Spirit Airlines cuts 6 more routes in latest network shake-up

Spirit Airlines continues to aggressively slash unprofitable routes as the airline scrambles to stop losing money.

This time, the Dania Beach, Florida-based carrier has cut six more routes, as first spotted by TPG in flight schedules shared on the aviation analytics website Cirium. A carrier spokesperson later confirmed the findings.

The six affected routes include:

Fort Lauderdale to Los Angeles

Miami to Atlanta

Newark to Oakland, California

Newark to Phoenix

San Juan, Puerto Rico to Fort Myers, Florida

San Juan, Puerto Rico to Tampa

Of these six routes, only one (Newark to Oakland) will become unserved once Spirit pulls out of the market in August since Spirit competitors are operating on the other flight paths. It remains to be seen if another carrier will pick up Spirit’s service from Newark to Oakland. Perhaps United Airlines — the largest carrier at Newark Liberty International Airport (EWR) — will begin operations on this route.

Interestingly, Continental Airlines (which merged with United in 2012) offered this flight back in 2003, and in more recent years, it’s been flown by Spirit and Southwest Airlines, the latter of which pulled out of Newark entirely in 2019.

Those traveling from Newark to Oakland will either need to fly into San Francisco or make a connecting flight elsewhere in order to get to Oakland. JetBlue previously served San Francisco Bay Oakland International Airport (OAK) from New York City’s John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK), but that service has been cut as of March 2020.

As for the other routes that Spirit is axing, only two are not operated by a competing low-cost carrier: Fort Lauderdale to Los Angeles and Newark to Phoenix. Other options are served by the likes of Frontier Airlines and Southwest, which should help maintain some competitive pressure to keep prices low.

A Spirit spokesperson told TPG that these cuts are “part of strategic adjustments we’re making to our network.”

In recent weeks, Spirit has been aggressive about making changes to its network in an effort to return to profitability. For one, the airline is temporarily scrapping all international flights from Houston due to weak demand.

Furthermore, in May, Spirit added a rare, new shuttle route from Dallas Fort Worth International Airport (DFW) to Houston’s George Bush Intercontinental Airport (IAH). This 247-mile route is already blanketed with service, but Spirit is likely hoping it will help unlock new connecting itineraries for its customers.

In fact, adding new connecting options has been high on Spirit’s priority list for this year. The airline has been focused on scaling back growth in Florida and adding new flights such as the Dallas-to-Houston route, which should appeal to both origin and destination traffic, as well as connecting flyers.

Earlier in the year, Spirit added new routes and slashed a few others. The airline has accumulated more than $2 billion in net losses since 2020, so there’s no doubt that Spirit is trying its hardest to return to profitability.