Spirit Airlines CEO on carrier's collapse: 'We just kind of ran out of runway'

A Spirit Airlines plane sits parked at Hollywood Burbank Airport on April 16, 2026 in Burbank, California. Justin Sullivan | Spirit Airlines struggled for years, battered by larger, cash-rich airlines that copied its business model, failed mergers , higher costs and, most recently, a surge in jet fuel prices because of the war in Iran. It then faced the most unforgiving foe: time. "We just kind of ran out of runway," CEO Dave Davis said in an interview with CNBC on Monday. Spirit had hoped to exit bankruptcy , its second in less than a year, in mid-2026. Four days before the U.S. and Israel attacked Iran, a conflict that has sent fuel prices skyrocketing, Davis said he and his team were optimistic that the exit strategy could still work. But that was contingent on fuel prices moderating in April. They didn't. "Late March, early April, it became clear that it was going to be tough for us to get through," Davis said, noting that crude oil prices were above $100 a barrel. Time's up Other airlines leave printed instructions for travelers affected by the Spirit Airlines shut down at LaGuardia Airport's Marine Air Terminal in New York on May 2, 2026. Leslie Josephs/CNBC To try to save the company from collapsing, Davis and others inside Spirit talked to the Trump administration about a bailout . "We got connected with some various folks in government, including [Commerce] Secretary [Howard] Lutnick, through some contacts," he said. "These guys ... …