Spirit Airlines announced an expansion of its service from DFW International Airport this summer by restoring two routes: one to Boston and the other to Oakland.
With this expansion, the budget carrier will offer 71 departing and arriving flights from DFW International Airport to 22 locations, surpassing its largest-ever North Texas schedule in 2018, per The Dallas Morning News.
As The Dallas Express recently reported, JetBlue seeks to acquire the Florida-based airline for $3.8 billion. But the merger has been blocked by federal regulators who claim that it violates federal antitrust law.
The Justice Department contends that the merger would diminish competition and raise ticket prices for consumers.
Meanwhile, JetBlue and Spirit Airlines have marketed the merger as bringing “together the best of both airlines to create the fifth largest domestic airline,” per its website.
As the fate of the merger hangs in the balance, Spirit Airlines is aiming to expand its presence across the United States and add over 30 new jets to its fleet, per the DMN.
The recommencement of service to both Logan International Airport in Boston and Oakland International Airport from DFW points to North Texas becoming a site of contention for Spirit Airlines.
Notably, American Airlines — which held the largest share (19.5%) among competitors in the domestic market in 2021 — is headquartered in Fort Worth.
Spirit Airlines has also recently added flights to popular destinations such as Mexico and Puerto Rico, as well as big cities including San Diego, Charlotte, and Newark.
Data from Cirium indicate that DFW will be the fifth-busiest airport for Spirit Airlines when traveling season peaks in July, per the DMN. A total of 1,073 DFW flights are scheduled.
Spirit Airlines released its Q1 2023 results this week.
Despite reporting a net loss of $103.9 million, Ted Christie, Spirit Airline’s CEO and president, noted in the release that the “adjusted operating margin came in better than expected.”
The airline also showed a considerable increase in total operating revenues year over year of 39.5% to $1.3 billion.
