JetBlue admits defeat in quest to merge with Spirit Airlines
Gary NoakesJetBlue has abandoned plans to create the fifth-biggest airline in the US by merging with rival Spirit Airlines.
The $3.8 billion deal has been formally ditched after a US judge blocked it in January, saying it would be anti-competitive.
“We believed this merger was worth pursuing because it would have unleashed a national low-fare, high-value competitor to the Big Four airlines,” said Joanna Geraghty, JetBlue chief executive.
JetBlue flies from Heathrow, Gatwick and Edinburgh and would have had a much bigger network of connections in the US had the deal been approved.
The combined carrier would have served 77 million passengers with a fleet of more than 450 aircraft.
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