US ULCCs: Spirit Airlines-Frontier merger still distant

On occasion, discussion in the US market place turns to consolidation, and whether there are any remaining potential combinations left in the country's mature aviation space. After a CEO change at Spirit two years ago, speculation mounted that the stage was being set for a tie-up between it and the fellow ULCC Frontier.

Spirit Airlines and Frontier Airlines have both evolved during the past couple of years. Each airline has worked to improve its operational performance and customer sentiment to varying degrees. Combined, those airlines could arguably reach a certain level of scale more quickly, but for now, it appears that each company is planning to chart its own course in the US market.

The situation that prevailed for Spirit and Frontier a couple of years ago remains in place - each company is at varying stages of its ULCC journey, and is approaching the US marketplace with a slightly different strategy.