WCV News 24

Philly travelers brace for possible Spirit Airlines shutdown: ‘It's not right'

An industry source familiar with the situation tells NBC News that Spirit Airlines could shut down as soon as tomorrow without a last-minute intervention.

Now, Spirit customers are left uncertain about what comes next, including whether their purchased tickets will become worthless.

“It looks very much like Spirit is shutting down. And it may happen overnight. Tonight or sometime this weekend,” said Scott McCartney, who spent decades covering the airline industry for The Wall Street Journal.

McCartney said planes currently in the air would complete their trips, and the airline would likely try to return aircraft to its base in Fort Lauderdale.

“There are planes in the air, but they will eventually complete their trips, and typically an airline would want to get all their aircraft back home — so to Fort Lauderdale in this case — and it’s tough,” he said.

Spirit Airlines has already filed for bankruptcy twice and is now seeking help from the Trump administration. The White House has stepped in with a final proposal for a federal bailout, but it has faced pushback from Capitol Hill and some travelers.