Spirit Airlines have now entered an agreement to sell off 23 of its older fleet of Airbus A320 family aircraft. The deal will reportedly reap the carrier $US 519 million to shore up its financial bottom line.
It is understood that the transfer of the aircraft will commence immediately. The delivery process for the entire consignment of 23 aircraft will then continue through to February 2025.
Spirit Airlines: Sale of Aircraft to GA Telesis
GA Telesis LLC, a specialist leasing group, has now signed a definitive purchase agreement. It has secured the necessary corporate approvals to acquire 23 used Airbus A320ceo and A321ceo aircraft from the airline.
The aircraft are all powered by P&W V2527-A5 and V2533-A5 Select-OneTM jet engines. Airbus produced the 23 aircraft between 2014 and 2019. GA Telesis will market these aircraft to its extensive global customer base for continued commercial airline operations.
“We are thrilled to announce this significant acquisition. This adds a large number of highly sought-after Airbus A320ceo and A321ceo aircraft to our portfolio,” said Marc Cho, President of GA Telesis LIFT Group.
“The A320ceo family of aircraft is renowned for its efficiency, performance, and reliability. This makes it an attractive option for airlines across the world. We are confident these aircraft will provide significant value to our customers as they continue their operations.”
Navigating Continued Headwinds
The news of the older fleet divestment comes as Spirit Airlines continues its battle to return to profit, and bolster liquidity. Despite pent-up air travel demand, Spirit has now posted losses in five of the last six quarters.
With the winter season approaching, the capital injection comes at an opportune time for the carrier. The US Justice Department quashed Spirit’s merger proposal with JetBlue due to competition concerns, further hampering Spirit’s position. In recent times, Spirit Airlines has moved to furlough flight crews and defer aircraft deliveries in order to maintain its financial bottom line.
This week, the Wall Street Journal reported that Spirit and Frontier Airlines have revisited discussions about a potential merger. If this were to come to fruition, it would likely be a part of Spirit Airlines’ debt restructuring initiatives.
Investors and financial analysts will now watch Spirit’s progress with interest. The airline’s financial stability in the challenging market hinges, at least in part, on the success of its current strategy.
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