Spirit Airlines Expands From Chicago O’Hare

US low-cost carrier Spirit Airlines is to double its network from Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport during the second half of this year with connections to five additional destinations. The company currently offers flights to Atlantic City, Ft Lauderdale, Las Vegas, Los Angeles and Myrtle Beach but between August and November will add direct flights to Boston, Dallas, Detroit, New York and Orlando.

The first of these new routes will open on August 18 with daily links to Boston and New York LaGuardia and twice daily services to Dallas Fort Worth International and Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County. A second daily rotation will be added on the New York route from September 7, while additional seasonal rotations to Boston and Dallas will also be added. The final new route, to Orlando, will commence on November 10 and will be operated on a daily basis.

Spirit Airlines has never been afraid of going head-to-head with rivals, believing that its ultra low-fares and low-cost business model will enable it to provide a profitable service and increase options for travellers. It will face intense competition on all five of these new routes, as the table above illustrates but expects to secure a sizeable share of the existing market, as well as stimulating demand. As the table below shows, the airline has been successful securing market share on its existing routes through its fare structure.

Alongside these new routes Spirit will also boost capacity on its existing flight between Chicago and Ft Lauderdale with the introduction of a fourth daily frequency from December 15. The carrier competes with American Airlines on this route and carried a 53 per cent share of the 445,000 O&D passengers that flew between the two destinations in the past year. This has been achieved by its ultra low-fares which at an average of $95 each way are a third of those offered by its competitor.

Away from Chicago, the low-cost carrier will introduce a twice daily route between Las Vegas and Portland, OR, from September 22. According to Port of Portland officials, Las Vegas is the most-travelled route from the Oregon airport with some 450,000 passengers traveling each year. Spirit will be competing directly with Alaska Airlines and Southwest Airlines, which each offer up to four flights per day. In the space of a year Spirit has grown from operating four departures a day to two destinations from McCarran International Airport in Las Vegas, to currently providing 14 flights to five destinations. As a popular business and leisure destination Spirit has been able to stimulate demand from price conscious travellers.