The White House is reportedly considering a plan to take over Spirit Airlines and use part of the bankrupt carrier’s fleet for military missions.
Under the proposal, President Trump would invoke the Defense Production Act to loan Spirit Airlines money for national defense purposes, CBS News reported on Friday.
The Pentagon would then use the budget airline’s “excess capacity for transporting troops, military cargo or other missions,” the outlet said, citing sources.
Spirit’s creditors would need to sign-off on the strategy.
The company, known for its bright-yellow planes and low-cost fares, has declared bankruptcy twice in the past two years.
Spirit’s financial turnaround plan has been facing uncertainty amid the rising cost of jet fuel prices due to the war in Iran.
The carrier projected fuel costs averaging about $2.24 per gallon in 2026 and $2.14 in 2027, as part of its plan to stay afloat, according to Reuters.
However, jet fuel prices are currently averaging $4.30 a gallon.
An attorney for Spirit Airlines warned during a bankruptcy hearing Thursday that the carrier may only have days left to operate, according to CBS News.
The company reportedly recently missed an interest payment, putting it in danger of a creditor initiating a default action against Spirit which could prompt the carrier to liquidate its assets.
Trump has recently expressed interest in bailing out Spirit.
“We’re thinking about doing it, helping them out and meaning bailing them out or buying it. I think we just buy it,” he told reporters in the Oval Office Thursday.
“We’d be getting it virtually debt free. They have some good aircraft, some good assets, and when the price of oil goes down, we’ll sell it for a profit,” the president added. The Trump administration is reportedly nearing a deal to lend Spirit as much as $500 million in exchange for a stake in the carrier, according to the Wall Street Journal.
The White House, Pentagon and Spirit Airlines did not immediately respond to The Post’s requests for comment.
White House spokesman Kush Desai told CBS News that reporting “about the mechanism or structure of any deal between the federal government and Spirit Airlines, unless officially unveiled by the Administration, should be regarded as speculation.”
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