JetBlue Airways Reaches to Deal to Buy Spirit Airlines
byDaniel McCarthy/
JetBlue Airways has reached a deal to buy ultra-low-cost carrier Spirit Airlines, bringing an end to a months-long bidding war with Frontier, and creating a “national low-fare challenger to the dominant big four airlines.”
JetBlue announced the deal on Thursday morning, writing that it will acquire Spirit for $33.50 per share in cash, including a prepayment of $2.50 per share in cash payable upon Spirit shareholders’ approval of the deal. When the deal is finalized, the combined carrier will be the fifth-largest airline in the U.S.
“We are excited to deliver this compelling combination that turbocharges our strategic growth, enabling JetBlue to bring our unique blend of low fares and exceptional service to more customers, on more routes,” said Robin Hayes, chief executive officer, JetBlue.
“我们期待欢迎Spirit的杰出团队成员来JetBlue,并共同创建以客户为中心的美国第五大航空公司。Spirit and JetBlue将继续促进我们的共同目标,即破坏该行业,从四大航空公司中降低票价。这种组合是一个激动人心的机会,可以使我们的网络多样化和扩展我们的网络,为工作人员增加工作和新的可能性,并扩大我们的盈利增长平台。”
JetBlue’s announcement came just a few hours after talks between Spirit and Frontier ended. Spirit reportedlycould not secure shareholder approval for its deal to buy Frontier尽管其执行委员会做出了努力,包括将投票延迟四个不同的时间。
“While we are disappointed that we had to terminate our proposed merger with Frontier, we are proud of the dedicated work of our Team Members on the transaction over the past many months,” said Ted Christie, President, and CEO of Spirit Airlines.
JetBlue’s approval process now becomes easier with Frontier out of the picture. However, there are still some regulatory approval procedures needed to be completed—Spirit had said that JetBlue’s Northeast Alliance with American Airlines, which was heavily expanded over the past two years particularly out of New York and Boston, will make it difficult to gain the regulatory approval it would need for the deal to go through.
The deal jump-starts JetBlue’s growth plans, adding more than 1,700 daily flights to more than 125 destinations in 30 countries. It also helps JetBlue boost its relevance in some key markets, including Ft. Lauderdale, Orlando, San Juan, and Los Angeles, along with an increased presence in the hubs of those “big four airlines,” including Las Vegas, Dallas, Houston, Chicago, Detroit, and Miami.
JetBlue also said that the all-Airbus combined fleet will include new A220s and A320neos.