In May, ultra-low-fare Spirit Airlines announced that it would ground all flights and shut down, effective immediately. That happened despite "extensive and comprehensive efforts to restructure the business" and "create a sustainable path forward," the airline explained in a press release.
Government meddling helped doom Spirit's attempts to save itself. In July 2022, JetBlue announced that it would acquire Spirit for $3.8 billion. Spirit, which had long thrived on low fares and high profit margins, struggled since the COVID-19 pandemic, and JetBlue's offer was a last-ditch effort. The Biden administration sued to stop the merger, fearing that a combined carrier would leave too few low-cost competitors. "Spirit's presence in a market forces other air carriers, including JetBlue, to lower their fares," the Justice Department explained.
