Spirit Airlines Reports October 2012 Traffic

Miramar, Florida (November 14, 2012) – Spirit Airlines (NASDAQ: SAVE) today reported its preliminary traffic results for October 2012 and year-to-date 2012.

Traffic (revenue passenger miles) in October 2012 increased 25.4 percent versus October 2011 on a capacity (available seat miles) increase of 26.4 percent. Load factor for October 2012 was 87.3 percent, a decrease of 0.7 points as compared to October 2011. Spirit’s preliminary completion factor for October 2012 was 97.6 percent.

In October 2012, Spirit canceled 136 flights, or 19.9 million available seat miles (approximately 2.2% of October scheduled capacity), as a result of adverse weather conditions and airport closures in connection with Hurricane Sandy. The direct impact of the storm on October revenue due to canceled flights is estimated to be about $3 million, with a net pre-tax impact of approximately $2 million. “Beginning in late October, the storm tracked through the Caribbean and northward along the east coast to Boston, ultimately impacting the majority of our network for over a week, resulting in a significant decline in bookings. Following the storm, consumers in the New York and Atlantic City areas continue to be adversely impacted by the destruction. Many today are still suffering from the effects of the storm and do not have the ability, or the desire, to book their next vacation as they recover from lost time at work and focus on re-building that which was destroyed by the storm. Additionally, New York and Atlantic City are among the largest Fort Lauderdale gateway flow markets in our network causing the impact to spread beyond direct flights to the area. And, because we cater to discretionary leisure travelers and have a relatively short booking window, the impact of one-off natural disasters such as this exacerbates the residual impact. While the impact to October results was relatively minor, we estimate the revenue impact for the balance of the quarter will be between $30 and $35 million,” said Ben Baldanza, Spirit’s President and Chief Executive Officer. “Our hearts go out to those who continue to deal with the devastation left in the wake of Hurricane Sandy. I want to thank all the members of our Spirit team who worked to quickly restore our operations and continue to work to re-accommodate our customers affected by the storm.”