Spirit Airlines is offering voluntary severance packages to employees, the latest cost-cutting measure by the low-cost carrier as it expects financial pressures to continue into next year.
The airline has been struggling with weak off-peak demand and last month said it would have to ground an average of 26 Airbus A320neo aircraft for inspections of engines made by RTX unit Pratt & Whitney after the company revealed a manufacturing defect in August that strained its capacity.
“The last few months have been a testament to our resilience and dedication as a company, but we must return to profitability, which will require a series of tough decisions,” CEO Ted Christie said in a staff memo on Wednesday seen by CNBC.
The airline has already suspended training for new pilots and flight attendants, CNBC reported last month. It has also slashed expense budgets and tweaked its network, including a plan to exit Denver.
“Now, we’re taking the next difficult step – implementing an Early Voluntary Out programme for salaried team members,” Christie wrote in the memo. The company had a similar plan at the height of the Covid pandemic. “Based on the success of that plan, we’re implementing a similar set of options to help us right-size our organisation for our current fleet and business constraints.”
JetBlue Airways is in the process of attempting to acquire Spirit, a deal that the Department of Justice has already sued to block, with a trial set to wrap up in Boston in the coming days.
