Judge blocks JetBlue-Spirit merger in a major win for Biden's Justice Department
A federal judge blocked JetBlue Airways’ purchase of budget rival Spirit Airlines, a major win for Biden’s Justice Department, which sued to stop the merger, alleging it would drive up fares for some of the most price-sensitive consumers.
A federal judge blocked JetBlue Airways’ purchase of budget rival Spirit Airlines, a major win for Biden’s Justice Department, which sued to stop the merger, alleging it would drive up fares for some of the most price-sensitive consumers.
JetBlue’s proposed $3.8 billion purchase of discounter Spirit would have produced the country’s fifth-largest airline, a deal the carriers said would help them better grow and compete against larger rivals like Delta and United.
The decision, handed down Tuesday by a federal judge in Boston, marks a victory for a Justice Department that has aggressively sought to block deals it views as anticompetitive.
A JetBlue airliner lands past a Spirit Airlines jet on taxi way at Fort Lauderdale Hollywood International Airport on April 25, 2022, in Florida.Joe Cavaretta / South Florida Sun Sentinel via Getty Images file“JetBlue’s plan would eliminate the unique competition that Spirit provides—and about half of all ultra-low-cost airline seats in the industry—and leave tens of millions of travelers to face higher fares and fewer options,” the Justice Department alleged in its lawsuit in March.
Spirit shares plunged after the decision was announced and were down 60% shortly after 1 p.m. ET. JetBlue shares were down about 5% after briefly spiking.
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