Spirit Airlines races to revamp the travel experience, makes 2 customer-friendly changes

At this rate, it seemingly won’t be much longer until Spirit Airlines’ punitive policies are history.

On Tuesday, the Dania Beach, Florida-based carrier announced two customer-friendly changes that will bring the airline closer to its larger legacy airline peers.

The first is that standard checked bags can now weigh up to 50 pounds apiece. This has long been the industry standard, but ultra-low-cost carriers like Spirit historically charged (sky-high) overweight fees for bags over 40 pounds.

Note that Spirit isn’t becoming Southwest Airlines. It’ll continue charging for checked bags, but the standard bag fees will now cover up to 50 pounds per bag before overweight luggage fees kick in.

Furthermore, Spirit will extend the validity of all new travel vouchers issued on or after June 3. Going forward, Spirit credits will be valid for 12 months — a massive increase compared to the especially punitive 90-day window that Spirit has long offered.

These two changes join Spirit’s recently unveiled new travel experience that includes no change or cancellation fees on all fares. This no-change-fee policy began May 17, and travelers now only have to pay the difference in fare or receive a credit if the new trip is less expensive when modifying a trip.

Plus, as part of Tuesday’s changes, if passengers choose to cancel a flight, their travel credit will be good for 12 months from the time it was issued.

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“Spirit has changed the game before and we’re doing it again with this first round of initiatives that will lead the way to a new era of low-fare, high-value flying. These enhancements provide each and every one of our Guests unparalleled flexibility and peace of mind, and it’s just the beginning of our pursuit to make affordable travel easier and more seamless than ever,” Spirit’s chief commercial officer Matt Klein said in a statement about the news.

Interestingly, Spirit’s big ultra-low-cost rival, Frontier Airlines, made a similar announcement last month. That carrier said it would extend credit validity to 12 months, up from 90 days. Note that Frontier continues to charge overweight fees for bags heavier than 40 pounds.

Spirit has been bleeding money for years, and now that the airline’s proposed merger with JetBlue is dead, the carrier is doing whatever it can to turn the ship around. This includes removing many of the punitive policies that were once integral to Spirit’s ultra-low-cost brand.

Since this former strategy hasn’t turned a profit in recent years, Spirit is moving to a passenger experience that looks more like flying on American Airlines than on the Spirit of yesteryear.

“It is clear we need to introduce some changes to reflect the new dynamics in the industry, and make Spirit a more compelling option for the traveling public,” Spirit CEO Ted Christie said on the carrier’s recent first-quarter earnings call.

These changes are clearly part of the airline’s return-to-profitability strategy, but it remains to be seen if they’ll work. Furthermore, Spirit continues to tweak its network by cutting unprofitable routes and adding new ones — including plenty of one-stop connecting flights — to appeal to travelers.

Even more changes are on the horizon, so watch this space.