Washington, D.C. — With opening arguments set to begin on Tuesday in the Department of Justice Antitrust Division’s case against the $3.8 billion JetBlue-Spirit merger, the American Economic Liberties Project, Business Travel Coalition, Consumer Federation of America, and the National Consumers League released the following statements.

“While JetBlue’s $3.8 billion merger with Spirit might be a profitable transaction for airline executives, it’s a raw deal for passengers, workers, and communities,” said William J. McGee, Senior Fellow for Aviation & Travel at the American Economic Liberties Project. “Allowing JetBlue to gobble up an Ultra Low Cost competitor and accelerate concentration in the aviation industry will eliminate routes, reduce flight frequencies, hurt workers, and immediately drive up fares nationwide — the last of which JetBlue’s own internal documents even confirmed. The fact is that the mere presence of an Ultra Low Cost Carrier like Spirit drives down ticket prices on all the routes it serves. We hope to see Judge Young rule to block this harmful merger in order to protect us all from an even more consolidated airline industry.”

Business Travel Coalition Chairman Kevin Mitchell stated, “Economist Thomas Sowell once reminded us, ‘There are no solutions, there are only trade-offs.’ In the case of the JetBlue-Spirit merger, the trade-offs are unmistakably against consumers, threatening to stifle competition and burdening them with higher fares and fewer choices. Judge William Young should firmly reject this ill-conceived merger proposal in an already concentrated national airline marketplace.”

“Airline mergers like this one lead to higher fares, fewer consumer choices, and shoddy customer service,” said Erin Witte, Director of Consumer Protection for Consumer Federation of America. “We urge the court to decisively block this harmful, anti-competitive merger to avoid making air travel even worse.”

“For decades, airlines have claimed that mergers would lower costs and boost performance. The past 30 years, and the last three years especially, have shown that this could not be further from the truth,” said National Consumers League Vice President of Public Policy, Telecommunications and Fraud John Breyault. “At a time of record industry consolidation, we have seen nothing to suggest that this merger would be any better from the previous mistakes.”

JetBlue Airways announced its intention in July 2022 to acquire Spirit Airlines for $3.8 billion, marking a significant shift in the US aviation landscape, which is already more concentrated than it has ever been thanks to a wave of unchallenged mergers over the last 20 years. Earlier this year, the Department of Justice sued to block the merger, with the Department of Transportation endorsing the DOJ’s efforts — an unprecedented move for the agency. Both airlines, major players with hundreds of daily flights, are set to merge, raising concerns about competition, especially since they directly compete on 51 routes throughout the country, but mainly in the Northeast and Florida. The proposed merger has triggered alarm bells about fare hikes and reduced seat availability, with internal documents from JetBlue suggesting significant price increases of up to 40%. With major airlines already dominating the market, this merger threatens to tilt the balance of the market even further, leading to higher prices, reduced services in several key cities, and numerous concerns for workers.

For more information on the harms of a JetBlue-Spirit merger, read our fact sheet.

Learn more about Economic Liberties here.

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The American Economic Liberties Project works to ensure America’s system of commerce is structured to advance, rather than undermine, economic liberty, fair commerce, and a secure, inclusive democracy. Economic Liberties believes true economic liberty means entrepreneurs and businesses large and small succeed on the merits of their ideas and hard work; commerce empowers consumers, workers, farmers, and engineers instead of subjecting them to discrimination and abuse from financiers and monopolists; foreign trade arrangements support domestic security and democracy; and wealth is broadly distributed to support equitable political power.