How can I find out if a Spirit flight is full?
Option #2: A few days before your flight, log in to the airline's website, provide the record locator for your ticket and try to change your seat. This will take you to a page showing all the available seats on your airline. You can count how many seats are still open to get an idea of how crowded your flight is.
There's likely to be a large crowd of people at the boarding gate, because Spirit flights are generally pretty full. As with travel on any airline, it's best to just sit and relax until your boarding zone is called.
Percent of on-time flights | Percent of canceled flights | |
---|---|---|
United Airlines | 78%. | 2%. |
Alaska Airlines | 77%. | 4%. |
Southwest Airlines | 74%. | 4%. |
Spirit Airlines | 68%. | 5%. |
Spirit Airlines resumes normal operations after IT issue | Reuters.
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- Check the Airline's Website or App (The Easy Way) ...
- Contact the Airline Directly (The Accurate Way) ...
- How To See the Best Seats on Any Flight (Bonus Tip)
The best-performing airlines for cancellations and delays may surprise you. Out of the nine carriers, Spirit Airlines was the best performing airline for delays, with an 18.1% flight delay rate (2,609 total).
It's undeniable: Americans love to hate Spirit Airlines. The airline is practically infamous for its bare bones service, tiny seats, and plenty of extra fees in exchange for cheap base fares.
Boarding closes at the following times for Spirit Airlines (NK) flights: 15 minutes before scheduled departure time for US domestic flights. 30 minutes before scheduled departure time for international flights to/from the US.
Don't reserve seats in advance
Reserving a seat in advanced online is always cheaper than choosing a seat when you get to the airport, but you'll have to pay either way. If you don't pay, they'll just assign you a random seat when you check in.
If Spirit Airlines cancels the flight, they must refund the price of ticket to passengers. But if you decide to voluntarily cancel your scheduled flight, you are not entitled to a refund.
What airline gets delayed the most?
On-time arrivals | Flights delayed | |
---|---|---|
American Airlines | 74% | 22% |
Delta Air Lines | 83% | 15.3% |
Frontier Airlines | 71% | 28% |
Hawaiian Airlines | 74% | 26% |
The most reliable airline of 2022
That makes Hawaiian Airlines our most reliable airline for 2022 in a landslide. Delta takes second place overall with a No. 2 finish in half of the performance metrics. Alaska finishes in third place due to a strong on-time percentage and low cancellation rate.

A trifecta of bad weather, IT outages, & staff shortages impacts Spirit Airlines. According to CNN, Spirit's horror show was a slow build. Over the previous week, a series of bad weather events had seen flight crews max out their allowable working hours.
Spirit has canceled more than 2,000 flights since Sunday due to a combination of staffing shortages, bad weather and technology problems.
When an airline seat takes off empty, the airline can never sell that seat again. So they're willing to take almost anything for it. They can deeply discount the fare hoping to sell it. They can make the seat available on points through its frequent flyer program.
The best time to book an airline flight is the prime booking window, which is 21 to 115 days in advance. Airfares generally average 5% of their lowest prices during this period.
Passengers may be required to buy an extra seat if they cannot fit into a single seat in their ticketed cabin, and/or unable to properly buckle their seatbelt using a single seatbelt extender (available upon request), and/or unable to lower both armrests without encroaching upon the adjacent seat or another customer.
This flight has an on-time performance of 66%. Statistically, when taking into consideration sample size, standard deviation, and mean, this flight is on-time more often than 4% of other flights. This flight has an average delay of 29 minutes with a standard deviation of 34.4 minutes.
Rank | Airline | Delay rate, 2022 |
---|---|---|
1 | Allegiant Air | 32.9% |
2 | Frontier Airlines | 32.7% |
3 | JetBlue | 31.6% |
4 | Spirit Airlines | 27.4% |
No, Spirit Airlines is not an unsafe airline. It has been rated as one of the safest airlines in the world. The airline has a strong safety record and takes all necessary precautions to ensure the safety of its passengers. However, most people claim it as a worst airline on the internet.
What are the negatives of Spirit?
Legroom is a few inches tighter than other airline seats, tray table and armrest are small, and seats do not recline. No free food or drink inflight. No inflight entertainment on seatback or in Spirit app.
The seats are literally the most uncomfortable plane seats I have sat in. They don't recline even 1 centimeter and the head rest is so large that your neck is bent forward for the entire flight. The seats do not recline. You must pay for your window seat selection even if there are plenty of open seats available.
Spirit Airlines
The share of bags lost, stolen, delayed, or damaged is 4.21 per 1,000 bags, which is similar to Southwest Airlines.
