The UNEXPECTED Winner in This Airline MERGER!

Spot media bias and outsmart algorithms with Ground News: ground.news/MentourNow 💕
With the Jet Blue & Spirit Airlines takeover all but complete, who among the carriers are set to gain the most from this deal? The answer might not be obvious to you at this stage, but stay tuned for all of the latest information and all will become clear...
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Chapters
-----------------------------
Start 00:00
Beginning 01:27
Share Management 02:22
Jet Blue Entry 03:27
Ground News 05:42
Jet Blue, why? 07:00
Virgin and JetBlue 08:38
Negotiations 09:35
The vote 11:24
The winner 12:45
Sources
-----------------------------
• Spirit Airlines | Toge...
• Spirit Airlines| Soari...
www.bloomberg.com/news/articl...
www.ft.com/content/29a96660-e...
www.frontier-economics.com/uk...
finance.yahoo.com/news/these-...
abcnews.go.com/Business/story...
www.bbc.com/news/business-359...
www.reuters.com/business/aero...
www.traveloffpath.com/spirit-...
www.aerotime.aero/articles/30...
www.routesonline.com/news/29/...
www.fool.com/investing/genera...
www.reuters.com/business/aero...
news.yahoo.com/why-jetblue-tr...
www.reuters.com/business/aero...
www.nytimes.com/2022/05/16/bu...
www.thestreet.com/investing/t...
www.forbes.com/sites/robertha...
theaircurrent.com/analysis/fr...
loyaltylobby.com/2021/09/21/a...

[@MentourNow]

Spot media bias and outsmart algorithms with Ground News: ground.news/MentourNow 💕

[@ytcensorhack1876]

Spirit airlines, we are jet blue's economy version

[@munky123jw]

Spirit Airlines is also known as Ghetto Airlines.

[@ytcensorhack1876]

While united might forcibly drag u off the plane, with spirit airlines u might be forcibly dragged onto the plane

[@paddyjoe1884]

Spirit airlines, we're like a school bus, but with wings

[@sailaab]

There is a Hindi (language) idiom/phase.. which roughly translates thus: that... In the fight between the two dogs, for the 'roti' (flat bread), the monkey snatches=snaps it up instead.. and runs back into the trees to enjoy the 'roti' (nice meal). . However Jewellery can still dent the Frontier (low cost) market.. if Jewellery hives of most of the Spirit operations as a LCC by forming a subsidiary... or continues to use the Spirit personnel, extra aircraft.. by offering somewhat low cost options to the PAX.

[@Bare_Essence]

Great review the mergers. Something we don't usually get. Fair, unbiased, and in depth overview. Thanks

[@MentourNow]

That’s what this channel is all about. Glad you liked it!

[@AndorMilesBoard]

Interesting insight into the markets and corporate side of aviation. Perhaps with healthy balance sheets Frontier will now look at acquiring another ULC carrier, such as Allegiant.

[@josephdale69]

That would be great for the customers.

[@jakefields8018]

as someone who's parents have had corporate dealings with allegiant I can only advise RUN! as far away as u can same with sun country good god don't look back

[@skyeblauBK]

A

[@jasoncentore1830]

I hope no Allegiant, I worked SYR airport and Allegiant flew 3-4 times per week and they cancelled 3-4 times per week. One look at there a/c had me running

[@sapphireseptember]

Never heard of Frontier Airlines until today, now I've not only found out they have adorable animals on their planes, but they name them too! Wish we had that in the UK/Europe. (I ❤️ bunnies!)

[@joseluismoralestoro]

B6 wants the fleet and crew + slots. Organic growth would take 8-10yrs. Spirit has an order book of 100airbus you put that together and its basically instant growth.

[@michaelosgood9876]

With engines making a significant percentage of the cost of an aircraft, this could be a major reason why Jet Blue are so interested in Spirit. Same A320 family, same IAE/ Pratt & Whitney's powerplants.

[@Ed_Stuckey]

0:37 "A lot of airlines all over the world and in the United States..." We're a whole 'nother world! 😂

[@thornysnotsoepic]

Having flown on Frontier, they actually are a good low cost airline. I hope they are able to expand more in the future. I’ve never flown on JetBlue but it’s always looked like a premium airline.

[@jasonjada2259]

Jetblue isnt a bad airline and tries to be on the cheaper side. There service is really great tho unlike spirit

[@povertyspec9651]

Frontier is horrible. Worst seats in the industry.

