Spirit Airlines can’t catch a break with their second bankruptcy. It is looking to not only cut routes and pilots, but also aircraft.
Spirit Airlines is cutting its fleet by nearly 100 aircraft as part of a drastic restructuring plan following its second Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing in less than a year, raising serious questions about whether the ultra-low-cost carrier can survive by shrinking its way to profitability.
The Dania Beach-based airline asked a federal bankruptcy court Thursday for permission to reject leases on 87 Airbus jetliners by October 27, which would reduce its fleet from 214 aircraft to approximately 127 planes. Combined with a previous agreement to return 27 aircraft to lessor AerCap, Spirit plans to eliminate 114 aircraft total, roughly half its fleet at the time of its August 29 bankruptcy filing…