The timing of the bankruptcy filing by Spirit Airlines may have some travelers wondering if it could affect their Thanksgiving holiday travel plans.
It’s not very comforting hearing about an airline filing for bankruptcy as we are gearing up for what’s expected to be a very busy Thanksgiving travel week. But those in the airline industry say don’t worry and there’s no need to cancel your flights or change your plans.
“I don’t see it having any impact statewide,” said Frederick Douglass Greater Rochester International Airport Airport Director Andy Moore.
Spirit, which flies out of Rochester, filed for bankruptcy protection on Monday. Despite the filing, its planes are not grounded.
“I’m not anticipating any price impact whatsoever. I mean, right now you can fly on Spirit nonstop to Orlando or Fort Lauderdale for as low as $50 one-way. So, they’re still offering very economical airfare for travelers to get down to Florida,” said Moore.
Citing mounting losses, unaffordable debt, increased competition and the inability to merge with other airlines, Spirit said it was left with little choice. But the company says it will continue to operate as it restructures its debt.
“They came right out and said, this is really a financing mechanism that they’re doing with the shareholders and bondholders and should not have any impact on operations or flights moving forward,” said Moore.
“I see no problem with flying with Spirit in the foreseeable future, you know, in the Q1, Q2 of 2025, they offer a very competitive rate, which is important to a lot of consumers,” said President of DePrez Travel Companies Craig Curran.
But he adds that there could be issues in the future.
“I do think Spirit, part of its reorganization will trim their route structure, and industry folks are talking in the range of 20%,” Curran explained. “All right, so they’re going to need to put their aircraft, deploy them where they’re getting the biggest return, where they’re getting the most cash flow, and they’re going to want to certainly eliminate those routes.”
For now though, Spirit tickets are selling.
Spectrum News 1 is told that those flights to Orlando and Fort Lauderdale are full.
Airports across New York state are preparing to get its passengers home for the holidays, no matter which airline they choose to fly with.