[@thornysnotsoepic]

@@povertyspec9651 you get what you pay for...

[@ground_news]

Great working together! Thank you for helping spread our mission. To those of you interested in getting the full picture of issues like the one in this video, check out the link in the description and let us know if you have any questions.

[@RiftWalker111]

Thank you for clearing things up, I regularly fly on JetBlue and thought them merging with spirit would be awful but after watching this doesn't sound so bad. Also props to Frontier for being the underdog and with such a twist!

[@steinbockguy]

they are buying talent, pilots, flight crew and ground crew. jetBlue will remain jetBlue and Spirit will disappear IMHO. The biggest problem with growing your company these days is access to talented staff and aircraft. That's what jetBlue is buying. Capacity.

[@NicolaW72]

@@steinbockguy Indeed.

[@mhdibm7515]

I can never stop being amazed by the quality of the conetnt you put out , thank you mentour

[@sacredhealstv901]

Hey as a non hard-core aviation guy. I gotta say I have alot of respect for your ability to look at the third person and it's honestly easy to forget you're actually payed by atleast one of these companies. Good job to you for bringing honesty over all else. Unlike other creators I never see comments or posts saying you were lying or said something wrong. Sure mistakes happen but you seem pretty good at avoiding them. Thanks for being a great KZbinr.

[@DanielJohnNicholson]

Petter is not from the US so there's no chance that he works for any of the companies mentioned in the video.

[@johniii8147]

He's not paid by Spirit, Jetblue, or Frontier. Just his sponsors mentioned in the videos

[@cathyburkart9395]

As a passenger, I fly choose airlines by my own past experience. JetBlue has been great, especially a few years ago when flying on Feb 15 the day after the weather played a part in causing havoc with JetBlue flights. My cancellation was handled in a way that I felt they considered my wishes & solidified my loyalty to them. I once made a 48 hr visit to Minneapolis/St. Paul & flew Frontier. It was a good experience & the price was unbelievable. I have never flown Spirit but have known plenty of young people whom have & just heard NEVER again! So, from this, I feel skeptical of any airline associated with Spirit. Also must say, admired the way Frontier was on it when they had an Ebola exposed passenger between Atlanta & some airport in Ohio & had located the aircraft & taken it out of service very quickly before CDC (🙄) even got around to addressing the travels of this passenger. Holding no stock with any airline, my views are contingent on service rendered.

[@MentourNow]

Thank you for that review! 💕

[@paulkoza8652]

Spirit is going to cease to exist. No need to worry about flying on them any longer.

[@keinlieb3818]

That's exactly why I keep flying Delta. I've heard horror stories from Delta, but I've never had a problem with them and even got a free international flight upgrade to their Delta One Suites back in 2020 and man was it a beautiful experience!

[@elliahhope766]

YES NEVER AGAIN! ON SPIRIT. We are delayed for 3hours from Oakland to LAX due to mechanical problem. We missed our connecting flight to Mexico. We landed in LAX, our connecting flight just took off pass by us. Overnight in L.A. food, hotel plus we purchased another airfare the next day. No reimbursement. Nothing! Horrible experience.

[@oldschoollgearjammerlongmi5209]

@@elliahhope766 Yeah Spirit is like Traveling any public transport in the USA but in the air where you cant escape that 13% of the population.

[@mocafrost]

Great video as always. Thank you. I regularly watched your content when I was seeking an airline job and trying to get up to speed. It's been a while. Still great stuff a few years later.

[@AMCustomCoasters]

JetBlue has been my favorite airline for 10+ years. The idea that they will start offering LAX to OAK flights is a complete game changer. Couldnt be happier w this merger. I hope they get some widebodies and start doing long hauls as well.

[@ImionsaeXwb77]

JetBlue is just as expensive as the other carriers, they're getting rid of the Spirit price, they only want to buy Spirit so that they can gain their gates, airports etc.

[@pissant145]

Absolutely love this aviation news channel. Grymt jobbat, fortsätt såhär!

[@porthose2002]

Fascinating analysis, Petter. Thanks for sharing!

[@stevenverhaegen8729]

Love these wider aviation industry stories, in addition to the more flight related ones! ! 👍

[@stevochang]

Jetblue is my go to airline, the leg room, free snacks, customer service are all top notch.

[@mattheww2797]

The other thing here to remember is that JetBlue is not merging with Spirit, they are buying them outright, Frontier was trying to merge with Spirit. Buying Spirit outright means they will no longer exist and can simply offer the Spirit employees new jobs regardless of their senority.

