A Frontier Airlines plane near a Spirit Airlines plane at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport on May 16, 2022 in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.
Joe Raedle | Getty Images
Spirit Airlines shareholders finally voted Wednesday on a planned tie-up with Frontier Airlines, a deal that has been in crisis after a rival bid from JetBlue Airways this spring.
Spirit had postponed the vote four times as it struggled to gather enough shareholder support for the Frontier merger, which the carriers first announced in February.
Frontier told Spirit earlier this month that its latest sweetened cash and stock offer was its “best and final” offer. But Spirit still lacks shareholder support for the deal, according to a person familiar with the matter.
The meeting began Wednesday morning and went into recess until 4 pm ET. Polls are open until 4:15 PM ET and the airline plans to announce the results shortly thereafter.
A rejection of the Frontier deal would be a blow to the discount carriers that were planning to combine forces into a budget conglomerate and the nation’s fifth-largest carrier.
Spirit shareholders will vote only on the Spirit-Frontier transaction, and not on the rival offer from JetBlue, which spent weeks urging shareholders to reject the Frontier deal.
The vote could pave the way for Spirit to reach a deal with JetBlue, which is looking to buy the low-cost carrier and revamp its planes in JetBlue style, with seatback screens and more legroom. Talks are ongoing, according to a person familiar with the negotiations, but it’s still possible they could fall apart.
Spirit’s board has repeatedly rejected JetBlue’s advances, arguing that regulators were unlikely to approve the deal.
It is possible that neither deal will be done. Both transactions would face a major obstacle to the Justice Department’s blessing because the Biden administration has vowed to crack down on consolidation.
Executives from the three airlines said their preferred deal would help them grow quickly and better compete with the four major U.S. carriers (American, Delta, United and Southwest), which control about three-quarters of the domestic market.
Spirit, however, has raised concerns about a JetBlue takeover because of the New York-based carrier’s alliance with American in the Northeast, a partnership the Justice Department sued last year to undo .
Late last week, Frontier Airlines boosted its second-quarter earnings release and conference call at 4:30 p.m. Wednesday, shortly after Spirit’s meeting. It had previously been scheduled for Thursday.