Spirit Airlines A319 aircraft.
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Spirit Airlines has temporarily cut 37 routes from its network starting in January.
Florida is being particularly impacted, with 26 of the lost routes touching the Sunshine State.
The airline is calling the cuts temporary, with plans to restore many of them in 2023.
Spirit Airlines is temporarily losing more than three dozen routes in its latest network adjustment.
Starting in January, the low-cost carrier will nix 37 routes from its map, including destinations in the US and abroad, according to Cirium data.
A Spirit spokesperson confirmed the news to Insider but said the carrier plans to bring most, if not all, back next year.
He further explained Spirit will receive 33 new planes next year, allowing the budget airline to add new routes and markets, like Norfolk, Virginia, in April.
The temporary cuts, which were first reported by Airline Weekly, target Florida in particular. Of the 37 slashed routes, 26 touch the Sunshine State, including Orlando, Fort Lauderdale, Miami, Tampa, and Fort Myers. The latter saw devastation from Hurricane Ian in September.
Three cuts impact Miami, where Spirit announced a groundbreaking entry in October 2021 with 31 new routes. Despite the ambition in the city, the budget airline is losing flights from Atlantic City, New Jersey; Hartford, Connecticut; and Orlando.
A combination of inflation, air traffic control issues in Florida, and demand may be factors for Spirit’s temporary cuts, The Points Guy reported.
Spirit CEO Ted Christie said in the company’s Q3 quarterly earnings in October that the company had to “pull flying from the third quarter because of Florida ATC constraints.” Other carriers like United Airlines have also blamed the FAA for ATC-related delays and cancellations.
Christie also explained slow aircraft deliveries have impacted Spirit.
“Putting it directly, we are seeing supply chain-related issues on aircraft deliveries and supply chain-related issues on engine manufacturing and engine overhaul, which is forcing us to take aircraft out of service.,” he said.
Although Spirit is pulling some routes from Florida, Spirit EVP and CCO Matthew Klein said in the earnings call that “while we are seeing the constraints on our Florida network, we are able to reallocate that to other parts of the country.”
Over the weekend, Spirit did add four routes to its network, including Charlotte to Dallas/Fort Worth and Nashville, Dallas/Fort Worth to Newark, New Jersey, and Los Angeles to Memphis, per Airline Weekly.
Spirit is not the only airline seeing cuts this year. American Airlines lost four routes in September, partially due to the ongoing pilot shortage. Meanwhile, Delta Airlines cut five routes in August, citing low demand in regional markets.
Here is the full list of Spirit’s 37 temporarily dropped routes:
Baltimore to New OrleansBaltimore to Myrtle Beach, South CarolinaFort Lauderdale, Florida to Hartford, ConnecticutFort Lauderdale to Westmoreland County, PennsylvaniaFort Lauderdale to Manchester, New HampshireFort Lauderdale to Panama City, PanamaFort Lauderdale to Louisville, KentuckyFort Lauderdale to St. Louis, MissouriFort Myers to Hartford, Connecticut Fort Myers to BaltimoreFort Myers to Cleveland, OhioFort Myers to Columbus, OhioFort Myers to MinneapolisFort Myers to PhiladelphiaFort Myers to St. Louis, MissouriSan Juan, Puerto Rico to Atlantic CityHouston to DenverHouston to Guatemala City, GuatemalaLos Angeles to Milwaukee, WisconsinOrlando to MinneapolisOrlando to San Salvador, El SalvadorMiami to Atlantic City, New JerseyMiami to Hartford, ConnecticutMiami to OrlandoPhiladelphia to Aguadilla, Puerto RicoPhiladelphia to New OrleansPhoenix to Kansas City, MissouriPhoenix to Milwaukee, WisconsinPhoenix to St. Louis, MissouriTampa, Florida to Hartford, ConnecticutTampa to BostonTampa to Columbus, OhioTampa to Newark, New JerseyTampa to Westmoreland County, PennsylvaniaTampa to Milwaukee, WisconsinTampa to MinneapolisTampa to Philadelphia