[@As_A________Commenter]

Actually Frontier would have been buying them outright as well. Both are technically mergers as Spirit doesn’t need to sell out to any company and could remain as a stand alone company. While Jet Blue is buying Spirit, it is important to remember that Jet Blue needed Spirit, Spirit didn’t need Jet Blue. This is why JB pushed so hard to beat out Frontier, they desperately needed the planes and pilots. Which is the next thing you mentioned, JetBlue and Spirit pilots must be integrated by seniority as the are both ALPA union carriers, and they must both agree on a new contract before the merger can be approved by the DOJ. Spirit pilots are critical to this deal going through.

[@LaurenV2500]

There are a couple of important issues to note that you did not cover, or even stated incorrectly: The vote that kept being postponed was not a choice on which merger to accept, but the stockholder's vote on whether or not to accept the Frontier merger, which in addition to cash came with stock in the new company as well as seats on the board of directors, unlike the JetBlue offer, which is to be straight cash for shares: no stake in the new company. As of the announcement on July 28th, there has been no date scheduled for a shareholder vote on the JetBlue deal yet, and no further information regarding stockholder approval has been publicly released to Spirit's investor relations portal since. The language in the press release announcing the JetBlue merger proposal reads extremely similar to the one released in February announcing the Frontier merger proposal. It's still all tentative at this point: there's been far too much assumption that it was an either or choice, when Spirit shareholders could still vote no on the JetBlue proposal, though this is thought to probably be unlikely, which is likely why all the news outlets are running with the misleading title that the JetBlue bid has already been accepted, when in fact what was accepted was merely a merger proposal. Spirit's recent acquisition of slots in the New York area in particular, an area where JetBlue are already very strong--as is their new partner American, who are also partners with Alaska, the latter recently having joined the oneworld alliance that American was a founding member of. I would think that regulating authorities are not going to be keen on this triparte alliance gaining even more ground on an already fairly uncompetitive market, a market honestly Spirit made a bit more competitive since the megamergers of a decade ago. Of particular concern in cases of route overlap is Florida. JetBlue have their largest base outside of the New York/Boston area at Fort Lauderdale. It's also Spirit's largest base. All three airlines in question have a base in Orlando as well, it being Frontier's largest, and Spirit's third largest. Even with it being their largest base, Frontier operates most routes on a daily or sub-daily frequency. Spirit usually operates once or twice, sometimes thrice daily. JetBlue have a much more frequent operation up and down the east coast especially. Where routes overlap, a Frontier/Spirit combination would have been more likely to add their flight frequencies together, whereas a JetBlue/Spirit combination is likely to drop their combined frequency, reusing the Spirit slots for other routes, likely to lead to higher fares, which of course regulators are not keen on... Furthermore, the Las Vegas base simply does not make sense for JetBlue. It's both Spirit and Frontier's second biggest base. Vegas makes a lot of sense as a base for a budget carrier with daily or sub-daily flights to many destinations, not so much for a more premium, higher frequency carrier like JetBlue. What they want is to increase their operation at LAX. Slots there are hard to come by, and everyone wants them: just about every US airline has a base or focus operation at LAX, with a notable exception of Frontier. Acquiring Spirit's slots and gates would allow them to nearly double their operation at LAX. Even as a combined unit, they would still be a relatively small player there: the big four and Alaska would all be sizably larger than the merged company, and Alaska and United especially long established at LAX with a loyal customer base, especially on routes up and down the west coast. Spirit passengers would almost undoubtedly face higher fares out of LAX, with the alternatives to paying the higher fare being Allegiant--which keeps very low frequencies to many minor destinations, so not always a viable alternative for most passengers who flew Spirit--or to travel to Ontario to fly Frontier, or even simply to drive the whole way instead. If JetBlue goes all in on trying to keep a customer base at LAX, it could sacrifice their LAS operation, a destination where low fares are particularly critical as you're meant to spend all your money there rather than on travel. JetBlue's premium focus will not attract the same customer base: any increase in price will send customers straight to Frontier, Sun Country, and Allegiant, allowing them to grow as direct consequence of JetBlue's actions. The results would be lost customers at LAS and failure to gain customers at LAX. I give it a decent chance Spirit Airlines survives the merger debacle. Do note Spirt didn't put themselves up for sale, both Frontier and JetBlue's bids were unsolicited. Their performance through the pandemic and into the merger talks has been strong, and only strengthening as the process evolved. Spirit could actually be the big winners in the end, and JetBlue very well indeed may be shooting themselves in the foot, whether the deal goes through or not. PaxEx is good and all but only matters so much: at the end of the day, price is king. People rearrange their entire days, weeks, months even, to save $20 on a return ticket. Plenty will say "never again" to the likes of Spirit, Frontier, Ryanair, and EasyJet, and then go right back to them when they can get a deal, only to complain more.

