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Spirit Airlines

IATA NK ICAO NKS Callsign SPIRIT WINGS
Founded	1980 (as Charter One)
Operating bases	Fort Lauderdale – Hollywood International Airport Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport
Focus cities	Atlantic City International Airport Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport O'Hare International Airport (Chicago) McCarran International Airport (Las Vegas) Myrtle Beach International Airport
Fleet size	49
Destinations	57
Company slogan	The Ultra low cost airline of the Americas
Parent company	Indigo Partners
Headquarters	Miramar, Florida, USA
Key people	Ben Baldanza (President and CEO) Ted Christie (Sr. Vice President and CFO) Tony Lefebvre (Sr. Vice President and COO)
Website	spirit.com

Spirit Airlines, Inc. (NASDAQ: SAVE) is an American low-cost carrier headquartered in Miramar, Florida. Spirit operates scheduled flights throughout the U.S. as well as the Caribbean, Mexico, and Latin America. In 2011 Spirit airlines reported a 99.2% completion factor for scheduled service. Major focus cities include; Ft. Lauderdale, Dallas/Fort Worth, Detroit, Las Vegas, Chicago-O'Hare and Atlantic City. As of January 2013, Spirit is a two-star airline, and, along with Cubana de Aviación, is the only one in the Americas.^[1]

History [edit]

Early years (1964-2006) [edit]

The company initially started as Clipper Trucking Company in 1964.^[2] The airline service was founded in 1980 in Macomb County, Michigan, as Charter One,^[3] a Detroit-based charter tour operator providing travel packages to entertainment destinations such as Atlantic City, Las Vegas, and the Bahamas. In 1990 owner Ned Homfeld with the help from Pam Maurer first female manager of Butler Aviation, Charter One began scheduled service from Boston and Providence, R.I., to Atlantic City. On May 29, 1992, Charter One brought jet equipment into the fleet, changed its name to Spirit Airlines and inaugurated service from Detroit to Atlantic City.

In April 1993, Spirit Airlines began scheduled service to destinations in Florida. During the next five years, Spirit expanded rapidly, increasing service from Detroit and adding service in new markets such as Myrtle Beach, South Carolina; Los Angeles, and New York.

Spirit initially had its headquarters in Eastpointe, Michigan (formerly East Detroit) in Greater Detroit.^[4] It relocated its headquarters in November 1999, moving to Miramar, Florida in the Miami Metropolitan Area.^[5] Prior to the decision to move the headquarters to Miramar, Spirit considered Atlantic City, New Jersey and Detroit, Michigan.^[6]

In November 2001, Spirit inaugurated service to San Juan, Puerto Rico, and implemented a fully integrated Spanish-language customer service plan including a website and dedicated reservation line.

In the Fall of 2003, Spirit resumed flights to Washington, D.C.’s Reagan National Airport, which had been suspended after the September 11 attacks.

Spirit also began service to Grand Cayman, San Francisco, and Boston in 2006, and in 2007 filed DOT applications to offer service to Costa Rica, Haiti, the Netherlands Antilles, and Venezuela.

In 2006, Spirit announced it would exercise options and order 30 Airbus A320-200 aircraft for further expansion.The aircraft started delivery in March 2010.

Transition to ultra low cost carrier (2007-2010) [edit]

On March 6, 2007, Spirit announced their transition to become an ultra low-cost carrier. Their initial plan was to begin charging US$10 per checked bag for the first two bags, $5 if bags are reserved before 24 hours prior to the flight, in addition to charging $1 for drinks which were previously complimentary.

On October 1, 2007, Spirit began to charge $3 for all drinks.^{[7] [8]}

On September 26, 2007, Spirit announced a new branding image for the airline that updates the look of its aircraft.

On June 3, 2008, Spirit Airlines made a WARN (Worker Adjustment and Retraining notice) application to potentially relocate or lay off hundreds of pilots and flight attendants, and the closure of its San Juan crew base and LaGuardia crew base.^[9][10]

In September 2008, Spirit began advertising on the side of aircraft, overhead bins, tray tables, seatback inserts and bulkheads.^[11]

A Bureau of Transportation Statistics report concluded that in 2008 Spirit had the highest number of complaints per passenger among U.S. airlines that carry more than 5 million passengers.^[12]

In May 2009, Spirit pilots overwhelmingly voted in favor of strike action (98% of votes) due to stalled contract negotiations with management. Areas of dispute included compensation, work rules and benefits. At that time, Spirit pilots were among the lowest paid Airbus pilots in the United States.

