Overview
- Spirit Airlines, which halted all flights Saturday, began an orderly wind‑down and told customers not to go to the airport, with most card‑paid tickets now being auto‑refunded.
- CEO Dave Davis said a sudden and sustained jet fuel spike tied to the Iran conflict wrecked the carrier’s plan and it could not raise the hundreds of millions in cash it needed to keep flying.
- Talks for a roughly $500 million federal loan fell apart after creditor opposition, and refunds for vouchers, credits, and loyalty points will move through the bankruptcy process.
- About 15,000 to 17,000 employees now face job loss and thousands of travelers were stranded, while American, Delta, United, Southwest, Frontier and others rolled out capped or discounted rescue fares and set up hiring channels.
- Rivals have started adding flights and targeting Spirit’s routes and gates, and analysts warn fares may climb with less low‑cost capacity even though Spirit had already cut back its schedule.