Spirit Airlines has canceled commitments for over 60 Airbus aircraft as part of a settlement with leasing company AerCap. This comes shortly after the two parties agreed to cancel the leases of 27 aircraft it currently holds from AerCap.
As part of the settlement, AerCap will pump $150 million into Spirit, which remains under bankruptcy protection. This will be in addition to a separate $475 million financing agreement as the carrier desperately struggles to stay afloat.
Spirit Cancels Airbus Order, AerCap Swoops In
As reported by Reuters, the beleaguered ultra-low-cost carrier has backed out of a commitment to buy 52 Airbus narrowbodies and another ten options as part of its long-running dispute with AerCap. Under the terms of the settlement — approved by the US Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York on Friday — Airbus production slots held by Spirit will now pass over to AerCap.
Under Spirit’s ongoing restructuring, it is significantly downsizing its fleet and cutting around 40 routes, as well as furloughing approximately one-third of its cabin crew workforce from December. The two parties will now sign new leasing agreements involving 30 new A320neo-family aircraft, both A320 and A321 models, with deliveries from 2027 through 2029.
Spirit said the recent agreement will enable it to cut its operating costs by hundreds of millions of dollars each year. Just last week, Spirit secured up to $475 million in Debtor-in-Possession (DIP) financing from bondholders, with $200 million made available immediately. This lifeline will help the carrier maintain its operations for the time being as it implements its downsizing. Dave Davis, President and Chief Executive Officer at Spirit, commented,
“We are pleased to have reached another significant milestone in our restructuring, which represents continued progress toward securing a successful future for Spirit. With these approvals in place, we are better equipped to build a stronger airline that delivers unmatched value to American consumers.”
AerCap Clear To Pursue Over $500 Million In Claims
AerCap has also received court approval to file a total unsecured claim of up to $572 million against Spirit, although it is unclear how much of this claim AerCap will actually pursue. The leasing firm has also been granted the right to keep $9.7 million in cash security deposits that Spirit had put down for the now-canceled leases.
In August, AerCap abruptly terminated deals for 36 new Airbus A320neo aircraft that were scheduled to arrive at Spirit between 2027 and 2028, as well as defaulting the leases of 37 Airbus planes presently in the Spirit fleet. Losing access to these aircraft dealt a huge blow to Spirit’s ability to operate, with the airline attributing it as the main cause of its second bankruptcy filing in a year.
Spirit reported net losses of $246 million over Q2 2025 and also revealed it had maxed out its entire $275 million revolving credit facility to keep its operations going. Having exited its first Chapter 11 proceedings in March 2025, the airline’s first attempt at restructuring ultimately didn’t go far enough, and it was back under bankruptcy protection just six months later.
Spirit Will Halve Its Fleet
According to ch-aviation, Spirit has a current fleet size of 195 aircraft consisting entirely of Airbus A320-family aircraft. It operates both the ceo (current engine option) and neo (new engine option) models of both the A320 and A321, and previously flew the Airbus A319 up until the beginning of this year.
The carrier plans to cut around 100 aircraft from its fleet, effectively halving the size of its available aircraft. Having already cut around 25% of its total network, the airline will have more route cuts ahead.
|
Aircraft Type |
Total |
Average Age |
|---|---|---|
|
Airbus A320-200 |
50 |
11.8 Years |
|
Airbus A320neo |
91 |
4.3 Years |
|
Airbus A321-200 |
22 |
8.8 Years |
|
Airbus A321neo |
32 |
1.4 Years |
Low-cost airlines are having a difficult time in the US, particularly with the country’s major airlines making greater inroads into affordable travel. United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby recently gave his thoughts on low-cost airlines, claiming the business model is “dead” and disliked by its customer base.