A federal court blocked a proposed merger between JetBlue and Spirit Airlines after the federal government sued the airlines to prevent the former airline from purchasing the latter one.
Judge William G. Young of the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts ruled in favor of the Justice Department, which argued the merger would hurt competition in the airline industry in its lawsuit filed in March 2023.
“The Court has made its best attempt, applying the law to the evidence in this case, to predict the future of a dynamic market recovering from the COVID-19 pandemic, in markedly uncertain times. For the reasons set forth above, therefore, the Court rules that the proposed acquisition violates Section 7 of the Clayton Act,” Young wrote in his decision, permanently enjoining the merger.
JetBlue said it disagreed with the court’s ruling and argued it had “removed any reasonable anti-competitive concerns” the DOJ may have had with its lawsuit. The airline also said it would review the decision and evaluate its next legal step in a statement to the Washington Examiner.
“We disagree with the U.S. District Court’s ruling. We continue to believe that our combination is the best opportunity to increase much needed competition and choice by bringing low fares and great service to more customers in more markets while enhancing our ability to compete with the dominant U.S. carriers. JetBlue’s termination of the Northeast Alliance and commitment to significant divestitures have removed any reasonable anti-competitive concerns that the Department of Justice raised,” JetBlue said in a statement.
“We are reviewing the court’s decision and are evaluating our next steps as part of the legal process,” the statement concluded.
The Justice Department argued in its lawsuit filed last year that the merger would hurt the airline industry by “eliminating Spirit’s aggressive, disruptive business model.”
“JetBlue’s proposed acquisition of Spirit would further increase the risk of coordinated behavior by eliminating Spirit’s aggressive, disruptive business model from the marketplace and by placing all of Spirit’s planes and crews under JetBlue’s control,” the Justice Department said in a filing.
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JetBlue and Spirit Airlines had argued the merger would expand JetBlue’s “unique offering — where customers do not have to choose between a low fare and a great experience,” in a release in March 2023.
The Justice Department’s court victory on Tuesday comes months after it successfully broke up JetBlue’s Northeast Alliance with American Airlines, arguing the agreement violated antitrust laws.