In the last 30 minutes, Spirit Airlines has announced it will defer deliveries of Airbus aircraft and will furlough 260 pilots from September 1.
This comes as yet another blow to the airline’s overall growth plans, amid issues with Pratt & Whitney engines.
Without further ado, let’s get into it…
Spirit Airlines Defers Airbus Aircraft Deliveries…
Spirit Airlines will defer aircraft deliveries of it’s Airbus A320neo and A321neo aircraft.
A cohort of aircraft that were due to be received in the second-quarter of 2025 will now be delayed.
Such deliveries will take place between the end of 2026 to 2030-2031.
For the airline, this is expected to improve liquidity by around $340m over the next two years.
Furthermore, up to 260 pilots will be furloughed from September 1 this year because of this.
Commenting on this further was Ted Christie, Spirit’s President and Chief Executive Officer:
“This amendment to our agreement with Airbus is an important part of Spirit’s comprehensive plan to bolster profitability and strengthen our balance sheet”.
“Deferring these aircraft gives us the opportunity to reset the business and focus on the core airline while we adjust to changes in the competitive environment.”
“In addition, enhancing our liquidity provides us additional financial stability as we position the Company for a return to profitability.”
“We would like to thank our partners at Airbus for their continued support and commitment to the long-term success of Spirit.”
“I am extremely proud of our dedicated Spirit team for their focus and resilience over the last few years.”
“Unfortunately, we had to make the difficult decision to furlough Pilots given the grounded aircraft in our fleet and our deferral of future deliveries.”
“We are doing everything we can to protect Team Members”.
“[This is] while balancing our responsibility to return to positive cash-flow and thrive as a healthy company with long-term growth prospects.”
“I thank the Spirit team for continuing to deliver affordable fares and great experiences to Guests.”
What Next For The Airline?
This is not good news for Spirit Airlines as their plans for growth have been hampered.
It will take a longer period of time for such growth to be established.
The carrier will look to reset following the failed merger with JetBlue and the continued issues with Pratt & Whitney.
Reset and recovery seems to be the new mantra now, with all eyes on how this will develop.
Overall…
In conclusion, this is not good news for Spirit Airlines, but a move needed to begin a reset and recovery.
Looking ahead, all eyes will be on how long this process will take.
If the process is earlier than expected, then this could provide a basis to remove the delay and take aircraft earlier.
But for now, the ball is in the court of Spirit Airlines as they now need to make more decisions on top of their decision to defer Airbus aircraft deliveries.
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