Spirit Airlines expands connections its Puerto Rico with five new U.S. routes
Spirit Airlines has expanded its services in Puerto Rico by setting up connections at Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport (SJU).
The budget airline announced the expansion in an official news release on May 5.
The new nonstop routes will connect Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport with Atlanta, Chicago, Dallas, and Detroit. The fifth stop of Hartford, Connecticut, will add a nonstop flight beginning in June.
The new flights to the island are adding 213,304 additional airline seats to the inventory available during 2023.
To ensure they are prepared for summer travel to the region, Spirit also announced they will be increasing current SJU flight routes.
Five daily flights to Orlando (MCO) and two daily flights to Baltimore (BWI), Fort Lauderdale (FLL) and Newark (EWR) have now been added to the airline’s flight offerings.
Bobby Schroeter, Senior Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer of Spirit Airlines, opened up about how the expansion is part of the airline’s ongoing relationship with the island.
“Our commitment to Puerto Rico stretches more than two decades, and it’s exciting for us to celebrate today with an expansion that grows our SJU service to the largest it’s ever been, now serving 16 nonstop destinations plus increased frequencies to key markets.”
He added. “We’re so thankful to the Puerto Rican community for embracing us, and we’re grateful for our incredible Spirit Family members in San Juan, Aguadilla & Ponce, and our valued airport partners.”
The expansion means more than additional passengers for Spirit. The new flight routes employ nearly 1,000 Puerto Ricans on the island across three airports and its aircraft maintenance facility in Aguadilla. This new expansion will also create about 80 new jobs in San Juan. The reveal of the additional routes also included announcing a donation to the Spirit Charitable
Foundation, which gives back to the community where many employees and their families live.
“We are excited about the economic and market growth these flights will create for Puerto Rico as a top travel destination in the Caribbean. Spirit’s decision to add new connections from five important hubs from the US and the increase in frequency of flights from four others, aligns with our vision and strategy to further develop or air access and strengthen the overall tourism activity, one of the key sectors of our economy,” said Carlos Mercado Santiago, Executive Director of the Puerto Rico Tourism Company.
For flight schedules to Puerto Rico or Spirit’s other destinations, visit Spirit.com.
Martie Bowser is a journalist and public relations professional in Charlotte, NC. She enjoys amplifying the voices of POC and women that fill a void within their community. Her favorite things to cover include “person of interest” pieces, small business highlights, pop culture commentary, entertainment features, and everything about Beyoncé. Her bylines can be found in Blavity, Black Excellence, Signature Bride, Black Wall Street Times, and HipHop Weekly.
This story was originally published May 11, 2023 at 7:27 AM with the headline "Spirit Airlines expands connections its Puerto Rico with five new U.S. routes."