Guess What the AP Did NOT Mention in Their Story About Spirit Airlines Going Out of Business

Doug P. | 9:12 AM on May 02, 2026

Spirit Airlines has gone out of business, which means that somewhere in the neighborhood of 15,000 jobs will be lost.

This Associated Press story caught a lot of attention, not for what is in the report, but rather what isn't:

Spirit Airlines, an impish upstart that shook the industry with its irreverent ads and deep discount fares, announced Saturday that it has gone out of business after 34 years. https://t.co/vs6wKRCfi4
— The Associated Press (@AP) May 2, 2026

We read through the entire story but still didn't see the whole story.

Any other details about the situation worth mentioning? https://t.co/gO2H0kLHic
— Bonchie (@bonchieredstate) May 2, 2026

What isn't mentioned? Well, pretty much the reason Spirit ended up going under:

Nowhere in this article do they mention the Biden administration stopped a merger that might have saved the airline and that Democrats did a victory dance over it.

This is the most pervasive media bias. It’s not the outright lies. It’s what they purposely omit. https://t.co/gO2H0kLHic
— Bonchie (@bonchieredstate) May 2, 2026

This is how the AP summed up the last few years for Spirit, all while skipping that not-so-small detail:

Spirit has struggled financially since the COVID-19 pandemic, weighed down by rising operating costs and growing debt. By the time it filed for Chapter 11 protection in November 2024, Spirit had lost more than $2.5 billion since the start of 2020.
The budget carrier sought bankruptcy protection again in August 2025, when it reported having $8.1 billion in debts and $8.6 billion in assets, according to court filings.
Supporters of a rescue including labor unions representing Spirit’s pilots, flight attendants and ramp workers said a collapse would put thousands of Americans out of work and hurt consumers by reducing airline competition and increasing airfares. About 17,000 jobs could be impacted, according to Spirit lawyer Marshall Huebner.