Spirit Airlines (NK, Fort Lauderdale International) has announced the furlough of approximately 270 pilots, effective November 1, 2025. In addition, the company is downgrading about 140 captains on October 1.

The decisions were taken “to ensure we operate as efficiently as possible as part of our efforts to return to profitability” and align staffing with the flight schedule, it said in a statement sent to ch-aviation.

Spirit Airlines filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in November 2024. It emerged from it the following March.

ch-aviation data shows Spirit Airlines operates a fleet of 215 aircraft, including sixty-three A320-200s, ninety-one A320-200Ns, twenty-nine A321-200s, and thirty-two A321-200NXs.

At the end of the first quarter of 2025, Spirit Airlines reported a USD10.9 million net loss. The affected pilots represent about 25% of its workforce, and are unionised under the Air Line Pilot Association (ALPA).

This is the second pilot furlough the company has conducted in 2025. On January 31, it furloughed about 200 pilots.