You will need to print out your boarding pass after checking in, or download the mobile app (iOS or Android). You can also check in at the self-service kiosks at the airport and print out the pass for $2. A $10 fee is charged if you print out boarding passes via an agent at the airport.
Depending on the requirements of airport authorities, you will need to present a mobile boarding pass, a paper boarding pass printed out by you or a paper boarding pass picked up from the check-in desk.
Checked Bags: Yes
Solid food items (not liquids or gels) can be transported in either your carry-on or checked baggage.
If Spirit flies the route you're looking to buy, it's worth doing some price comparison to see how a Big Front Seat would stack up against a standard economy ticket on another airline. But it's important to stress that the seat is all you get: No free drink (not even water), no charging, and no in-flight entertainment.
If you're buying a Saver fare and don't like the choice of seats, simply click on “Skip Seats” and you'll be assigned seats for free during check-in, which may include seats towards the front of the plane.
Spirit will randomly assign you a seat at check-in for free, but we can't guarantee that you'll get to sit with your friends or family.
"They are only legally obligated to refund money or offer new flights. They are not legally obligated to pay for a passenger's hotel, a new flight on a different airline, or any other accommodations, if something goes wrong."
Is a backpack free on Spirit?
One personal item that fits entirely in the smaller sizer box (like a purse, small backpack, etc.) is included with your ticket. Another personal item or anything larger like a standard carry-on or checked bag will need to be paid for.
It does not allow the passenger to cancel a reservation or change the date or time of the flight once a passenger is marked as a no-show. Missing a non-refundable flight on Spirit means no refund, no changes, and no rescheduling of the flight.
According to data gathered by the Bureau of Transportation Statistics, the best time to fly is between 6 and 7 a.m. Flights with scheduled departures in that timeframe arrived just 8.6 minutes late, on average. Meanwhile, flights that take off before 6—or between 7 and 8 in the morning—are fairly punctual, too.
- Japan Airlines, 88 percent.
- LATAM Airlines, 86.31 percent.
- Delta Air Lines, 83.63 percent.
- Avianca SA, 48 percent.
- Emirates, 81.30 percent.
- United Airlines, 80.46 percent.
- Qatar Airways, 78.32 percent.
- American Airlines, 78.29 percent.
Spirit Airlines is Certified as a 3-Star Low-Cost Airline for the quality of its airport and onboard product and staff service.
So what are the cheapest days to fly? Typically, Tuesday, Wednesday, or Saturday is the cheapest day to fly. If you can structure your travel schedule around these days, these will likely be the best days to fly – both for a lower cost and a less-hectic airport experience.
Most weeks of the year, Fridays are the busiest days to fly, and Tuesdays are the least busy.
After an effort to merge with Frontier Airlines failed, Spirit agreed in the summer to be acquired by JetBlue Airways. The deal is expected to close no later than the first half of 2024, pending regulatory approval after Spirit shareholders approved the merger Wednesday.
The rate of flight delays and cancellations rose this year over pre-pandemic 2019. Airlines have scaled back their schedules to give themselves more breathing room for routine disruptions. Fares were higher than 2019 this year but declined after the peak summer travel period.
Spirit Airlines Flight Cancellation Compensation
In the event of the cancellation of one of their flight, the airline is required to let the passengers know at least 14 days prior to departure. If Spirit Airlines failed to do so and was responsible for the cancellation, you may be entitled to compensation under EC261.
How do I get my money back from Spirit Airlines?
For any changes or cancellations, please contact us via phone. One of our Free Spirit specialists will be happy to help you. Refunds are allowed for reservations made 7 days (168 hours) or more prior to your departure, provided that you make the refund request within 24 hours of your initial reservation.
Spirit's A319 aircraft flies in a one class configuration with 145 seats of Economy Class. Spirit Airlines refers to their Economy Class as "Deluxe Leather" seats. Spirit's A319 aircraft feature seats with 28 inches of seat pitch - the least amount of space of all US domestic carriers.
December 1st - January 10th
One (1) paid checked item will be accepted per person. Additional checked items may be purchased on a first-come-first-serve basis. Overweight items are subject to overweight baggage charges beginning at 41 pounds (18 kg).
Rank | Airline | Delay rate, 2022 |
---|---|---|
1 | Allegiant Air | 32.9% |
2 | Frontier Airlines | 32.7% |
3 | JetBlue | 31.6% |
4 | Spirit Airlines | 27.4% |
Spirit will randomly assign you a seat at check-in for free, but we can't guarantee that you'll get to sit with your friends or family. You can purchase a seat assignment and choose the seat you really want. Seat assignments start at just $5 and vary according to specific routes and location in the aircraft.