Spirit Airlines is going out of business: What Long Island travelers need to know

The airy Spirit Airlines terminal at LaGuardia Airport was deserted Saturday after the airline suspended operations following an announcement that it had gone out of business, according to an alert from the Port Authority.

The ultra low-cost airline that once operated hundreds of daily flights on its bright yellow planes and employed about 17,000 people said it had "started an orderly wind-down of our operations, effective immediately."

The airline said on its website that all flights have been canceled and customer service is no longer available.

"We are proud of the impact of our ultra-low-cost model on the industry over the last 34 years and had hoped to serve our guests for many years to come," the announcement said.

Here's what Long Island travelers need to know:

Terminal deserted at LaGuardia

At LaGuardia on Saturday, a screen in the terminal showed a red cancellation bar next to six flights headed to Orlando, Miami, Dallas-Fort Worth, Detroit and Fort Lauderdale. Beneath the sign, a row of check in kiosks lit up with a message informing would-be passengers of the closure.

Intermittently Saturday, would-be Spirit Airlines customers entered the terminal, their faces quickly turning frazzled and dumbfounded as they learned the company had shut down without much warning.

After several days of sightseeing in New York City, Elisabetta Frijio, of Bologna, Italy, planned to head down to Orlando for some relaxation on a cruise.

She was urgently trying to rebook with a different airline.

"I'm just looking for a flight, but I really don't know. I discovered this 20 minutes ago," said Frijio, 35. "I have to go to the other terminal and we'll see. I'm not lucky."

Other travelers were also scrambling to change plans.

Najila Miles, of Brooklyn, was trying to cross an errand off her to-do list Saturday by booking a flight to Charlotte later this month for her best friend's birthday.

"I was trying to get ahead of it. I'm very confused, because I looked at flights last night," Miles, 25, said.

She cupped a hand over her mouth in surprise when a Port Authority employee informed her that Spirit Airlines was no longer. The employee handed her a series of flyers from other airlines, including American Airlines and JetBlue, offering "rescue fares" and routes to help passengers amid the disruption.

"I'm actually very shocked," Miles said.

I booked a flight with Spirit. Will I get my money back?

The company advised customers that they could expect refunds but there would be no help in booking travel on other airlines.

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said travelers booked on Spirit flights could access special prices on a group of other airlines for a limited time and said other carriers would help Spirit pilots and flight attendants return to their home cities. In a statement, he said travelers could check with their credit card company or travel insurance policy about refunds.

Amy Leon, whose travel agency Adventures by Amy has many Long Island clients, said the loss of Spirit's flights may prompt other airlines to raise their prices.

"If there's not a ... low-cost carrier to kind of regulate the fares, they can charge more, because there is no Spirit to choose over some of the" legacy airlines, like Delta and United, Leon said in an interview. Legacy airlines may also take advantage of Spirit's closure by offering discounts to flyers whose Spirit flights were canceled, bringing them in as new customers, she said.

"It's not just about removing the airline. I think that it's going to cause almost a ripple effect in the industry, and it's just something we're going to have to hold on and wait and see what happens," she added.

'Rescue fares' offered from United, JetBlue, other airlines

Several major airlines are running "rescue fare" promotions for Spirit customers. Many have also added flights to cities previously served by Spirit and are running discounts for them.

• United Airlines is capping fares for Spirit customers who had tickets to fly between May 2 and 16. Most special non-stop flights are capped at $199, while other flights are capped at $299. Buyers must provide proof their Spirit flight was canceled and join United's loyalty program.
• JetBlue is offering $99 tickets to stranded Spirit customers until May 6. All basic tickets on nonstop flights to Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport and San Juan's Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport are also being capped at $299.
• Southwest Airlines is capping fares at ticket counters in cities previously served by Spirit until May 10. Flights up to 500 miles are capped at $199, while longer flights are capped at $299.
• Frontier Airlines is offering discounts on flights through November 19. Flights on Tuesday, Wednesday and Saturday qualify for 50% base fare, and a 10% discount for other days. Customers must book by May 10. The promotion does not apply to flights on certain weeks.

Other airlines offering discounts include Allegiant Air, Avelo Airlines and American Airlines.

Could the airline get a bailout?

President Donald Trump had floated the idea of a bailout last week after the airline found itself in bankruptcy proceedings for the second time in less than two years with jet fuel prices soaring because of the Iran war.

As late as Friday afternoon, Trump had said that "we're looking at it" and had given the budget carrier a "final proposal" for a taxpayer-funded takeover.

Spirit has struggled financially since the COVID-19 pandemic, weighed down by rising operating costs and growing debt. By the time it filed for Chapter 11 protection in November 2024, Spirit had lost more than $2.5 billion since the start of 2020.

The budget carrier sought bankruptcy protection again in August, when it reported having $8.1 billion in debts and $8.6 billion in assets, according to court filings.

The White House had blamed President Joe Biden's administration for Spirit's tenuous financial situation. Biden, a Democrat, opposed a proposed merger between Spirit and JetBlue in 2023. On Saturday, Trump administration officials took to social media to amplify voices of conservative critics who faulted Biden for Spirit's demise.

Who will be impacted by the airline's closure?

Budget-conscious and leisure travelers would likely feel Spirit's absence the most, especially in places where the airline has a big footprint such as Las Vegas and Fort Lauderdale and Orlando.

Jerry Mack, of Broadway Travel Agency in Oyster Bay, told Newsday he doesn't expect Spirit's bankruptcy to have a big impact.

"I think something will come up to take its place," he said. "They more or less had their own niche, their own places that they would fly to."

Supporters of a rescue including labor unions representing Spirit's pilots, flight attendants and ramp workers said a collapse would put thousands of Americans out of work and hurt consumers by reducing airline competition and increasing airfares. About 17,000 jobs could be impacted, according to Spirit lawyer Marshall Huebner.

The carrier flew about 1.7 million domestic passengers in February, roughly half a million fewer than during the same month a year earlier, according to aviation analytics firm Cirium. Spirit also has sharply reduced its capacity, with about half as many seats available this month than in May 2024.

Newsday's Alfonso Castillo, Tara Smith and Alek Lewis contributed to this report.