Frontier Lacks Votes for Spirit Merger, Asks for Delay

The fight for Spirit Airlines continues and it looks like JetBlue has the upper hand for now. Frontier CEO Barry Biffle said in a letter made public Monday that his airline is “very far” from winning approval by Spirit shareholders, who are weighing a higher-priced buyout offer from JetBlue Airways. 

Frontier Airlines has asked Spirit Airlines to further delay a shareholder vote on their planned merger to drum up more support from investors, AP reports.

“As has been the case throughout this process, we remain committed to this transaction,” Frontier’s Biffle wrote. “However, should the Spirit Board of Directors conclude that it would instead desire to pursue an alternative transaction with JetBlue, we would appreciate being advised of that determination.” Spirit’s board has stood behind a February deal it struck with Frontier to join the two discount airlines.

Frontier is offering Spirit shareholders $4.13 in cash and about 1.9 shares of Frontier for every share of Spirit, or about $2.4 billion. JetBlue on the other hand is offering $33.50 per share in cash, and up to $34.15 per share including a closing delay fee, or about $3.7 billion.