By Mary Schlangenstein, Bloomberg
United Airlines Holdings Inc. plans to increase daily flights to 15 US cities, a move it says would potentially help stranded passengers of Spirit Aviation Holdings Inc. but could also wind up further straining the financially strapped carrier.
The new 19 daily round-trip flights start Jan. 6 and will remain in United’s schedule going forward, the carrier said Thursday in a statement.
Spirit has told customers its most recent bankruptcy filing — the second in less than a year — will not impact the airline’s operations, tickets or loyalty program. There haven’t yet been any indications it plans to cease operations, but Spirit warned investors last month it might not survive without additional cash infusions.
The Florida-based carrier confirmed Thursday it will end flights to 11 US cities the week of Oct. 2 and drop plans to begin service at Macon, Georgia, on Oct. 16.
The new United flights could place additional pressure on Spirit if it’s still operating beyond the end of the year. Low-cost competitor Frontier Group Holdings Inc. said last month it would add 20 new routes this winter, mostly targeting cities where Spirit operates a large number of flights.
“We know if Spirit suddenly goes out of business it will be incredibly disruptive” for customers, Patrick Quayle, United senior vice president of global network planning and alliances, said in the statement. “We’re adding these flights to give Spirit customers options if they want or need them.”
But a spokesperson for Spirit pushed back on United’s move, suggesting it’s less than altruistic.
“While we appreciate the obsession certain airline executives have with us, we’re focused on competing and running a great operation,” Duncan Dee, senior vice president of corporate communications at Spirit, said in an emailed comment. “Suggesting anything else is wishful thinking on the part of a high-cost airline looking to eliminate a low-cost competitor.”
The new United flights include cities where Spirit has a large presence, including Fort Lauderdale and Orlando, Florida; Las Vegas, Detroit and Atlanta. Under the new schedule, United will have 45 daily flights to Orlando, 30 to Fort Lauderdale and 43 to Las Vegas, the carrier said.
Spirit said it will end flights in early October to Albuquerque, New Mexico; Birmingham, Alabama; Boise, Idaho; Chattanooga, Tennessee; Columbia, South Carolina; Portland, Oregon; Salt Lake City and Sacramento, Oakland, San Diego and San Jose, California. It plans to offer refunds to affected passengers who booked flights to these destinations.
The carrier sought Chapter 11 protection for a second time on Aug. 29, after actions taken during the first filing failed to reduce operating expenses sufficiently. At the same time, the carrier was hit by an industrywide collapse in demand for several months early this year after inflation and concerns about the impact of trade wars convinced more consumers to stay home.
Spirit has said it will “double down” on efforts this time to cut costs, redesign its flight network and optimize its fleet size. The carrier is expected by analysts to shrink both its route network and number of aircraft during the restructuring.
(Updates from fourth paragraph with Spirit dropping service to 11 cities; Adds comment from Spirit spokesperson.)
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