Spirit Airlines has asked a New York bankruptcy court to approve a plan to auction 20 Airbus jets in a court-supervised process that would set a floor price at $533.5 million and could lead to the start of a formal bidding process in April 2026 if would-be buyers emerge.
The carrier, operating under Chapter 11 protection, said the sale would help it shrink its fleet, cut costs tied to aircraft it no longer needs, and strengthen its financial position as it works through its restructuring.
Spirit’s proposed sale covers 13 A320 aircraft and seven A321 aircraft. The airline identified CSDS Asset Management LLC as the “stalking horse bidder,” a common bankruptcy tool that establishes a baseline offer and can encourage higher bids.
Under the proposed terms, if the court approves the bidding procedures, Spirit would seek competing offers starting at roughly $554 million, Reuters reported. If qualified bids materialize, the company would move forward with plans to hold the April auction.
Bloomberg Law reported that Spirit’s motion also asks the court to approve stalking horse protections, including a $16 million breakup fee for CSDS and up to $2.5 million in reimbursable expenses if another bidder ultimately wins. Those provisions can make bidders more willing to do the upfront work to price aircraft and line up financing in a compressed timeline.
Spirit has presented the aircraft sale to the bankruptcy court as part of a broader effort to match capacity to its “go-forward” commercial plan. The company told the court it expects the transaction to reduce costs tied to maintenance, storage, and flying and to use proceeds to pay down debt associated with the aircraft.
Selling owned aircraft can remove debt service tied to those airframes, but it also reduces flexibility if the carrier later wants to add capacity quickly. For now, Spirit is signaling it would rather operate a smaller fleet than carry idle assets through the bankruptcy process.
The court will decide whether to approve Spirit’s bidding procedures and timeline. If the judge signs off, the sale process would begin, with CSDS automatically setting the initial benchmark and other bidders having a chance to top the offer.
