Spirit Airlines announced that, effective December 1, it will furlough approximately 1,800 flight attendants, representing about one-third of its total cabin crew of 5,200. This measure comes after the company filed for bankruptcy last month for the second time in less than a year, following a failed restructuring attempt that did not succeed in stabilizing its finances.
Reduction in Operations and Capacity
The airline had already warned its employees about cuts in an internal memo sent last week. In addition to the layoffs, the company plans to reduce its flight capacity by 25% year-over-year by November.
In an internal statement seen by Reuters, Spirit explained: “We need to focus our efforts on a full adjustment of the company, which involves volume modifications within the flight attendant group.”
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Stance of the Flight Attendants Union
The Association of Flight Attendants (AFA), in a separate communication, acknowledged the need for adjustments but underscored the scale of the problem: “The significant reduction in aircraft and flight hours necessitates a larger staff reduction, and the company is clear that layoffs are inevitable,” the union stated.
Currently, more than 800 Spirit employees are on voluntary leave. Until now, the airline had relied solely on this mechanism to avoid mandatory cuts. However, with this new phase of restructuring, terminations have become unavoidable.
Voluntary Leave Options and Employee Support
Spirit will continue to offer voluntary leave programs, with periods ranging from six months to one year, starting November 1. The union also indicated that it is working to arrange preferential interviews for its members at other airlines, in order to mitigate the impact of this measure.
Spirit’s crisis is occurring in a market where US airlines are increasingly competing to attract business-class and higher-income travelers. This has raised doubts about the sustainability of the ultra-low-cost model that, until now, had benefited millions of passengers seeking budget-friendly fares.
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