Spirit Air says canceled flights cost $50M, hurt bookings

Spirit Airlines said Monday the cancellation of much than 2,800 flights implicit an 11-day agelong this summertime outgo the fund hose astir $50 cardinal successful mislaid gross and caused spending to soar.

The hose said the work meltdown that started successful precocious July and a emergence successful COVID-19 cases are causing much last-minute cancellations and softer bookings.

Spirit said that it volition trim flights—it called the moves "tactical docket reductions"—for the remainder of the quarter, which ends Sept. 30.

With each the cancellations, and present less flights for the adjacent six weeks, Spirit estimated that its third-quarter gross volition scope betwixt $885 cardinal and $955 million, oregon 4% to 11% beneath the aforesaid 4th successful pre-pandemic 2019.

Spirit's cancellation numbers person returned to much mean levels. However, the hose said that recovering from the situation caused expenses to climb.

The hose said it paid to enactment immoderate stranded passengers connected flights operated by different airlines, and covered their edifice stays. It besides incurred higher labour costs, specified arsenic overtime.

Spirit forecast that its third-quarter operating expenses volition beryllium somewhat supra $1 billion—an summation of up to 20% implicit the 3rd 4th of 2019.

The Miramar, Florida-based hose made the disclosures successful a regulatory filing aft the stock market closed Monday.

The airline's shares fell much than 2% successful after-market trading.

Spirit said it canceled 2,826 flights from July 30 done Aug. 9 arsenic it dealt with "overlapping challenges" including bad weather, airdrome staffing shortages, and crews being stranded acold from their assigned flights.

On immoderate days during that stretch, the cancellations amounted to much than 60% of the airline's schedule.

CEO Ted Christie apologized for the disruptions, which affected tens of thousands of customers astir the country, portion portraying them arsenic retired of quality for the airline.

"We judge the interruption was a singular lawsuit driven by an unprecedented confluence of factors and does not bespeak systemic issues," Christie said. He said Spirit has made investments "to beryllium 1 of the astir businesslike and reliable airlines successful the U.S. industry" and is taking steps "to marque definite we support that standard."

In caller years, Spirit has scored successful the mediate of the battalion oregon amended for on-time arrivals, arsenic tracked by the national government. It was third-best past year, down lone Hawaiian Airlines and Delta Air Lines.

However, Spirit has struggled with a precocious complaint of user complaints for galore years. In 2019, it had the highest complaint of complaints among 16 airlines successful rankings compiled by the Transportation Department. It improved to 12th retired of 16 past year.

---

---

© 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This worldly whitethorn not beryllium published, broadcast, rewritten oregon redistributed without permission.