Spirit Airlines

From Clippert Trucking Company to Charter One Airlines

The company began in 1964 as Clippert Trucking Company. In 1974, it changed its name to Ground Air Transfer, Inc. In 1983, Ned Homfeld founded Charter One Airlines in Macomb County, Michigan, as a Detroit-based charter tour operator offering travel packages to destinations including Atlantic City, Las Vegas, and the Bahamas.

1990s: Spirit Airlines, headquarters moved to Florida

In May 1992, the company introduced McDonnell Douglas DC-9 and McDonnell Douglas MD-80 jet aircraft and changed its name to Spirit Airlines. Spirit expanded from charter operations into scheduled service on June 1, 1992, with flights between Detroit and Atlantic City. Flights from Boston and Providence to Atlantic City followed on June 15. Through 1994, Spirit added scheduled service to Orlando, Fort Lauderdale, and St. Petersburg, Florida, Atlantic City and Fort Myers, Florida, and Philadelphia.

Spirit initially maintained its headquarters in the Kennedy Building in Eastpointe, Michigan, formerly East Detroit, in Metro Detroit. In December 1999, the airline moved its headquarters to Miramar, Florida. Before selecting Miramar, Spirit also considered Atlantic City and Detroit.

In the summer of 1994, Spirit canceled tickets for 1,400 customers following an overbooking incident. According to the airline, the issue resulted from incorrect instructions provided to travel agents, which caused some tickets to be treated as invalid despite customers having paid for them. In response to criticism, Spirit stated that it would accommodate all ticketed passengers, including by booking them on competing airlines if necessary.

In 1996, Janet Patton became Spirit Airlines' first female pilot. She became the airline's first female captain in 1998.

2000s: Baldanza, ultra low-cost carrier, Caribbean

In 2005, Ben Baldanza was hired as president. Following an investment by Indigo Partners in 2006, Baldanza became CEO and assumed a larger role in the airline's operations and strategy. Under Baldanza, Spirit adopted an ultra-low-cost carrier business model modeled in part on Ireland's Ryanair, emphasizing very low base fares supplemented by additional fees for nearly every service.

While strategy received significant media criticism, the airline continued to expand its customer base and revenue from optional services. Spirit also became known for advertising campaigns and promotional fares that used provocative humor and double entendres, including its "MILF" promotion, which stood for "Many Islands, Low Fares".

Spirit rapidly expanded its network throughout the 2000s, including service to destinations in the United States and the Caribbean, and filed applications for additional international routes, but the airline's focus on high aircraft utilization in an effort to keep operating costs down contributed to weak operational reliability and limited recovery options during disruptions.

The airline also faced regulatory and labor developments, including a 2000 Federal Aviation Administration fine for aircraft marking and placarding violations, and a 2010 pilot strike that temporarily grounded operations from June 10 to 18.

2010s: Increased competition, two CEO changes

Spirit Airlines introduced a fee for carry-on baggage in 2010, the first U.S. airline to do so. Other U.S. ultra-low-cost carriers, including Allegiant Air and Frontier Airlines, later adopted similar charges. In 2012, the airline faced public criticism after declining to refund a fare to a terminally ill military veteran who had purchased a nonrefundable ticket. Spirit later issued an apology, refunded the fare, and made a donation to the Wounded Warrior Project.

During this period, Spirit faced increased competition from basic economy fares introduced by the legacy carriers, which incorporated elements of the ULCC model by offering low base fares supplemented with fees. Delta Air Lines introduced basic economy fares in 2012, and by the end of the decade all of the U.S. legacy carriers had implemented similar fare products. The strategy proved effective, as many passengers shifted toward legacy carriers when basic economy fares were competitively priced, drawn by broader route networks, higher frequency, and perceptions of better reliability and service.

Former AirTran Airways CEO Robert Fornaro succeeded Baldanza as CEO in 2016 and introduced initiatives aimed at improving operational performance and customer service, including collaboration with the Disney Institute. During this period, Spirit continued to expand its network and maintained its ancillary fee-based pricing model. By 2017, Spirit's on-time performance had improved compared with earlier years, ranking among U.S. carriers by that metric.