On Thursday September 17, 2009, the Federal Aviation Administration fined Spirit Airlines $375,000 for violating the agency's consumer protection regulations, including not compensating bumped passengers, violating various rules regarding delayed baggage compensation, and not including fees in advertised fares.^[13]

On April 6, 2010, USA Today reported that Spirit will start to charge for carry-on bags on flights starting August 1, 2010, purchased after April 6, 2010. Bags that fit under the seat and measure 16"x14"12" are still free but passengers wishing to bring larger bags to put in the overhead bin are charged.^[14]

On June 20, 2010, Spirit Plus was rebranded as "Big Front Seat" and no longer provided business class service. For an additional fee, a person can choose "Big Front Seat", or upgrade at the airport.

In December 2010, Spirit Airlines introduced its Free Spirit World MasterCard.^[15]

Pilot strike (2010) [edit]

On June 12, 2010, Spirit grounded its flights when its unionized pilots walked out on strike, stranding thousands of passengers.^[16] The ultimately successful pilot strike came after more than four years of inconclusive negotiations between the airline and the Airline Pilots Association (ALPA), which represents Spirit's pilots. On June 15, negotiations between the airline and the Air Line Pilots Association resumed, and a tentative agreement was reached late in the evening on June 16. The tentative agreement, which Spirit pilots later ratified by a 74% margin, brought the Spirit pilots' compensation and benefits in line with comparable U.S. Airbus operators. Spirit announced that flights would resume on June 18.^[17] Of particular note, is that this was the first legal industrial action (strike) by U.S. ALPA represented pilots since 2005 (Polar Air Cargo), and the first passenger airline strike by U.S. ALPA represented pilots since 2001 (Comair).

2011-present [edit]

On June 21, 2011, Spirit announced that they would start to charge a $5 fee to passengers who have their boarding passes printed by the check-in agent.^[18]

In October 2011, Spirit reduced the weight limit for checked luggage from 50 pounds per bag to 40 pounds per bag, charging $25 for the first 9 extra pounds, and up to $100 for bags approaching 59 pounds over the 40 pound limit.^[8]

In April 2012, citing the airline's strict refund policy, Spirit Airlines representative Misty Pinson announced that the airline would not issue a refund to dying veteran Jerry Meekins who chose to purchase a non-refundable ticket though other options were available.^[19] The 76-year-old Vietnam veteran and former Marine tried to get his $197 back after learning his esophageal cancer is terminal and being told by his doctor not to fly from Florida to Atlantic City.^[20] The decision caused outrage among veterans' groups and the general public, some of whom threatened to boycott Spirit unless a refund and apology were issued. On May 4, Spirit CEO Ben Baldanza apologized for how the situation was handled and announced that he would personally refund Meekins' ticket and that the airline would make a $5000 donation to the Wounded Warrior Project in Meekins' name.^[21]

On November 16, 2011, Spirit Airlines announced that it would establish a crew and maintenance base at McCarran International Airport in Las Vegas, Nevada in February 2012.^[22] The airline announced that it will open a flight attendant and pilot crew base on December 1, 2012.^[23]

Destinations [edit]

Spirit currently flies to 52 destinations throughout Central America, the Caribbean, South America, and the United States. It maintains a base in Fort Lauderdale with focus cities in Atlantic City, Chicago-O'Hare, Dallas/Fort Worth, Detroit and Las Vegas.

Fleet [edit]

Current [edit]

Spirit Airlines Airbus A319 at Toussaint Louverture International Airport

Spirit Airlines Airbus A321 leaving Fort Lauderdale

The Spirit Airlines all-Airbus fleet consists of the following 49 aircraft (as of March 2013):

As of March 2013, Spirit’s average fleet age was 4.8 years old.^[25] Spirit has the third youngest Airbus fleet in the Americas^[26] after Virgin America and the Mexican airline Volaris.^[27]

On November 15, 2011, Spirit entered a non-binding agreement for an order of 75 Airbus A320s, including 45 A320neo or new engine option aircraft, to be delivered between 2016 and 2021. This is in addition to an existing order of 33 A320 aircraft scheduled for delivery from November 2011 through the end of 2015.

In October 2012, Spirit signed an agreement with ILFC to lease 5 additional A320 NEOs and 3 used A319s.

Historical [edit]

The following planes no longer operate in the Spirit Airlines fleet:

Controversial advertising campaigns [edit]

Over the years, Spirit has worked to get publicity, good and bad, by advertising using current controversial events.

