nsx

Reduced competition should increase fares.

WSJ News Alert: Frontier Group, Spirit Airlines Merge in $6.6 Billion Deal

ulmguy

Or F9 and NK could eliminate duplicated routes and use that capacity to compete meaningfully on even more WN routes.

rsteinmetz70112

I don't find they have that much overlap, and their frequency will still be a problem, unless that changes.

NoStressHere

That would be my #1 reason for not flying certain carriers. No alternative options when a flight is cancelled is a no go for me.

beyondhere

It could be a challenger to WN but depends. Back in 2018, Frontier added odd ball routes like PHL-BHM, while Spirit didn't. I believe they both flew PHL-ATL, a WN route where WN isn't that strong, although Frontier was less than daily. If the new Frontier/Spirit adopts more of the Frontier style of routes, seasonal 4x weekly like PHL-BHM, then no big deal to WN in the East/Midwest. But, if it decides rather than run routes like PHL-BHM, PHL-SAV, it will focus on PHL-ATL frequency, that could make it tight for WN. NK's model allowed more connections. I remember missing a PHL-DFW flight on Spirit and I was accommodated on a PHL-ATL-DFW. With Frontier, it ran a PHL-DFW for a short while but had no connecting options. If the new route map has a lot of random flights without connections, there won't be a strengthened route network necessarily.

If it splits DC with a lot of random IAD routes, no big deal to WN. If it focuses on alternate airports like ISP, TTN, ACY, no big deal for WN. But if it loads up on frequency out of ATL or BWI to destinations that WN flies, a bigger problem for WN.

futuramadramallama

I think Southwest and Spirit/Frontier are actually very different types of carriers, almost fundamentally so. Anecdotally, Southwest has some of the highest fares in the market, even higher than some legacies; Spirit/Frontier have some of the lowest. Southwest has the most generous baggage policy, and change/cancel/standby policy. Spirit/Frontier has the least.

That said, it's possible that they still attract the same type of customer. But I guess my hypothesis (at least atm) is the merger will affect the legacies (or Allegiant) far more than the likes of Southwest.

ATLflyer2017

I think all the legacy carriers will be impacted by this merger.
Any route that Spirit or Frontier flies out of ATL is automatically much cheaper on Delta because obviously they feel the need to compete. It will be interesting to see what happens. Fare wars will happen.

PAX62

Now there is just one other airline to avoid at all cost when WN is not an option...not two.

dragond

NK and F9 compete on cost, not necessarily on service or product.

smmrfld

...and B6 now makes things more interesting.

m907

Their policies are almost as unfriendly as Spirit's, so it makes sense.

rsteinmetz70112

Back in 2014 or so I heard that Frontier was going to take over 16 gates in the ATL D concourse that Southwest was giving up as Southwest reduced their flights in Atlanta as part of the Airtran merger. They were going to make Atlanta a sort of Eastern hub for Frontier but somehow Delta prevented that from happening. I don't know the details but it may have been related to the deal Southwest made with Delta to give Delta all the 717s.

zeus2120

Frontier and Spirit could offer me free nonstop tickets to any destination and I wouldn't accept. But I do think it can impact Southwest as they flood the market with "cheap" seats. Perfect example is in my home city of Cleveland. We get 1 daily UA flight to MCO and 1 weekly WN flight to MCO (Saturday). F9 and NK have up to 6 nonstop flights a day to MCO. The market is flooded with low fares so the legacy carriers aren't even competing in those markets.

LegalTender

WN growth at DEN makes it a stakeholder in any bidding war. Frontier wants to add 14 "ground boarding gates" at the east end of Concourse A. It would allow for boarding from front and rear doors of the planes.

JetBlue proposes removing some seats on Spirit's planes. "The most legroom in coach" could go up against "Bags Fly Free."