[@darc4858]

Thank you for posting your very astute analysis. Everything stated is Spot On!

[@anywherewithphil9841]

I’ve watched the Saga go on for quite a while and am intrigued by the unique motivation of JetBlue. I am a frequent flyer of spirit because I usually travel with just a backpack and don’t expect extra service… I am purchasing exactly/only what I want. I am usually much more cautious about mergers than the justice department has been in the last couple decades and I believe the ULCC market competition will lighten up too much. Sure, this probably will encourage some additional ULCC upstart or growth in someone like Suncountry but that will take years to come to bare.

[@kennystrawnmusic]

A Frontier-Allegiant merger might be a fantastic alternative as far as ultra-low-cost goes.

[@mickdunne981]

Very ininteresting video I really enjoyed it 😀 keep up the good work 👏

[@basta118]

Beautiful analysis and almost like a detective. Well done!

[@jonahv9559]

Another excellent video! As a pilot in training, I really appreciate these videos that help me better understand the industry I'm going into

[@PuckDudesHockey]

Just loving the Mentour Now content... thank you so much, from a Canadian fan!

[@robertlandau8]

Excellent video. Thanks so much for posting.

[@Solitude47152]

Just on Spirit, it was a great trip. Brand new plane on time.

[@philipmordaunt5341]

Great review - thanks

[@andrewpinner3181]

Thanks Mentour !

[@robertspink1972]

Love your views . JetBlue really wants Spirits Airplanes. Very simple

[@mariogarbey8933]

This is great opportunity for frontier to grow and became a better airline

[@AKjohndoe]

Well played indeed!

[@joaquingonzaleztapia2905]

Hey, great video! As a side note and feedback on a detail, Jetsmart is from Chile (neighbor country of Argentina). It has a subsidary un Argentina and another one in Peru, but it is managed and was founded in Chile on 2017

[@diegogonzalezdecossioallen8000]

Excellent!….I love the approach coming from an expert pilot!

[@JosephSmith-ix5il]

The chart at 0:55 just reminded me of TWA 800. This is the first plane crash I have heard and it still touches me.

[@Tim_3100]

Quite a curious merger but be intresting to see how it turns out

[@jose.lisboa]

JetSmart is based in Chile! Outraged! :P

[@NicolaW72]

Indeed: Frontier seems to be the winner of these merger. Thank you very much for the informative video!👍

[@VeganWithAraygun]

In the mid 1960's I flew FAs DC-3 between Denver and Colorado Springs. Go Frontier all the way!

[@TIO540S1]

I just subscribed to Ground News, it looks to be excellent!

[@MentourNow]

I really like it! 💕

[@vagellan_8842]

Only you can make a story about corporate affairs actually sound interesting!!

[@JohnJCB]

Spirit green now

[@bsizeindian3966]

Your videos have nothing to do with our business. But watching them all because they are very interesting. ❤❤❤

[@mikeyb8313]

As a junior pilot at Frontier I supported the Frontier/Spirit match up at first. When I interviewed in March it was the talk of the town. Now I’m glad it didn’t happen. Organic growth is better than merger growth. Especially when you’re at the bottom of a seniority list without hundreds of retirements per year like the legacies have.

[@reopat14]

Very intuitive

[@hateeternalmaver]

'Well played' hits it pretty much... ;)

[@fenderbass0]

3:58 the irony of the photo of parked aircraft in the desert while explaining the strategy of "high fleet utilization"

[@christophgoldmann5682]

Another great epizode!

[@MentourNow]

Thank you!

[@jacquelinejacobson6789]

I'm flying Spirit A 320 in September because it was the only line offering a direct flight from Philadelphia to Forth Worth without a stop over.

[@hewhohasnoidentity4377]

that is very strange. DFW is the primary hub for American Airlines. I associate Philly with US Air, US Airways and American Airlines. I would think American would have that route covered nonstop.

