Overview
- Trump, who said Thursday he could buy Spirit and sell it later when oil prices fall, confirmed interest in a taxpayer-backed rescue to keep the carrier flying.
- Officials are negotiating a roughly $500 million loan that would include warrants for a large equity stake in Spirit, which some reports say could reach about 90%, though no deal is finalized.
- A Spirit lawyer told a bankruptcy judge the airline is in advanced talks with the government on financing that could support its planned exit from Chapter 11.
- Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy questioned using public funds as Republican senators Ted Cruz and Tom Cotton blasted the idea, while the pilots’ union backed relief to protect about 14,000 jobs.
- A fuel-price spike tied to the Iran war has roughly doubled U.S. jet-fuel costs and wrecked Spirit’s cost assumptions after two recent bankruptcies, raising fears of liquidation and a loss of low-fare competition.