for Disease Control but there was no record of the contact. Passengers on the flight were not informed that they were around an infected individual.
In July–August 2022, Spirit's inflight Internet service, provided by Thales' FlytLIVE, transitioned to a new satellite to provide "the fastest Wi-Fi service of any US-based airline". The SES-17 high-throughput satellite from operator SES provides A320 and A321 passengers across all Spirit routes with connection speeds of up to 400 Mbit/s throughout their flight.
In August 2023, the airline converted an order for 31 Airbus A319neo into the larger A321neo. Spirit's order made up a third of all A319neo orders, questioning the type's future.
On January 14, 2025, it was reported that Spirit Airlines would introduce new routes, along with some seasonal routes for spring break.
On January 16, 2025, Spirit Airlines laid off 200 employees to reduce costs. On January 24, Spirit Airlines updated its dress code, stating that a passenger can be denied boarding if they wear inappropriate clothing and/or offensive tattoos.
On April 17, 2025, Spirit emerged from bankruptcy and named Dave Davis as its new CEO. Davis was previously the finance chief of Sun Country Airlines and had previously worked as CFO of Northwest Airlines before it merged with Delta Air Lines. This new role was to be effective April 21, 2025.