Following unsuccessful restructuring efforts, low-cost Spirit Airlines ended all service and customer service assistance on May 2, leaving travelers with limited options to reach their final destinations.
Citing the recent increase in oil prices as a contributing factor, Spirit Aviation Holdings, Inc., the parent company of Spirit Airlines, announced that all Spirit flights have been canceled and that Spirit guests should not go to the airport.
"For more than 30 years, Spirit Airlines has played a pioneering role in making travel more accessible and bringing people together while driving affordability across the industry," said Dave Davis, president and CEO of Spirit. "In March 2026, we reached an agreement on a restructuring plan that would have allowed us to emerge as a go-forward business. However, the sudden and sustained rise in fuel prices in recent weeks has ultimately left us with no alternative but to pursue an orderly wind-down of the company. This is tremendously disappointing and not the outcome any of us wanted."
Spirit will automatically process refunds for flights purchased through the airline, using a credit or debit card, to the original form of payment. Compensation for travelers who booked using any other method, including vouchers, credits or Free Spirit points, will be determined at a later date.
But that doesn’t help clients who now find themselves without valid airline tickets.
Rescue Fares
Several airlines are stepping up to help travelers impacted by Spirit's shutdown, including Delta Airlines and American Airlines.
Delta is offering reduced, nonrefundable “rescue fares” for the next five days across domestic routes (nonstop and one-stop via Delta’s hubs) and routes between the U.S. and Latin America. The nine Delta hubs are Atlanta, Boston, Detroit, Los Angeles, Minneapolis/St. Paul, New York (both JFK and LaGuardia airports), Salt Lake City and Seattle/Tacoma.
Delta Airlines is offering reduced rescue fares for travelers booked on Spirit flights.
Credit: 2026 Samantha Davis-FriedmanAmerican is also offering reduced rescue fares in Main Cabin on select domestic routes and select flights from Miami to the Caribbean and Latin America.
Frontier Airlines is providing discounted rescue fares for Spirit customers, with up to 50% off base fares on more than 100 routes, helping travelers maintain access to low-cost options during this disruption.
“Spirit Airlines played an important role in expanding access to affordable travel and bringing more low fares to more people,” said Bobby Schroeter, chief commercial officer of Frontier. “We recognize this is a difficult time for their customers, so Frontier is making discounted fares available to help people keep their travel plans and maintain access to low fares.”
To support impacted travelers, Frontier is offering up to 50% off base fares across its network for travel on Tuesday, Wednesday and Saturday through Nov. 19, with a 21-day advance purchase. Travel on other days is eligible for a 10% discount with no advance purchase required. Frontier is also offering its 2026 GoWild Summer Pass for just $199, providing access to unlimited flights across the airline’s network through the summer.
JetBlue is assisting travelers with reduced fares on nonstop routes operated by Spirit.
Credit: 2026 Samantha Davis-FriedmanSimilarly, JetBlue is assisting stranded travelers with upcoming travel by offering $99 one-way fares on JetBlue-operated nonstop routes that Spirit operated as of April. Proof of a valid Spirit itinerary for the same route, valid through May 6, is required.
In addition, JetBlue has capped Blue Basic fares at $299 or less on JetBlue-operated nonstop routes to and from Fort Lauderdale, Florida (FLL), and San Juan, Puerto Rico (SJU), which Spirit also operated as of April. These fare caps apply to new bookings made through May 8for travel between May 2 and May 8.
