Wyatte Grantham-Philips, AP Business Writer
NEW YORK (AP) – Just five months after it emerged from Chapter 11 Bankruptcy Protection, Spirit Airlines is warning about its ability to maintain its future business.
Spirit Aviation Holdings, the parent company of budget airlines, says it has “substantial doubts” about its ability to continue as a continuing concern for next year. In its quarterly report issued Monday, Spirit pointed to “adverse market conditions” that continue to face after recent restructuring and other efforts to revive its business.
That includes weak demand for leisure travel across the country, which Spirit said continued in the second quarter of the fiscal year. It includes other challenges and “business operations uncertainty” that Florida companies expect to continue “for at least the rest of 2025.”
Spirit’s shares fell nearly 40% by noon Tuesday, with the company’s stock trading just over $2.20 from around 1pm.
The Spirit is known for its low-cost flights in a fragile fleet and has struggled to recover and compete since the Covid-19 pandemic. Increased operating costs and increased debt ultimately allowed us to seek bankruptcy protection in November. By the time of its Chapter 11 submission, the airline had lost more than $2.5 billion since its launch in 2020.
When Spirit was born out of bankruptcy protection in March, the company restructured some of its debts and secured new funds for its future business. Spirit continues other cost-cutting efforts, including plans to strike around 270 pilots and downgrade around 140 captains to first officers in the coming months.
The Furloughs and Dawngrades, released last month, come into effect on October 1 and November 1, coinciding with Spirit’s “2026 forecast flight volume,” the company said in its quarterly report. They also followed previous Farrow and employment cuts before the company filed for bankruptcy last year.
Despite these and other cost-cutting efforts, Spirit stressed on Monday that more cash is needed. As a result, the company said it could also sell certain aircraft and real estate.
And as discount carriers struggle to compete with larger airlines, many of them have turned budget-sensitive customers over their own tiered products – Spirit is looking to take advantage of the growing market for more upscale travel. We currently offer flight options at tiered prices. Higher priced tickets come with more amenities. The company pointed out a new strategy again on Monday.
Spirit’s aircraft fleet was relatively young and made the airline an attractive acquisition target. However, such acquisition attempts from budget rivals like JetBlue and Frontier have failed both before and within the bankruptcy process, and after that, Spirit has shown no interest in such transactions.
Original issue: August 12, 2025, 12:36pm EDT
