Duffy blames Biden-Buttigieg team for Spirit Airlines collapse after blocked merger

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said Sunday that the collapse of Spirit Airlines followed former President Joe Biden's administration’s decision, alongside former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg and the U.S. Department of Justice, to block a proposed merger with JetBlue, after the airline ceased operations early Saturday morning and entered liquidation.

"The Joe Biden-Pete Buttigieg administration and DOJ tanked that deal," Duffy said on ABC’s "This Week." "Immediately after that, they filed for bankruptcy."

Duffy’s remarks came as Spirit halted all flights at approximately 3 a.m. Saturday, closed call centers and ticket counters and began what he described as an "orderly liquidation process," while federal officials and airlines moved to assist affected passengers.

Duffy said the shutdown left no operational support for travelers.

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"Spirit does not have airplanes in the air flying as of this morning," Duffy said. "If you have a flight scheduled with Spirit Airlines, don't show up at the airport. There will be no one here to assist you."

The Department of Transportation coordinated with major carriers to mitigate disruptions, with airlines offering capped fares and discounted tickets for displaced passengers.

Duffy said multiple airlines stepped in to stabilize pricing and capacity in the immediate aftermath.

"United, Delta, JetBlue and Southwest are capping their ticket prices," Duffy said. "It is normally going to be about $200 for a one-way ticket."

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Duffy tied the airline's collapse to the blocked merger between JetBlue and Spirit, which had been challenged by the Justice Department under the Biden administration.

"There was a proposed merger between JetBlue and Spirit and Joe Biden and Pete Buttigieg along with the Biden DOJ decided that they did not want that merger to take place," Duffy said.

He added that officials at the time framed the decision as beneficial to consumers.

"They bragged and said this was a victory for U.S. travelers who deserve lower prices and better choices," Duffy said. "This is not better for travelers. This is not better for pricing. This is not better for competition."

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Duffy said Spirit had faced financial instability prior to its shutdown, including multiple bankruptcy filings following the merger denial.

"Once the merger was denied in 2024, Spirit filed for bankruptcy immediately after the denial," Duffy said.

He emphasized that the war with Iran was not the primary cause of the airline’s failure.

"Spirit was in dire straits long before the war with Iran," Duffy said. "Their model wasn't working. They couldn't get to fiscal health."

"We oftentimes don't have a half a billion dollars laying around in a spare account that we can put into a bailout of an airline."

Fox News Digital reached out to Biden and Buttigieg for comment but did not immediately receive a response.