Spirit Airlines chaos could be big loss for budget travelers as they fight for answers

Spirit Airlines' abrupt shutdown up of the summertime question play is stoking fears of higher fares — and raising questions astir what comes next.

The airline, which had much than 4,000 home flights scheduled ​through May 15, abruptly halted each flights connected Saturday morning.

"This is tremendously disappointing and not the result immoderate of america wanted," Spirit CEO Dave Davis said successful a institution statement.

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"All flights booked with recognition and debit cards are successful the process of being automatically refunded," a spokesperson for Spirit antecedently told FOX Business. 

"The bulk of guests who booked question connected a recognition oregon debit paper were refunded arsenic of Saturday evening, with a tiny percent continuing to process. Refunds whitethorn instrumentality clip to look successful a guest’s account."

Spirit Airlines' abrupt shutdown is fueling fears that already-high fares could get higher. (Joe Raedle)

Travelers who purchased tickets done third-party vendors volition request to scope retired to those providers to petition refunds, the hose said, FOX Business reported.

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Passengers who booked utilizing vouchers, question credits oregon loyalty points look looming questions.

"Without Spirit, there's nary crushed for airfare to ever travel down."

The quality of Spirit's demise was "a stroke to aerial travelers crossed the United States," according to Lee Abbamonte, a New York-based question expert.

Abbamonte told Fox News Digital that Spirit "almost singlehandedly kept pricing competitory successful galore markets successful the country."

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"With Spirit being nary longer viable, determination is nary unit connected bequest carriers to support prices lower, particularly with skyrocketing substance costs," helium said, citing accrued substance prices tied to the warfare with Iran.

Fox News Digital reached retired to Spirit Airlines for comment.

Passengers who purchased tickets done third-party vendors volition request to scope retired to those providers to petition refunds, according to the airline. (Joe Raedle)

"This is going to person a ripple effect crossed airfare pricing each implicit the country," helium said. 

"You whitethorn not similar Spirit … but you cannot reason with their pricing model," added Abbamonte. 

"Without Spirit, there's nary crushed for airfare to ever travel down, particularly with substance costs skyrocketing."

"This is going to person a ripple effect crossed airfare pricing each implicit the country."

Hunter Shkolnik, a New York-based lawyer and aviation expert, told Fox News Digital that helium expects fares to spell up "across the board."

"Legacy airlines triumph here, fund travelers lose," helium said. "Spirit kept prices honest, and without it, less choices and higher baseline fares are astir inevitable."

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Michael Boyd, the Colorado-based CEO of aviation consultancy Boyd Group International, disagreed astir fare hikes. He told Fox News Digital that the concerns are "absolute nonsense."

"By this point, Spirit is not truly a factor," helium said. "They’re not successful a batch of large markets and the ones they are successful are mostly focused successful Florida."

"This is tremendously disappointing," Spirit CEO Dave Davis said amid the abrupt cancellations. (Joe Raedle)

Major U.S. airlines — including United, Delta, JetBlue and Southwest — are capping their rebooking fares. 

Affected Spirit customers whitethorn beryllium eligible for one-way tickets priced astatine astir $200, provided they tin verify their archetypal booking, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said successful a Saturday greeting property conference.

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"I would urge that if you person a summons with Spirit that you really effort to publication with these airlines arsenic soon arsenic possible," Duffy said. 

American and Delta are besides offering reduced fares connected high-traffic Spirit routes, portion Allegiant has frozen prices connected overlapping routes. Frontier is offering up to 50% disconnected basal fares done May 10, Duffy wrote connected X.

Travel experts accidental Spirit Airlines played a cardinal relation successful keeping fares competitive. (Chris O'Meara/AP)

Spirit passengers had mixed reactions to the shutdown.

"My happening with Spirit was your summons could beryllium $75, but by the clip you [added] your bag, spot and state for the plane, you [were] paying $300 similar immoderate different airline," 1 idiosyncratic said.

"The lone happening Spirit was bully for is if you were flying with the apparel connected your backmost and thing else," different chimed in.

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"The mode hose prices person doubled overnight due to the fact that of Spirit shutting down," a 3rd X idiosyncratic wrote. "Legit it's excessively costly to virtually beryllium nowadays."

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Sophia Compton of FOX Business and Reuters contributed reporting.