[@TheBrandonDestiny]

@@hewhohasnoidentity4377 It must be on a cost basis. A quick (anecdotal) search of the route found a near 250% price differential between AA's nonstop offering and Spirit's.

[@michaele8347]

JetBlue has always had premium services for “free”. They were the first to have TV, free Wi-Fi and still to this date have the most legroom per seat. It’s been that way since 99.

[@gstone3148]

and its amazing how long they have been so successful for so long and still be around and successful enough to buy another airline and expand there services to many more who wish to experience all what others have experienced to more markets going forward.

[@timolson4809]

I will say, as someone who would probably fit the definition of a “flexible traveler”, frontier saves me so much bank. They screw up a bunch, but a round trip for $50 (I pack light) makes it so much easier to get places and travel as a broke 20-something.

[@briancrawford69]

Here in Fresno we don't have spirit or JetBlue. After the merger it will be interesting to see if they decide to come in. Especially with the airport expanding and it being one of the fastest recovering midsize airports in America after COVID

[@simonkue]

They're not coming there, they don't have the network to move passenge there and at their price point, the big 4 will slap them around especially SouthWest...

[@briancrawford69]

@@simonkue funny because other people think there's a good possibility. Southwest does great here and the airport is expanding. We already need more gates for existing airlines.

[@simonkue]

@@briancrawford69 Southwest is going to be King at FAT and those gate will be for SW

[@briancrawford69]

@@simonkue no they're international gates first and foremost. They will be at the international concourse. We need several more gates not just the two they're doing

[@tconua777]

The whole reason for JetBlue and Spirit is for JetBlue to Gain more aircraft without buying them. And to get a bigger presence on the West Coast which is hard to come by

[@Livelongwforce]

Having flown on Spirit a few times this summer, I'm not sad to see them merge into JB.

[@flapjackson6077]

Been waiting to see this!

[@x01macmilsim86]

What JetBlue is doing is revolutionary, they're cheaper the Legacy Airlines, and provide a better economy product than the Legacy carriers. Its not a ULCC, but it's definitely Lower Cost

[@davidweatherbe7740]

I've only flown on JetBlue twice, both times between Orlando and Buffalo. They were good flights, they ran on time and I really enjoyed the leg room. The only downside was ending up in Buffalo. On the other hand, I have yet to hear anything good about Spirit.

[@jeanclaudemuhigirwa568]

Thanks a lot for insight of this merger Possible you give similar information on Korean air and Asiana airlines ? Thanks

[@paulkoza8652]

Heard that JB wanted the planes. I suspect that SW also benefits in a way.

[@briandenison2325]

The aircraft and the pilots.

[@mandowarrior123]

Really? I thought they were replacing their 320s.

[@ntmn8444]

They want Spirit’s network. Spirit has a LAS base that flies to different places in the west, and they have all important gates in places like LAX and OAK that JetBlue wants so they can do the transatlantic flights. That’s honestly why they want Spirit. The pilots and aircraft round up top 3.

[@jasoncentore1830]

Everything in travel has merged, Airlines, Rental Cars, Hotels. 1/2 the time I don't even know who the parent company of Hotels and Cars. I remember working when we had AA,DL,UA,B6,CO,NW,TW,US,HP(America West), Midway, Midwest express, Value Jet, Kiwi Air, I worked the merger w AA and TWA, we got rid of there a/c and most employees by the time I got done w my Special Assignment. I love when ur landing and they say "We know you have a choice in Airlines and ty for choosing XYZ Airline" we don't have a choice

[@benjaminfranklinkivettiv9433]

I bet Frontiers ceo is a damn good poker player😂

[@MohammadAijaz5842]

I miss Continental so much

[@The_ZeroLine]

Indigo Partners just gave a masterclass in business.

[@ryankenyon5010]

Frontier will still have competition from Allegiant, which is similar in size.

[@FranciscoRamirez-gb6zc]

There’s another winner… that’s the guy that created JetBlue… Breeze might be a bigger winner. Because that guy knows how to run an airline and now it will open up a big spot for breeze

[@robertscott6048]

Jetblue wanted the Planes, Crews and Slots

[@patriciabernard8386]

I fly Spirit from Atlantic City to WPI in the winter ---will that change? Can we have airline service in Atlantic City from another airline instead of just Spirit?

[@kentslocum]

I generally fly Allegiant--it must be one of the smaller low-cost carriers.

