Spirit Airlines cuts 24 routes, adds 7 others in latest network shake-up

Spirit Airlines is once again making major changes to its network.

This time, the Dania Beach, Florida-based carrier is exiting a whopping 24 routes. This was first seen in Cirium schedules and later confirmed by an airline spokesperson.

The cuts are far-reaching, and you'll find the full list of affected routes below. Some of the hardest-hit cities are Charlotte, Dallas-Fort Worth, Fort Lauderdale and Los Angeles, which are all seeing at least three routes cut.

From Charlotte, Spirit will cease flying to Dallas-Fort Worth, Houston and Los Angeles. Without this flying, there will be less competition in these markets, which will likely allow the major network carriers that already operate these routes to raise their fares.

Spirit's cuts will have especially big implications in hub-to-hub markets (like the ones mentioned above), where network airlines often charge a hefty premium for their nonstop flights because there's not much competition. For instance, American Airlines will become the only airline flying from Charlotte to Los Angeles.

Other affected routes in Dallas-Fort Worth include service to Houston, San Antonio and Tampa. American and Frontier Airlines both operate all three of these routes.

Perhaps one of the most interesting cuts is the service from Boston to Newark, which Spirit just restarted flying in May. (It was last operated in 2021.) This short 200-mile shuttle route is already well served by multiple daily frequencies on Delta Air Lines and United Airlines, so Spirit's twice-daily flights were up against some stiff competition right from the start.

Spirit's cuts have already been updated in the airline's timetables, and affected customers will be eligible for a full refund or rerouting onto other Spirit flights.

It isn't all bad news, though. Spirit is adding seven new routes, four of which are limited-time runs for the Mardi Gras season in New Orleans. On Feb. 20, 2025, the airline will commence flights from New Orleans to Columbus, Ohio; Indianapolis; Memphis; and San Antonio.

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These flights are timed specifically for peak tourist demand heading to Mardi Gras. Unless they perform well above expectations, I wouldn't expect these routes to continue beyond this limited-time run.

Later next year, Spirit will add three new routes from Atlanta, all of which will compete with Delta. (Delta operates a megahub in the city.) Southwest Airlines also operates all three of these routes.

Spirit will start flying to Columbus and San Antonio on April 9, 2025. It'll then follow up with its third new Atlanta route to Indianapolis on May 7, 2025.

These changes follow another major network shake-up from Spirit. In late September, the airline dropped 32 routes; many of the cuts were effective immediately.

The airline explained to TPG why it is making these changes: "We routinely evaluate our network and make adjustments to support the company's business strategy based on current market and operating conditions. As part of this process, we updated our upcoming schedule to focus on our strongest-performing routes."

In recent months, Spirit has been aggressive about returning to profitability, and one way for the carrier to do that is to shrink its network to focus on its best-performing markets. After all, the airline has accumulated over $2 billion in net losses since 2020.

In addition to the network shake-ups, the airline has also restructured its commercial strategy, abandoning many elements of the bare-bones business model in exchange for fares that include ancillaries such as bags, seats and even snacks and drinks.

The jury is still out on whether these changes will solve the airline's woes.

Spirit's 24 route cuts

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