Donald Trump commented on a major airline facing difficulties, suggesting he wouldn’t be against a merger or even seeing the federal government helping it out.
The US President said the government could help Spirits Airlines, which is struggling and facing liquidation. Speaking to CNBC’s, Mr Trump said: “I don’t mind mergers. I think I’d love somebody to buy Spirit, as an example. You know, Spirit’s in trouble. … Maybe the federal government should help that one out.”
Spirit has already sought government aid from Mr Trump administration in recent days, according to people familiar with the matter, as reported by CNBC, and Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy is planning to meet with several discount carriers to discuss the impact higher fuel is having on airlines.
Jet fuel costs, skyrocketing after the war in Iran, played a part in the difficulties recently experienced by Spirit Airlines too.
Quoting JPMorgan, CNBC said that if fuel stays at about $4.60 a gallon this year, Spirit’s forecast operating margin for the 2026 fiscal year would range from negative 7 per cent to negative 20 per cent.
Last week an anonymous source said “the budget carrier has been struggling to regain its footing from its second bankruptcy in less than a year, but it now faces the added challenge of a spike in the price of fuel. Fuel is airlines’ biggest expense after labour”.
Spirit forecast a net profit of $252 million last year, according to a court filing in December 2024, but it said in an August report that it lost nearly $257 million in a matter of months stretching from March 13, after it exited its first Chapter 11 bankruptcy, through the end of June. “We don’t comment on market rumours and speculation,” Spirit said in a statement quoted by the same US TV producer added.
It is also understood pilot and flight attendant unions had made concessions in recent months in order to help the struggling airline. Spirit had planned to shrink and focus on high-demand travel periods and routes in a bid to exit bankruptcy as early as this spring, the CNBC also reported.
Spirit Airlines, Inc. is an American ultra-low-cost airline headquartered in Dania Beach, Florida, in the Miami metropolitan area and operates scheduled flights throughout the United States, the Caribbean, and Latin America.
