Spirit Airlines served a vital role as a check on full-price airlines.
It might not have been your favorite airline. In fact, it had the lowest rating on the annual American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI) survey, but the airline wasn’t built so you would like it, or even want to fly on it.
The airline used a no-frills, a la carte model. If you just needed to get somewhere cheaply, you could choose to not pay for a seat assignment, a carry-on, or checked bags, or even water, soda, snacks or alcohol.
“The rest of the industry — including JetBlue — has been forced to respond to Spirit’s innovations and low prices. Spirit estimates that when it starts flying a route, average fares fall by 17%; JetBlue estimates that when Spirit…