[@looneyflight]

Alaska airlines bought Virgin America for their routes. They are working on lease returns all of the A320s they got in that deal. Anyone can snap those jets up really quickly. Allegiant is getting some of them from what I heard.

[@yaycupcake]

I've been binging your videos for the past couple months and I have been curious about US airline mergers and if there was a timeline graphic somewhere. I'm pleasantly surprised to see exactly what I was looking for at the beginning of this video! I'm turning 30 this year and as a kid I vaguely remembered Continental existing, but not having flown in a long time until just this year, I was surprised to see there were so few. And seeing a lot of your videos, I was curious why there were so many US based airlines that you mention that I didn't see when booking my recent flights. I had no idea about the merger in this video until now but I guess that would explain the Jet Blue and Spirit combined terminal at LAX then? When I was there a few months ago I was confused why they seemed to be intermingled like that but now it makes sense.

[@gdrriley420]

High speed rail and improving amtrak service are going to eat into the low cost carrier west coast major pairs like SF-LA, SF-Veg, LA-VEG.

[@WStorm-hi7dt]

Hey mentor I have a question looking back at this. Jet Blue is banned from operating in my state due to reliability issues and safety concerns. However, spirit airlines is allowed. What effect do you think this would have on this?

[@jameswaters3939]

Next up? Frontier, Allegiant, Sun Country? Allegiant has a mixed fleet with their recent Boeing order. Sun Country is all Boeing. Wondering about the inches/millimeter differences between Airbus and Boeing? Do the majors that fly both have 2 totally different tool sets?

[@NicolaW72]

Legacy Carriers have a totally different Business Model as LCCs - and taking the huge seize of the fleets of American, Delta and United into account it makes sense for them to run a splitted Mid-Seize-Fleet of B 737- and A 320-Family-Aircrafts. It usually doesn´t make sense for a LCC. They usually have unique 737- or Airbus-Fleets. To compare it with Europe: LCC in Europe with 737 only: - Ryanair - Norwegian - Transavia/ Transavia France - Anadolujet - Blue Air [- Pobeda in Russia and SkyUp in the Ukraine = both special cases now] LCC in Europe with A 320-Family only: - Easyjet - Wizzair (the European Sister Company of Frontier) - Vueling - Eurowings - Volotea - Play LCC in Europe with a mixed Fleet: - Pegasus. The difference between Europe and the US is that in Europe a couple of LCCs are owned by the large Legacy Carriers: - Vueling by the IAG (mother company of British Airways, Iberia and Aer Lingus) - Transavia and Transavia France by Air France/ KLM - Eurowings by Lufthansa - Anadolujet by Turkish Airlines [- Pobeda by Aeroflot]. So the Legacy Carriers are in Europe important players on the LCC Market, too. It´s hard to imagine that American, Delta or United would open their own LCC branches.

[@jennifercoulter6886]

I have flown on all these carriers. It will be sad to see Spirit go away. They had amazing deals for my small budget. Frontier will definitely be the winner here in the western US with no competition for low cost. Unfortunately, no competition will mean higher prices. So Frontier is the winner and for all of us in the western USA who have to travel on small budgets we will be the ultimate loosers.

[@BryanDorr]

Jet Blue blue + Spirit yellow = Ryan Air?

[@gstone3148]

HOLY CRAP!!! Yes I don't think about and yes Ryan Air is blue and yellow!!😲😳

[@redskytitan]

Spirit hasn’t been the best run airline, with pretty poor customer experience and consistently ranking low in performance. A transformation into JetBlue level of service may be the best thing that’s happened to it. Frontier on the other hand should buy Allegiant and own the ultra low cost segment, which is a great outcome as well. Everyone should be a winner in this scenario.

[@mrdr89]

How does allegiant compare to frontier?

[@amichaihendel2984]

The biggest winner is not Frontier but Breeze airways, an airline that got started by David Neelman, who started JetBlue.

[@Paul-dc6sp]

It sure does look like Frontier was a winner. Maybe Frontier can buy Allegiant Air, a low cost carrier. Another opportunity for Frontier to expand faster than buying more individual planes. I just flew Allegiant Air. The flight experience was good, but after my trip, I had to contact customer service about a rental car I booked thru them and it was very difficult to deal with them. 2 hour plus wait time on the phone, no online chat, they have not solved my rental car issue yet from a month ago. Great video

[@TonyM132]

I am surprised that Allegiant Air didn't come up somewhere in this discussion. Isn't Allegiant the other primary competitor of Frontier and Spirit? All three are major American ultra low cost carriers. Frontier and Allegiant have almost the same size fleet, and Allegiant actually serves more destinations that either Frontier or Spirit.

