Spirit Airlines (Spirit) has released its third-quarter 2023 financial results. The company reported a net loss of US$157.6 million, excluding special items; adjusted net loss for the third quarter 2023 was US$149.8 million. For the third quarter 2023, Spirit reported a pre-tax loss of US$203.6 million and a pre-tax margin of negative 16.2%. Adjusted pre-tax loss for the third quarter was US$193.5 million and adjusted pre-tax margin was negative 15.4%. The company’s load factor was 81.4%.
Total operating revenues for the third-quarter 2023 were US$1.3 billion, a decrease of 6.3% compared to the third quarter 2022. Total revenue per ASM (TRASM) was 9.14 cents, a decrease of 17.4% compared to third-quarter 2022 on 13.5% more capacity.
On a per passenger flight segment basis, compared to the same period in 2022, total revenue per passenger flight segment (segment) for the third quarter 2023 decreased 13.5% to US$116.43. Compared to the third-quarter 2022, fare revenue per segment decreased 27.8% to US$48.73 and non-ticket revenue per segment increased about one percent to US$67.703.
Ted Christie, Spirit’s President and Chief Executive Officer commented on the third-quarter results: “Softer demand for our product and discounted fares in our markets led to a disappointing outcome for the third-quarter 2023. We continue to see discounted fares for travel booked through the pre-Thanksgiving period. And, unfortunately, we have not seen the anticipated return to a normal demand and pricing environment for the peak holiday periods. Given these continued trends, we are evaluating our growth profile and our competitive position. We have already taken the first steps by modifying the cadence of our aircraft deliveries through the end of the decade and slowing our capacity growth in the near-term. We continue to believe merging with JetBlue and creating a viable competitor to the big four Us-airlines is in the best
interest of consumers, team members and shareholders. We are prepared to make the necessary strategic shifts to enable Spirit to compete effectively in this new demand backdrop.” (£1.00 = US$1.21at time of publication).