Spirit Airlines Rivals United And Frontier Add New Routes

As Spirit Airlines continues grappling with significant financial woes, rival carriers are swooping into key markets. (Photo by Brandon Bell) Getty Images

On Thursday, United announced it was expanding its winter schedule with new flights beginning in January to 15 cities, including service between Houston and Atlanta, Baltimore, Guatemala City, Las Vegas, Miami, New Orleans, Orlando, San Pedro Sula, Honduras and San Salvador; between Chicago and Fort Lauderdale, Las Vegas, New Orleans and Orlando; between Newark and Chattanooga, Tennessee, Columbia, South Carolina, Fort Lauderdale and Orlando; and between Los Angeles and Las Vegas. Also on Thursday, Frontier Airlines announced it will launch 22 new routes across the United States, the Caribbean and Latin America beginning in November and December. The additions include new service from Atlanta, Dallas-Fort Worth, Chicago and other hubs in the U.S., and new international routes to destinations in Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Turks and Caicos, the Bahamas and more. Last week, Frontier announced 20 new routes for this winter, including new routes from Fort Lauderdale to Detroit, Houston, Chicago and Charlotte, North Carolina, as well as new service from Houston to New Orleans, Honduras and Guatemala.

Spirit Airlines has not been profitable since 2019. Last November, the ultra-low-cost carrier became the first major U.S. airline to file for Chapter 11 since American Airlines 13 years ago. The airline exited bankruptcy in March, only to seek Chapter 11 protection again last week. “Since emerging from our previous restructuring, which was targeted exclusively on reducing Spirit’s funded debt and raising equity capital, it has become clear that there is much more work to be done and many more tools are available to best position Spirit for the future,” Spirit CEO Dave Davis said in a news release. Earlier in August, the no-frills budget carrier warned it may not survive beyond a year in its quarterly filing, weeks after announcing it would furlough hundreds of pilots.

In May and June of this year, Spirit drastically cut capacity by approximately 1 million seats—a decrease of roughly 24% compared to the same period last year. In October, Spirit will end service in 12 markets: Albuquerque, N.M.; Birmingham, Ala.; Boise, Idaho; Chattanooga, Tenn.; Columbia, S.C.; Macon, Ga.; Oakland, Calif.; Portland, Ore.; Sacramento, Calif.; Salt Lake City, Utah; San Diego, Calif. and San Jose, Calif.

Looking ahead to the fourth-quarter of 2025, Frontier overlaps with Spirit on 39% of its capacity, more than any other airline, followed by JetBlue Airways (35%), Southwest Airlines (28%), American Airlines (26%) and Delta Air Lines (25%), according to Syth’s note to investors. Some rivals may also purchase aircraft from the beleaguered budget carrier. “Notably, unless Spirit is acquired, there will be a period of time for aircraft to be transferred to other airlines,” Syth wrote.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/suzannerowankelleher/

There’s a New Way to Fly To Antigua, Famous For Its Beaches, Yachting And History

The cobbled streets of Nelson’s Dockyard, one of the Caribbean’s best-preserved historical sites. The seemingly innumerable beaches, pristine white-sand stretches of coastline with stunning turquoise water. The world-famous sailing races and megayachts moored in its harbor. Antigua is a vibe all its own, a Caribbean island that’s been one of the most sought-after destinations in the region in recent years.

Now, a new route from Frontier Airlines is opening up Antigua to cities all over the United States.

Frontier has kicked off a new route between San Juan, Puerto Rico and Antigua. It’s operating once every week, with service Saturdays. But what’s important to note is that Frontier flies from more than 10 different cities in the US to San Juan — markets like Atlanta, Boston, Cleveland, Philadelphia, Miami and Newark among others.

That means you can now fly from any of those cities to San Juan, take a layover then head to Antigua, a huge boost for the island and for the travelers who are itching to go there. Just make sure you time the flights correctly; with service once on Saturdays you’ll need to line up the initial flights — so sometimes an overnight in San Juan might be necessary.

That’s a good thing because an evening in San Juan can be one of the region’s most entertaining experiences, from its vibrant nightlife to its food scene.

It’s an “affordable and convenient” option for travelers heading to Antigua, Tourism Minister Charles Fernandez said in a statement provided to Caribbean Journal.

A sample itinerary between Fort Lauderdale and Antigua (with a stop in San Juan in between) will run you about $314.09, according to Frontier’s website.

San Juan-Antigua is actually the newest in a growing number of flights Frontier is operating within the Caribbean region out of San Juan.

https://www.caribjournal.com/author/alexander-britell/

Travelore News: Frontier, Spirit Airlines Revive Merger Talks, WSJ Reports

Frontier Airlines is exploring a renewed bid for Spirit Airlines opens new tab, the Wall Street Journal reported on Tuesday, citing people familiar with the matter.

Spirit has been losing money despite strong travel demand and has failed to report a profit in five out of the last six quarters, raising doubts about its ability to manage looming debt maturities.

The two budget carriers have had recent discussions about a possible merger, though the talks are at an early stage and a deal may not come to fruition, the WSJ report said.

If Spirit and Frontier reach a deal, it would likely happen as part of Spirit restructuring its debt and other liabilities in bankruptcy, the report added.

Spirit declined to comment on the report, while Frontier did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

In 2022, Spirit Airlines came close to a merger deal with Frontier Group Holdings opens new tab, the parent company of Frontier Airlines. It was terminated after JetBlue Airways won the bidding war for Spirit.

However, that $3.8 billion deal was blocked by the U.S. Department of Justice in March.

The Journal reported earlier in the month that Spirit was in talks with bondholders over the terms of a potential bankruptcy filing in the wake of its failed merger with JetBlue.

The ultra-low-cost carrier said last week it had reached an agreement with its credit card processor U.S. Bank National Association to extend a debt refinancing deadline by two months until Dec. 23.

The airline has also warned of a bigger third-quarter loss due to a tough race for price-sensitive leisure travelers and an oversupply of airline seats in the domestic market.

Frontier Airlines, Stuck In A Money-Losing Slump, Is Dumping Change Fees And Making Other Moves

Frontier Airlines, which has struggled more than other U.S. carriers to recover from the pandemic, says it is eliminating change fees on some tickets and creating four fare classes to boost its appeal to more travelers.

The Denver-based airline said the changes taking effect Friday would make buying a ticket less complicated.

Frontier, like rivals Spirit Airlines and Allegiant Air, advertises low fares but tacks on more fees than the larger carriers. Consumers pick from a menu of extras that increase the final price they pay — often by a significant amount.

The budget carriers have struggled, however, as big airlines created their own no-frills tickets to lure away the most cost-conscious travelers.

Frontier is switching to four fare classes, which it calls basic, economy, premium and business. Those in “basic” will still have to pay extra for things like bringing a carry-on bag, selecting a particular seat and changing or canceling a reservation.

But change fees will be eliminated for passengers in the other three groups, who will also be able to buy extras such as seat selection and bringing a carry-on bag in bundles instead of singly.

Frontier also said it is bringing back phone support for customers within 24 hours of their flight.

CEO Barry Biffle called the announcement “the beginning of a new era for Frontier.”

Frontier has not earned a full-year profit since 2019, and it has lost about $400 million since then and failed in an attempt to merge with Spirit.

AP