JetBlue and Spirit Call Off $3.8 Billion Merger Agreement After Losing Antitrust Lawsuit

JetBlue Airways and Spirit Airlines on Monday said they are ending their agreement to merge, weeks after losing a federal antitrust lawsuit that challenged the deal.

The CEOs of the two carriers cited regulatory hurdles in ending their merger agreement.

A federal judge in January sided with the Justice Department and blocked JetBlue’s attempted takeover of budget carrier Spirit. In his ruling, Judge William Young said JetBlue’s takeover of Spirit would “harm cost-conscious travelers who rely on Spirit’s low fares.” The airlines had argued that they needed to combine to better compete with the larger airlines that control most of the U.S. market.

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