President Donald Trump said he would consider purchasing Spirit Airlines, which has been in trouble for a while “if we can get it at the right price.”
“Spirit is an airline that has had some trouble,” Trump said. “They have some good aircrafts, some good assets, and when the price of oil goes down, we’d sell it for a profit.”
Spirit Airlines, which is known for its low cost model with bare bones service, filed for bankruptcy last year. Since then, the carrier had cut jobs, and scaled back flights. According to a CNN report, an infusion of federal cash might not be enough to save the long-struggling airline.
The administration is in “very advanced discussions” over a federal bailout package for the airline. Marshall Huebner, an attorney for Spirit, said during a bankruptcy hearing Thursday. While he did not give details of the package, it could come to $500 million, a source familiar with the discussion told CNN.
READ: Spirit Airlines to cut jobs, scale back flights following bankruptcy (September 18, 2025)
Trump’s recent remarks suggest he is planning to go a step further with the government perhaps buying the airline outright.
The report says that while asked for clarification the White House criticized the Biden administration for blocking a proposed 2022 merger of Spirit and JetBlue Airways.
“Spirit Airlines would be on a much firmer financial footing had the Biden administration not recklessly blocked the airline’s merger with JetBlue,” White House Spokesman Kush Desai said in a statement. “The Trump administration continues to monitor the situation and overall health of the US aviation industry.”
“We are grateful for President Trump’s support and look forward to continuing to work with him and his administration on a solution that protects thousands of jobs, preserves and enhances competition and helps ensure Americans continue to have access to affordable fares,” said a statement from Spirit CEO Dave Davis, who did not address the idea of being purchased by the federal government.
READ: Airline investors might benefit from Spirit’s bankruptcy (September 3, 2025)
Spirit has recently warned it could be forced out of business due to higher jet fuel prices sparked by the war in Iran. It has been unprofitable since the COVID-19 pandemic.
Some members of Congress, airline CEOs, and analysts believe even a bailout would be a bad idea. Republican Senators Ted Cruz and Tom Cotton as well as Democratic Senator Elizabeth Warren have expressed concerns that the government is throwing taxpayer money at a solution that will not save the airline long-term.
Trump’s Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy also expressed doubts about a bailout on Tuesday. “What we don’t want to do is put good money after bad, and there’s been a lot of money thrown at Spirit, and they haven’t found their way into profitability,” he told Reuters. “And so would we just forestall the inevitable and then own that?”