[@americanbobtail1]

Not really, because their routes do not overlap. Allegiant tend to go after leisure travelers in secondary airports to vacation destinations for point to point travel. Frontier and Spirit do not necessarily use these secondary airports and you can travel using connecting flights. Also, both Frontier and Spirit fleet are purely Airbus 319-321 series planes.

[@TonyM132]

@@americanbobtail1 Allegiant also flies exclusively A319 and 320 today, although they have 737s on order. Anyway, which brand of airplane is flown doesn't have much to do with how much a competitor a company is. It does relate to fitness for merger, but I was thinking of Allegiant being a winner by losing a competitor in Spirit.

[@johniii8147]

Allegiant has a completely different business model. They are travel company/travel agency and not just an airline. They make most of their money from selling travel packages (hotels etc). The airline allows them to get the travelers to the destinations where they have the packages.

[@twixieshores]

Allegiant operates more like a European ULCC than Spirit or Frontier, flying into smaller, more remote airports to save on fees

[@johniii8147]

@@twixieshores No that's not really the differentiator. By FAR their largest station is Las Vegas. See above as to the point of differentiation.

[@patrickfreeman8257]

Well, I gotta be honest. I usually blow right past your commercials. But since the media is so untrustworthy these days, this one actually caught my attention and I watched the whole thing.

[@maxsmodels]

JetBlue could not let S&F merge or they would have been in a very vulnerable predicamint. Gordon Bethune was very supportive of JetBlue's decision as he pointed out they need the rapid expansion. They also will get Spirit's very valuable west coast slots.

[@pulaski1]

I think more competition with the big 4, leading to lower overall ticket prices, is more important than creating a large low-cost carrier.

[@scpatl4now]

I think another thing that Jet Blue wants is the physical aircraft. In order to grow, you need additional aircraft. With Boeing and Airbus both running way behind in their fulfillment of new aircraft, buying Spirit gives you a bunch of new aircraft to help you grow.

[@captaintzuyu]

That ending was unexpected 😂... Pov : frontier actually never wanted spirit, they just wanted it to eliminate from low cost market.

[@DominicMazoch]

Jet Blue buying Spirit and upgrading it would be like the Union Pacific buying Southern Pacific. UP is still upgrading former SP properties and operations to UP standards at great cost! And an UP-SP type meltdown at the beginning. Winner, long term, Frontier!

[@mkkm945]

JetBlue's major benefit is access to pilots, tech & a large virtually identical fleet. That said, they are paying too much for this luxury. If JetBlue can fix their operational issues (their in flight experience is easily the best in the US), then they will eventually benefit from this. Personally hoping for that as I enjoy their free WiFi, entertainment and service.

[@libanaden5183]

I actually support this merger, Jetblue is the best airline in the United state, this merger is for Jetblue to grow, get more planes, pilots, crew, more gates at SFO and LAX so it can compete with the other big four. Jetblue and Spirit both use A320-A321 family, they just has to redo the seats and colors of those spirit planes. I see this deal pass easily because there are new more low cost companies in the market like Breeze and Avelo, I doubt if frontier is the winner here because of those new airplanes. If Jetblue get this great market in SFO and LAX, Alaska airline is in trouble.

[@hiro100178]

I think JetSmart is from Chile

[@Blank00]

Another complication for Jetblue would be deciding between A220-300/500 vs. a more complex scenario of A220-300 + A319NEO/A320NEO

[@Valizan]

Fascinating! I’ve never had access to Frontier, but Spirit and JetBlue getting together should be interesting since Spirit has a bad reputation and JetBlue (which I have flown on once… and it will be ONLY once) is only slightly better. Here is hoping this merger gives the rest of us a better airline in the end.

[@jwil4286]

Why will it be only once? Is it a route you don’t usually use? Was JetBlue that bad?

[@Valizan]

@@jwil4286 JetBlue was THAT bad. And after the incident, their behaviour afterwards - to deflect and deny the truth - just made me throw up my hands and give up on them ever again. Messing up a plane full of passengers, and then treating them like they’re dumb afterwards??? No thank you. You are not my only choice, JetBlue.

