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Spirit Airlines is cutting 32 routes as part of its latest network restructuring
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Spirit Airlines is cutting 32 routes as part of its latest network restructuring

Spirit Airlines is making more big changes to its network.

The Dania Beach, Florida-based airline filed plans to drop a whopping 32 routes over the weekend, first seen in Cirium’s schedules and later confirmed by an airline spokesperson.

The full list of affected routes is available below. But among the highlights is that seven flights will be canceled from Boston, one of the hardest-hit airports on this list.

CIRIUM

From Boston, Spirit will suspend flights to Charleston, South Carolina. Columbus, Ohio; Kansas City, Missouri; Chicago; Nashville; Pittsburgh; and Norfolk, Virginia. It’s interesting to see Spirit exiting so many routes from Boston Logan International Airport (BOS), which has been making headlines recently due to renewed competition between established airlines.

Delta Air Lines and JetBlue are fighting head-to-head for dominance in Boston, and the two airlines have added new routes and increased their presence to capture the local market. Perhaps there is already so much competition between incumbents that Spirit has been unable to make these routes work.

The airline is also exiting some high-profile routes with strong competition, such as Atlanta to Chicago and Charlotte to Chicago.

Spirit’s cuts have already been updated on the airline’s schedules, and affected customers are eligible for a full refund or rebooking on other Spirit flights.

Notably, some of the affected routes have already been reduced in recent months, but as part of this update, Spirit will cease their flights completely. Overall, Spirit is reducing capacity by approximately 15% and 17% week-over-week in November and December, respectively, according to Cirum’s schedules.

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“We regularly assess our network and make adjustments to support the company’s business strategy based on current market and operating conditions. As part of this process, we have updated our upcoming schedule to focus on our best-performing routes,” a Spirit Airlines spokesperson told TPG.

Over the past few months, Spirit has been aggressively making changes to its network to return to profitability. The airline has accumulated net losses of over $2 billion since 2020. So there is no doubt that Spirit is doing everything it can to get back to profitability.

Earlier this year, the airline temporarily suspended all international flights from Houston due to weak demand. Additionally, in May, Spirit added a rare new shuttle route from Dallas Fort Worth International Airport (DFW) to George Bush Intercontinental Airport (IAH) in Houston. This 247-mile route already has service offerings, but Spirit likely hopes it will open up new connecting routes for its customers.

Adding new connectivity options was high on Spirit’s priority list this year. The airline has focused on curbing growth in Florida and adding new flights, such as the Dallas-Houston route, which should appeal to both departure and destination traffic and also offer connecting flights.

The airline has also restructured its business strategy, abandoning many elements of the simple business model in favor of fares that include additional services such as baggage, seats and even snacks and drinks.

Spirit’s 32 route cuts

Origin Goal Effective date
Atlanta Chicago Immediately
Hartford, Connecticut Orlando November 4th
Nashville Boston November 4th
Nashville New York City November 6th
Nashville Miami Oct. 7
Boston Charleston Oct. 8
Boston Columbus Oct. 7
Boston Kansas City November 4th
Boston Chicago December 3rd
Boston Norfolk November 4th
Boston Pittsburgh Oct. 7
Burbank, California Portland, Ore Immediately
Charleston Detroit Immediately
Charleston Las Vegas November 6th
Charleston New York City December 3rd
Charlotte Chicago Oct. 7
Columbus Dallas-Fort Worth Immediately
Columbus Newark November 4th
Dallas-Fort Worth Kansas City Immediately
Dallas-Fort Worth Memphis Oct. 8
Dallas-Fort Worth Milwaukee November 5th
Dallas-Fort Worth Philadelphia Immediately
Detroit Newark November 6th
Fort Lauderdale Salt Lake City Immediately
Las Vegas Minneapolis-St. Paul Immediately
Las Vegas Louisville, Ky November 4th
Las Vegas St Louis Oct. 6
Los Angeles Louisville November 5th
New York City Pittsburgh November 6th
Portland San Diego Oct. 7
Portland San Jose, California Oct. 7
San Diego Salt Lake City Immediately

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