A version of the following article appeared in the May 4, 2026, edition of The Charlotte Ledger, an e-newsletter with local business-y news and insights for Charlotte, N.C.
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After Spirit’s collapse, JetBlue announces its return to CLT after pulling out in 2024; 3 flights a day to Fort Lauderdale
JetBlue will return to Charlotte in July after a two-year absence. (Photo: Shutterstock)
by Tony Mecia
With Spirit Airlines halting all its flights and liquidating – including the eight to 10 flights a day from Charlotte – JetBlue says it will help to fill some of the void by adding three daily flights from CLT.
JetBlue’s announcement Saturday came just hours after Spirit Airlines said it was shutting down nationally, effective immediately. It marks a return to CLT for JetBlue, which pulled out of Charlotte in 2024 after 18 years.
JetBlue will fly three nonstops a day between Fort Lauderdale and Charlotte, starting July 9. JetBlue’s flights in July start at $241 round-trip. American, which has five flights a day to Fort Lauderdale from Charlotte, was listing flights Sunday at $374 round-trip for the same dates.
Spirit flew two or three flights a day between Charlotte and Fort Lauderdale. As recently as last year, it flew to 16 destinations from Charlotte, but not all of them daily. Charlotte’s airport said Spirit accounted for just 1% of the airport’s operations.
JetBlue also announced other flights from Fort Lauderdale, which was a Spirit stronghold, including to international destinations such as Colombia.
High fuel costs have been bedeviling airlines. Spirit was in bankruptcy protection when the Iran conflict began in February and was unable to reach a deal with the federal government for a bailout.
Related Ledger article:
“JetBlue to end flights in Charlotte” (July 2024)