[@cockyrooster361]

Many, many many years ago one of the first ultra low-cost airlines, "Peoples express" suffered the same issue. The big boys bought them and destroyed the ultra low cost idea for nearly 20 years. This is in a way the story of US biznez. Frontier is easily the best ultra lowcost airline, even better than SWA, a so-called "low cost airline"...

[@ElectableDane]

Wouldn't mind JetBlue taking Spirit since Spirit flies out of my local airport but not JetBlue

[@bw162]

I am retired and don’t care what color scheme is on the cigar shaped mailing tubes. Even sold my “airport car”. But I do still enjoy this channel.

[@wildberrylemonade]

I don't want Sprit to merge with Jet Blue. I fly Sprit a lot!! I love thier low prices. I have a ton of Spirt Personal items lol. I feel like when they merge with Jet Blue they are gonna hike up the prices.

[@CactusBravo42]

JetBlue panicked and bought Spirit because a Spirit-Frontier merger would result in a much stronger competitor to JetBlue.

[@chaddawsome9302]

But that was a very good move. Because now they will directly compete with southwest and could potentially become a much more popular airline.

[@claycassin8437]

I don't know what, if any, effect it had, but when I was traveling in South America in 2018-2020, Jet Blue and Spirit were in a pitched battle with each other on routes to and from the US. At every major airport I was in down there, the most prominent US airline presence visually was those two carriers. I mainly flew on Copa, myself. Free hot meals and booze! As an added note, when traveling in the US, I have never encountered a situation where Frontier or Spirit had the lowest fare...they have always been matched or even exceeded by the big 4 carriers...with American and Southwest consistently undercutting the "discount" airlines. Therefore, I have flown mainly on those two carriers(and once on United, twice on Jet Blue). Not once have I ever flown on Spirit or Frontier. Just by buying the cheapest ticket. My daughter has flown on Allegiant out of Austin several times quite cheaply, but they have never been available to me on any route I flew.

[@afcgeo882]

It has A LOT to do with it as JetBlue has been taking over Latin America and Caribbean routes from American’s abandonment for years.

[@amykathleen2]

Can I ask how you go about finding tickets? My family has never had good customer service experiences with Spirit but we keep flying with them because those are the cheapest tickets when we look. I would love to know if there’s a trick to getting better tickets for less money.

[@claycassin8437]

@@amykathleen2 I just typed out a long winded essay about how to do it, and KZbin *poofed* it. Maybe somebody there didn't want the secret out? Too late, guys. So, I'll just ask you to do a search for "using a VPN to get better airline prices". Hopefully, KZbin will allow this comment to be posted.

[@claycassin8437]

@@amykathleen2 I had my first comment in my copy buffer- I'll try one more time to post my original comment(for the THIRD time) Here goes: I just use normal ticket sites like Expedia or Booking,(I can't seem to be able to type that out completely without KZbin deleting it), mainly because I have garnered upper tier benefit levels with both of them from using them so much abroad(the main perks are with hotels, however) One thing I have learned is to always use a VPN and "place" myself in other cities than the one I am in...quite often, I find a substantially cheaper fare than the one I was quoted when my IP address was in my current location(even though I am buying a ticket flying from where I am). Start with putting yourself in your intended destination or as close as possible, and then check others. For example, if you are in Dallas and want to fly to Boston, check the price without your VPN on first(the airlines will know you are in Dallas), then turn on your VPN and connect your internet to Boston, and then check it again, and then spot check another city or two, say LA or Miami, by connecting your internet through those locations. Open a new tab for each query and leave all the tabs open until you have compared the prices, then select the cheapest and buy it. You will be shocked at the variance in pricing. The airlines are sleazy like that, so I fight sleaze with sleaze...it's only fair.

[@amykathleen2]

@@claycassin8437 Holy shit, this is amazing. I didn’t even try the whole process yet, just a quick check. I want to plan a trip to Asia and when I looked up tickets a couple weeks ago, the lowest ticket was $2200 round trip from my city to the city I want to visit, for a flight that would have gone the long way around with a layover in Turkey. So now I just checked the price from another US city and there are tickets for $1000 round trip! :O

[@jerseypup]

JetBlue used to be an airline for the masses. Now they're just a confused airline, neither here nor there. They run their routes like and LCC, but treat their passengers like a legacy carrier. But unlike every other non-ULCC, including Southwest, there's no fully refundable fare option. This will be just like the Southwest/Air Tran merger if it goes through. Take the slots, maybe the planes, and drop the rest.