American low-cost carrier Spirit Airlines has announced the end of its operations after 34 years in business, bringing to a close one of the most recognizable stories in the ultralow-cost segment of air transport in the United States. According to AP, the company began an orderly wind-down of operations on Saturday, with all flights cancelled with immediate effect. It is the largest liquidation of an airline in more than 20 years.
For years, Spirit was known for its extremely low fares, stripped-down service model, and distinctive yellow aircraft. Its business model had a strong impact on the US market, as larger carriers gradually began introducing similar basic fares and charging separately for certain services. After the COVID-19 pandemic, however, the company faced rising costs, mounting debt, and an increasingly difficult business environment.
Spirit was founded in 1992 and was headquartered in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. According to ch-aviation data, at the time operations were suspended, the carrier had a fleet of 148 aircraft with an average age of 7.1 years. Its route network covered 15 countries, 64 destinations, and 182 routes, illustrating the scale of its impact on the US and broader North American market.
In a notice on its website, Spirit said it was no longer able to continue operations, with high oil prices and the resulting increase in jet fuel costs adding further pressure. According to AP, fuel prices rose in the context of the war with Iran, dealing a blow that the carrier, already in financial difficulty, could no longer withstand.
The company said all flights had been cancelled and that customer service was no longer available. Passengers were told they could expect refunds, but Spirit would not assist them in finding replacement flights with other airlines. US Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said there was a reserve fund for passengers who bought tickets directly from Spirit, while those who purchased tickets through intermediaries, such as travel agencies, would have to seek refunds from them.
According to AP, some passengers arrived at airports on Saturday unaware that the airline had ceased operations. In Atlanta, some Spirit flights were still shown as departing on time, even though the company had already announced the wind-down of operations. Some passengers were caught off guard by the cancellations, while employees learned during the night that they were losing their jobs.
Spirit said it was working to return more than 1,300 crew members to their home bases. The last flight under Spirit’s markings landed at Dallas-Fort Worth Airport from Detroit, symbolically bringing the carrier’s operational history to an end.
The US administration had previously considered the possibility of state aid for Spirit, but no agreement was reached. President Donald Trump had in recent days mentioned the possibility of rescuing the carrier, including a temporary takeover model using taxpayer money, but Duffy said on Saturday that such a plan had not materialized. According to him, such a move would have required around half a billion dollars.
Spirit’s shutdown also has a strong social dimension. The company employed around 17,000 people, while unions representing pilots, cabin crew and ground workers had warned that the carrier’s collapse could increase airfares and reduce competition, particularly in markets where Spirit had a significant presence.
The biggest impact could be felt by passengers who relied on low fares, especially in destinations such as Las Vegas, Fort Lauderdale and Orlando. According to ch-aviation, Fort Lauderdale was Spirit’s largest market by weekly capacity, with more than 62,000 seats, followed by Orlando, New York LaGuardia, Newark, Houston Intercontinental, Detroit, Dallas Fort Worth, Las Vegas, Atlanta and Chicago O’Hare.
According to ch-aviation data, the fleet consisted of Airbus A320-family aircraft. At the time of the shutdown, Spirit had 57 A320-200s, 35 A320neos, 29 A321-200s and 27 A321neos. The largest lessor affected by the shutdown is AerCap, which managed 33 aircraft in the carrier’s fleet. Other affected lessors include SMBC, Air Lease, Jackson Square, ORIX, Sky Leasing, Carlyle, DAE, ACG and ALM.
Spirit carried around 1.7 million domestic passengers in February, about half a million fewer than in the same month a year earlier, AP reported, citing data from analytics company Cirium. The carrier’s capacity in May was almost halved compared with May 2024. A similar decline is also visible in ch-aviation data on fleet development, according to which Spirit had 232 aircraft in 2024, 217 in 2025 and 148 at the time operations were suspended.
Spirit’s financial problems had lasted for years. In November 2024, the company filed for protection from creditors under Chapter 11 of the US Bankruptcy Code after losing more than USD 2.5 billion since the beginning of 2020. In August 2025, it again filed for bankruptcy protection, reporting USD 8.1 billion in debt and USD 8.6 billion in assets.
Political debate over Spirit’s collapse has already begun. Some officials in Donald Trump’s administration blamed the carrier’s difficult situation on Joe Biden’s administration, which opposed the merger of Spirit and JetBlue. Critics of the current administration, on the other hand, argue that rising fuel prices and geopolitical decisions further worsened the position of a company that was already in serious trouble.
Spirit Airlines will be remembered as a carrier that made the US air transport market more accessible to a wide range of passengers, but also as an example of a business model highly sensitive to rising costs, debt and changes in market conditions. Its disappearance could mean fewer choices for passengers looking for the lowest fares, as well as a new phase of consolidation in the US aviation market.
