Are Ultra-Low-Cost Carriers in a ‘Perilous Time’?
Skift Take
The head of an industry trade group sounded the alarm for ultra-low-cost carriers as airlines like Spirit and Frontier face declining profits. However, other carriers in the industry have seen some success despite industry headwinds.
Spirit Airlines and Frontier Airlines haven’t been profitable in recent years. And now they’re making moves you wouldn’t expect from ultra-low-cost carriers — they’re bundling fares and offering a premium product.
But will it work?
“This is a perilous time for [ultra-low-cost]. We have a difficult environment right now,” said George Novak, the head of the National Air Carrier Association, a trade group that oversees smaller and ultra-low-cost airlines, at an industry event in Washington, D.C. on Tuesday.
Just hours earlier at the same event, United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby said ultra-low-cost carriers' “fatal flaw” was that they’ve focused too much on costs instead of profitability.
