The bright yellow planes are grounded. Now the selloff begins.
Spirit Airlines, which abruptly canceled all its future flights over the weekend, secured court approval Tuesday to begin dismantling the and to convert its parts into cash for creditors.
U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Sean Lane authorized the airline’s plan for a rapid wind down of its remaining business activities, clearing the way for Spirit to move forward with liquidation.
鈥淭oday is a very challenging day. It鈥檚 not a day that anybody hoped would ever come,鈥� Lane said as he ruled from the bench following an hourslong hearing in New York. The judge extended his 鈥渟ympathy to the Spirit employees and their families.鈥�
The company needed the judge鈥檚 green light to proceed because shutting down an airline is far from straightforward, with creditors, regulators, airport authorities and employees all tied into a process that has to be carefully unwound. More than 100 people tuned in to Tuesday鈥檚 hearing virtually, reflecting the broad interest in the case.
Spirit’s plan centers on selling off every possible asset 鈥� from its airplanes, engines and spare parts to gates and landing slots at airports 鈥� while also limiting additional payroll, leasing and other costs.
The liquidation marks a dramatic turn for Spirit, which filed for bankruptcy protection in August 2025 hoping to escape financial ruin. The airline’s parent company was attempting to restructure the business for the second time since November 2024 when it early Saturday.
The shutdown itself was tightly choreographed. The company, Spirit Aviation Holdings Inc., said it made its going-out-of-business announcement in the middle of the night to ensure the jetliners making their final runs for the airline were safely on the ground and their crews accounted for.
Three days later, that sense of urgency carried into the courtroom, where the company’s lawyers asked the judge for expedited approval of their wind-down plan, arguing that speed would benefit Spirit’s creditors .
鈥淎ny delay will cause chaos, confusion and cost the estate significant time and money,鈥� the company said in a motion filed with the court, noting the airline was 鈥渘ot generating any revenue.鈥�
Spirit attorney Marshall Huebner said Tuesday in court that rising since the U.S. and Israel on Iran 鈥渆ngulfed Spirit entirely.鈥� The airline’s fuel expenses grew by roughly $100 million 鈥渋n March and April alone,鈥� he said, and rapidly drained Spirit鈥檚 liquidity and derailed its restructuring efforts.
He also apologized directly to Spirit鈥檚 employees and customers, especially passengers who he said may now be completely 鈥減riced out鈥� of certain routes without the ultra low-cost carrier known for its unbundled 鈥渘o frills鈥� service.
Huebner described a swift effort by other airlines and other segments of the aviation industry to assist Spirit’s employees and customers once the airline’s end looked inevitable.
鈥淭he entire industry sprang into action to get our people home,鈥� Huebner said. Spirit employed about 17,000 people and carried about 50,000 passengers on its final day of operations. The final flight, which traveled from Detroit to Dallas, landed after midnight Saturday.
According to court filings, Spirit鈥檚 assets include its fleet of 114 Airbus A320-family planes. Most of them 鈥� 66 aircraft 鈥� were leased, but the company owns 28 that will be part of the liquidation process. Another 20 of the planes it owns outright were already set to be sold under a separate, previously approved court deal. Spirit also owns 18 spare engines.
Spirit says it plans to initially keep a skeleton crew of 130 to 150 employees who will help oversee the liquidation process, including securing aircraft and coordinating logistics. The team, expected to include some corporate officers, will eventually shrink to roughly 40.
In the last two weeks, Spirit was in discussions with the Trump administration about a hoped-for that fell through, eliminating what the company described as its last viable path forward. Of the potential bailout, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said Saturday, 鈥淲e oftentimes don鈥檛 have half a billion dollars laying around.鈥�
Duffy said other U.S. airlines, including United, Delta, JetBlue and Southwest, were offering $200 one-way fares for a limited time to travelers holding Spirit confirmation numbers and proof of purchase.
Airlines also stepped in to assist stranded Spirit crew members, he said, with some offering a preferential hiring process for former Spirit employees looking for work.
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