Budget Spirit Airlines shuts down engines for good after operating for 34 years

Spirit Airlines – the feisty upstart that relied on irreverent ads and deep discount fares to compete against major carriers for more than three decades — turned off its engines for the final time early Saturday morning. Company officials announced that the airline – which once operated hundreds of daily flights on its bright yellow planes and employed over 17,000 staffers—was shutting operations “effective immediately” after failing to secure a $500 million bailout from the federal government.