Airline News: Spirit Airlines Reportedly Buys Air Jamaica

Low-cost carrier Spirit Airlines has reportedly purchased Air Jamaica.

Jamaica’s Gleaner newspaper said the Air Jamaica Privatisation Committee recommended the sale to Indigo Partners and Oaktree Capital (both investors in Spirit Airlines) and sign off was to happen sign off on the deal is expected today.

The newspaper also reported that name change discussions were on the table -- Air Jamaica might be changed to Spirit of Jamaica.

Spirit is a privately owned low-cost airlines famous for its $9 fare club. The airline currently services 36 cities in the U.S., Latin America and the Caribbean.

© Cheapflights Ltd

Discount Airfare: Spirit's Flights to Cancun from $48

The Mexico travel deals know no end. Grab your bikini, pack your passport and head south for a vacation in the sun. With cheap flights and hotels constantly on sale, there's no better time to visit Mexico.

The latest airfare sale comes courtesy of Spirit Airlines. Flights to Cancun are as low as $48 round-trip, but you have to act fast because the Cancun flight sale ends this Friday, June 12, 2009.

Here are the details:

--  Purchase tickets at least 7 days in advance of travel
--  Travel is valid through Nov. 15, 2009 and there are no blackout dates (as far as we can tell)
--  The $48 fare good on Tuesday and Wednesday flights.

Spirit Airlines $5 Flights

Who said Cinco de Mayo is only celebrate for a day? Just because it's May 6th doesn't mean the party should end - at least that's what Spirit Airlines thinks.

Their latest gimmick is for all those who feel Mexico got cheated out of a month-long party. If you're a Spirit $9 Fare Club member, you can book yourself a $5 flight to Puerto Rico, the Bahamas, Guatemala, Jamaica, Peru, Colombia, Panama and many other destinations in the Caribbean and South America.

Spirit Airlines Offers Non-Stop Boston Flights to Atlantic City

If you’re in Boston and looking for flights to Atlantic City, you’re in the money.

Spirit Airlines, famous for its $9 Fare Club, is now providing daily service to Atlantic City, beginning on May 1st, 2009. With this addition, Boston Logan Airport (BOS) now boasts non-stop service to 71 destinations, which adds up to more than twice the number of any other New England airport.

With just a short flight (about an hour and a half) you can be on your way to strolling the boardwalk of the Jersey Shore, and try your luck at some of the seaside slot machines that makes this city so wonderfully akin to Vegas.

Discount Airfare: Spirit's $35 Promotion Ends Today

There are less than 24 hours left to save $35 with Spirit Airlines.

Book a flight by 11:59 p.m. EST on April 13 for travel between April 21 and Nov. 17. To get the $35 discount, enter 35HOURS in the promotion code box. This discount works for flights that are $49 each way or higher. 

We tested the promotion code for Memorial Day weekend from Boston to Atlantic City and didn’t see a price difference. However, when using the travel dates July 9 and July 13, the promo code did save us some cash.

Spirit Airlines Offers 2$ Sale

Imagine getting a Fort Lauderdale flight to the Bahamas for the price of your morning coffee.

If you’re a member of Spirit Airlines’ $9 Fare Club, get ready for some serious steals. The carrier has just announced $2 fares to members, and $20 fares to non-members. Fares are based on round-trip purchases, and the sale ends tonight at 11:59 p.m. ET.

Lucky No. 8: Spirit's $8 Fare Sale

Ok, we know it's typically lucky number 7, but given that the number 8 has dominated the news lately we had to make an exception.

If all good things comes in 8s, then Spirit's latest $8 promotion - the "Ochomama" - is going to appeal to travelers. And truth be told, we really like saying "Ochomama".

If you're a Spirit Airlines Fare Club member and you live in Florida, pack your bags and head south! Spirit flights from Fort Lauderdale to Jamaica, the Bahamas, the Dominican Republic and Colombia are $8 each-way.

Spirit Reinstates Passenger Fee for Buying Airline Tickets

Spirit Airlines resurrected a $4.90 each-way “passenger usage fee” for booking either online at the carrier’s Web site or via its toll-free reservations line. The move came after negotiations with the Department of Transportation (DOT) as to how the fee should be presented to passengers. 

When Spirit first introduced the fee last year, DOT spokesman Bill Mosley tells Cheapflights, “They were not including [it] in their base fare. The rule says that the fare presented to customers should be he entire price to be paid. The only things that can be listed separately are government imposed fees that are assessed on a per-passenger basis.”

Mosley says the aim of the rule is straightforward: not to “confuse the passenger as to what the price is.”

Spirit Ads Under Fire for Sexist Tone

Sex sells, but is it too racy for air travel? That's the latest question currently being debated among the Association of Flight Attendants regarding Spirit Airlines' new ads.

Calling them “sexist and shameful,” Association of Flight Attendants President Deborah Crowley is demanding an immediate end to what the organization labels “demeaning and demoralizing advertising campaigns.”

But Spirit says the airline is just keeping up with the times.

Report: Spirit Pilots May Strike

The South Florida Sun-Sentinel is reporting that union pilots at Spirit Airlines may ask for permission to strike the discount airline.

In a separate statement, Spirit pilots represented by the Air Line Pilots Association just rejected a new contract proposal from management, one the union contends “would force deep concessions in pay, benefits, and work rules.”