Spirit Airlines
and GA Telesis have passed the final hurdle to finalize the sale of the airline’s 23 Airbus A320ceo and A321ceo aircraft to the United States-based aerospace manager after the bankruptcy court approved the transaction.
Bankruptcy court’s approval
On December 18, GA Telesis announced that the US Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York fully approved Spirit Airlines’ sale of 23 Airbus A320ceo and A321ceo aircraft to the company.
GA Telesis stated that the court had already approved the sale of an initial batch – of five – aircraft on December 7, with the latest ruling coming shortly after a court hearing on December 17. As a result, Spirit Airlines was now able to transfer ownership of the 23 A320ceo
and A321ceo aircraft to the company.
“The agreement, part of Spirit’s broader fleet optimization and liquidity strategy, involves the sale of 15 Airbus A320 and 8 Airbus A321 aircraft to GA Telesis. The closing of this sale is expected to occur over a specified period, allowing Spirit to accelerate its restructuring efforts while continuing to streamline its operations.”
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Marc Cho, the President of LIFT, the leasing and trading division of GA Telesis, remarked that the company was thrilled that the court approved the sale. The transaction underscored the collaborative efforts of all stakeholders, and GA Telesis was looking forward to supporting Spirit Airlines as it continues through its Chapter 11 process, Cho added.
Spirit Airlines and GA Telesis announced the transaction on October 24. Then, the airline detailed that while the sale price of the 23 aircraft was $519 million, the transaction would improve its liquidity by $225 million.
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Retiring A320ceo and A321ceo aircraft
In a court filing on December 18, the court emphasized that while Spirit Airlines and Wilmington Trust and its affiliates will have to enter into payoff letters for the aircraft sold to GA Telesis, the latter will take delivery of the aircraft clear of all encumbrances, “with such encumbrances attaching solely to the proceeds of the sale transactions associated with such Aircraft under the Aircraft Sale Agreement.”
Spirit Airlines has already been removing the A320ceo and A321ceo
aircraft from its operations. Ch-aviation data showed that the low-cost carrier has 64 A320ceo and 30 A321ceo aircraft, 14 and seven of which are stored, respectively.
In total, the airline will sell 15 A320ceo and eight A321ceo that have been a part of its fleet since they were delivered between 2014 and 2019, with a court filing on November 18 detailing that Spirit Airlines had to hand over the aircraft to GA Telesis between October and February 2025.
Photo: Vincenzo Pace | Simple Flying
A cross-reference check of the manufacturer serial numbers (MSN) listed in the court filing on November 18 with Flightradar24 data showed that almost all the 23 aircraft had been sent to Phoenix Goodyear Airport (GYR) for storage.
Some aircraft, like an A320ceo, registered as N639NK, were shipped off to Phoenix on December 18. Another example could be N649NK, which arrived in Phoenix on December 10, while N678NK landed in Arizona on December 4.
Others, like A321ceos, registered as N682NK and N673NK, or A320ceos, registered as N642NK and N641NK, are still operating commercial flights, with scheduled itineraries on December 19 and December 20.
While not in Phoenix just yet, one A320ceo, registered as N691NK, has been moved to Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport
(DTW) on December 18, with no scheduled flights out of Detroit in the short term.
Photo: Robin Guess | Shutterstock
On December 18, the court also allowed Spirit Airlines to execute a sale-and-leaseback transaction (SLB) of four A321neo aircraft with JSA International, with the quartet’s scheduled delivery dates being between December 19 and April 2025.
However, Flightradar24 records indicated that the first aircraft, MSN 12324, has not yet been delivered. The A321neo
aircraft, temporarily registered as D-AVZB, operated its latest test flight on December 17, indicating possible Airbus delivery delays.
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Bankruptcy Court Clears Spirit Airlines To Sell 5 Out Of 23 Airbus A320s To GA Telesis
Out of the 23 aircraft, Spirit Airlines has already stored 11 at Phoenix Goodyear Airport.
Going private
Before the hearing on December 17, Darren Klein, on behalf of Spirit Airlines, disclosed the carrier’s plan to emerge from bankruptcy and reorganize its debt. Upon the consummation of the plan, the airline would restructure $1.6 billion of its outstanding funded debt and reduce its total debt by around $795 million.
As a result, the carrier’s creditors will receive equity, with Spirit Airlines equitizing $795 million of debt in the form of New Common Equity in the company and a fully backstopped equity rights offering that should raise $350 million of new common equity to support the airline’s reorganized balance sheet.
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“[Spirit Airlines] believe that any alternative to confirmation of the Plan, such as liquidation under chapter 7 of the Bankruptcy Code, could result in the loss of hundreds of jobs, the potential demise of the Company’s well-recognized and respected brands, the loss of significant value (and a corresponding reduction in the distributions to Holders of Claims in certain Classes), and the potential for delay, litigation, and additional costs.”
The plan also outlined that Spirit Airlines could have new management since a total of the creditors’ eight representatives will select up to eight new directors for the airline’s board.
Before the hearing, shareholders have called for the judge overseeing the bankruptcy case to investigate alleged illicit behavior by Spirit Airlines’ current management, including Ted Christie, the chief executive officer (CEO) of the airline.
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