Spirit says no thanks to JetBlue purchase offer

Spirit Airlines on Monday rebuffed an acquisition offer from JetBlue Airways, saying regulators were unlikely to approve the proposal.

In a letter to JetBlue, Spirit executives said they had determined that JetBlue's acquisition offer, which was updated Friday, would be unlikely to secure regulatory approval as long as that airline's recently announced partnership with American Airlines was in effect. The Justice Department and several states have sued to block that alliance, arguing that it is anti-competitive, and JetBlue has said it will not abandon the partnership.

The chairman of Spirit's board, Mac Gardner, said Monday the company stood by its plan to merge with Frontier Airlines, a deal that predates JetBlue's offer and that Spirit argued reflected the best interests of long-term shareholders.

“After a thorough review and extensive dialogue with JetBlue, the board determined that the JetBlue proposal involves an unacceptable level of closing risk that would be assumed by Spirit stockholders,” Gardner said. “We believe that our pending merger with Frontier will start an exciting new chapter for Spirit and will deliver many benefits to Spirit shareholders, team members and guests.”

Spirit and Frontier, both low-fare airlines, announced a plan to merge in February. Then, JetBlue stepped in with a bigger offer for Spirit, surprising many industry analysts and experts. Both deals would face scrutiny from Biden administration regulators, who have expressed more skepticism about consolidation than their predecessors.