Spirit Airlines doesn’t fly out of SeaTac Airport, the closest airport to my home, so I’ve never flown on it.
However, it’s going cost me and other airline passengers more because the budget airline won’t be in the mix anymore offering lower fares. That means the big guys will be there, as usual, to gouge, gouge, gouge.
In April, the Trump administration offered a $500 million loan that would have given the government up to a 90 percent ownership in the airline. However, the bailout didn’t materialize because talks with bondholders for a government bailout failed.
Spirit was working on coming out of its second bankruptcy filing in recent years, but rising fuel costs caused it to collapse.
The airline said it will automatically refund flights purchased through Spirit with a credit card or debit card.
Passengers who booked flights through a travel agent should contact the travel agent directly to request a refund.
Compensation for passengers who booked flights using any other methods, including a voucher, credit, or Free Spirit points, will be determined at a later date through the bankruptcy process, Spirit Airlines said in a statement.
Passengers can visit https://spiritrestructuring.com for more information about Spirit’s wind-down process.
While Spirit Airlines received criticism for some of its annoying budget-cutting procedures, WalletHub, a personal finance website, found, in an analysis of best airlines for 2026, that Spirit Airlines was the best overall airlines and the most reliable.
WalletHub compared the nine largest U.S. airlines, plus two regional carriers, across 16 metrics. They ranged from cancellation and delay rates to baggage mishaps and in-flight comfort.