2006

In 2006, the airline released a “Hunt for Hoffa” advertising campaign with the tagline “Help us find Hoffa with our Hunt for Hoffa game and enjoy fares from just $39 each way.” The point of the game was to dig for Jimmy Hoffa’s body by clicking grids on the airline’s website, and “winners” were taken to another webpage, saying "You found Hoffa!" thanking them for assisting the National Spirit Sale Center find the union leader’s body.^[28] Within hours after the promotion debuted, the airline received many complaints, and the promotion was taken down immediately and changed to another promotion, simply titled “Happy Sale.” This promotion was later listed as #8 on CNN Money’s 101 Dumbest Moments in Business.^[29]

2007

In December 2007, the airline released a sale with the acronym MILF, standing for “Many Islands, Low Fares.” Online and TV media picked up on this and noted that MILF was popularized in the movie American Pie. This controversy was covered on CBS and ABC News, Countdown with Keith Olbermann, and The O'Reilly Factor.^[30]

2008

In April 2008, the airline sent an email to its marketing subscription list announcing “We’re having a threesome. Join us in the fun.” Offering "three sales in one," the email repeatedly proposes the "threesome."^[31]

2009

On January 8, 2009, the airline announced the return of the MILF Special, described as meaning "Many Islands, Low Fares".^[32][33]

On December 2, 2009, shortly after a well publicized car accident involving golfer Tiger Woods, Spirit launched lowered fares in a promotion called the "Eye of the Tiger Sale". Imagery for the campaign featured an SUV crashing into a fire hydrant, with a tiger leaning out the driver's side window.^[34]

2010

On February 2, 2010, the airline offered the "Many Unbelievably Fantastic Fares (MUFF) to Diving Destinations" promotion. Many of their prominent Caribbean or Floridian destinations were featured.

On June 22, 2010, the airline offered the "Check Out The Oil On Our Beaches" promotion. The ad was in reference to Deepwater Horizon oil spill, the largest in United States history.^[35]

On August 12, the airline offered the "Don't Be Blue, Slide Down To Low Fares with Double Fisted Savings". The ad was in reference to a jetBlue flight where a flight attendant deployed an emergency slide and left the aircraft with two bottles of beer. Imagery for the ad featured an opened aircraft door and a flight attendant going down an emergency slide with two beer bottles.^[36]

2011

On January 12, the airline offered a promotion entitled "Free at Last! Free at Last! Air travel is Free at Last!", which applied for travel the following weekend, celebrating the birthday of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

Spirit made a "Go south" Valentine's Day themed ad showing a woman in a bikini and placed a candy heart with the initial "VD" on her crotch, poking fun at venereal disease.

Shortly afterwards, Spirit made another Valentine's themed ad comparing a diamond ring to vacation packages (while saying "Why not slip her a big package") then showing a gift box directly in front of a man's crotch.

On June 7, amidst the Anthony Weiner Twitter photo scandal, Spirit offered "The Weiner Sale: With Fares Too HARD To Resist." The email promotion included the subject line "Want To See Our Weiner?"

2012

Spirit capitalized on the Summit of the Americas prostitution scandal by featuring an advert with women in pink bikinis, around an agent implying secrecy, and the slogan "More Bang for your Buck" for flights to Cartagena, Colombia – the location of the scandal – as well as other destinations. Spirit later removed the advertisement after complaints from Colombian officials.^[37]

Fees [edit]

The airline charges a fee for having their agent print a boarding pass at checkin,^[38] a fee for any extra bags and progressive fees for overweight bags.^[39]

Operational and customer service issues [edit]

In 2000, the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) proposed to fine Spirit Airlines $67,000 for allegedly violating federal regulations on cabin and seat markings and placards. Discrepancies were found in the marking and placarding of emergency equipment, passenger seats, storage areas and doors on eight of Spirit's DC9 and MD80 aircraft.^[40]

Due to the volume of customer service complaints and overall deterioration of service, in January 2013, Skytrax Airline Quality Research downgraded Spirit to a ranking of 2 stars (on a scale in which 5 stars is the highest rating).^[41]

References [edit]

External links [edit]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Spirit Airlines

	Miami portal
	Detroit portal
	Companies portal
	Aviation portal

• Official website
• Spirit Vacations official website
• "Spirit Airlines on strike" on CNN.com
• "Don't Come Crying to This Airline," N.Y. Times, March 28, 2009
• Spirit Airlines fleet
• Spirit Airlines aircraft