JetBlue’s Spirit Deal Painted as Attempt to Eliminate Low-Cost Rival
- DOJ urges judge to block $3.8 billion deal in antitrust trial
- Companies say merger will disrupt airline market nationwide
The federal government sued last year to block the deal it says would kill JetBlue’s fastest growing competitor in the US and limit choices for passengers.
Photographer: Eva Marie Uzcategui/BloombergA top Spirit Airlines Inc. executive said the company initially viewed a $3.8 billion takeover offer from JetBlue Airways Corp. as a bid to eliminate a low-cost rival, the same conclusion reached by US regulators now trying to block the deal.
It appeared Spirit’s low-fare business model would be eliminated under JetBlue, Chief Executive Officer Ted Christie told a federal judge Tuesday in Boston on the first day of trial testimony in the antitrust lawsuit brought by the US Justice Department. “We were concerned this would be raised by regulators and wanted to point it out,” he said.