So Spirit Airlines went through bankruptcy. You probably heard about it. The yellow planes, the memes, the general chaos. It all came to a head in late 2025 when they filed Chapter 11 after the JetBlue merger fell apart. But here's what most people missed: they actually emerged from restructuring in early 2026 and they're... still flying? Sort of?
The Current State of Spirit
Let me paint the picture. Pre-bankruptcy Spirit operated about 200 routes from 90+ airports. Post-bankruptcy Spirit is down to roughly 120 routes from 60 airports. They cut basically everything that wasn't making money, which means a lot of mid-size city routes just vanished overnight. If you were flying Spirit from like, Indianapolis to Myrtle Beach? That's gone.
But here's whats interesting: the Florida and Texas routes mostly survived. FLL, MCO, TPA, DFW, IAH still have Spirit service to major destinations. The Caribbean routes are still there. And the pricing is, if anything, more aggressive than before because they're desperate to fill seats on the routes they kept.
Should You Actually Book Spirit Now?
I flew them post-bankruptcy last month (FLL to Cartagena, \$89 one-way) and honestly the experience was... the same as before. Same tiny seats, same no-frills everything, same yellow everything. The planes look the same, the crew was fine, and we landed on time. The bankruptcy didn't make the seats wider or the snacks free. It just made there be fewer routes.
The Real Question for Budget Flyers
If Spirit still serves your route, they're usually the cheapest option by \$30-80. And that math still works for short flights. But the reliability question is real now. They have fewer aircraft, thinner schedules, and if something goes wrong (weather delay, mechanical issue) there's less backup available. I wouldn't book Spirit for anything time-sensitive or for connections.
For Caribbean hops from Florida though? Still hard to beat on price. We flag Spirit deals in the member dashboard and honestly some of them are wild. Sub-$100 round trips to Colombia, Dominican Republic, Jamaica. Just pack light and set your expectations accordingly.
The Bottom Line
Spirit isn't dead. It's more like that friend who had a rough year and is trying to get back on their feet. Smaller, quieter, still a little chaotic, but functional. Book them for price-sensitive leisure trips where timing isn't critical, skip them for anything important, and always have a backup plan. Join Early Bird Air and we'll let you know which Spirit routes are actually reliable right now.