‘They’re for real now’: Spirit Airlines grows from a laughingstock to a formidable competitor
Its customer service and on-time performance ranged from bad to abysmal.
If Spirit showed up on any of the myriad lists that rank airline quality, it was probably dead last.
The funny thing is, passengers kept coming back. The airline was making money and growing. All the while, it was adding modern, more fuel-efficient aircraft to its fleet. Its workers were being trained (or retrained) to be customer-centric.
These days, about the only thing Spirit shares with its past is its name and its ultra-low- fare business model.
Spirit Airlines, hoping to capitalize on travel rebound, adding two new cities this summer
And, come June, Spirit will be the only folks in town who will fly you nonstop from Milwaukee to Los Angeles International.
Spirit announced the daily nonstop LAX service during a news conference Wednesday at Milwaukee Mitchell International Airport. The airline also announced that it will begin daily nonstop service in June between Milwaukee and Orlando and Milwaukee and Las Vegas.
Mann pointed out the irony of Spirit, with its ultra-low-fare model, taking over service to Los Angeles, a route “that the original Midwest Express flew.” The original Midwest Express was essentially an all-first class airline that by today’s industry standards would be considered ultra-luxurious.
might take some getting used to.
“I would describe the market as value-oriented,” Mann said. “Everyone’s value spectrum is different in terms of service and what they are willing to pay.
The Airline Quality Rating, an annual project produced jointly by researchers at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University and Wichita State University, has seen Spirit’s ranking rise from 2015 when it was absolute last.
In the rankings for 2019, Spirit had vaulted ahead of legacy carriers United and American. (The rankings for 2020 haven’t been released yet.)
None of that has been lost on the folks who run Milwaukee Mitchell.
“Spirit’s legendary low fares will make it even more affordable for people from all walks of life to fly to and from Milwaukee,” said Brian Dranzik, airport director.
“Attracting a new airline is a major accomplishment …,” said Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley. The airport is owned and operated by the county.
jtaschler@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter at @JoeTaschler or Facebook at facebook.com/joe.taschler.1.
