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JetBlue attempts hostile takeover of Spirit Airlines

JetBlue is asking Spirit shareholders to reject an 'inferior' merger deal with Frontier Airlines

JetBlue plane landing
Photo (c) Ryan Fletcher - Getty Images
JetBlue doesn't appear to be taking "no" for an answer. After Spirit Airlines rejected JetBlue's recent offer to merge in favor of a deal with Frontier Airlines, the jilted company decided to ask Spirit shareholders for their support.

In both a letter to Spirit’s board of directors and a special website designed to convince Spirit’s board, JetBlue told Spirit that it has filed a “Vote No” proxy statement that urges Spirit shareholders to vote against “the inferior, high risk, and low-value Spirit/Frontier transaction at Spirit’s upcoming special meeting.”

How badly does JetBlue want Spirit as one of its own? How about a $200 million reverse break-up fee as an incentive? 

Didn’t get a fair shake

JetBlue CEO Robin Hayes rolled out everything he could to convince Spirit that it was going in the wrong direction.

“JetBlue offers more value – a significant premium in cash – more certainty, and more benefits for all stakeholders. Frontier offers less value, more risk, no divestiture commitments, and no reverse break-up fee, despite more overlap on non-stop routes and their own regulatory challenges," Hayes wrote in his letter.

The thing that apparently irritates Hayes the most is that Spirit didn’t give JetBlue a fair or equal chance.

“The Spirit Board … rejected our proposal … without asking us even a single question about it. The Spirit Board based its rejection on unsupportable claims that are easily refuted,” Hayes said.

ConsumerAffairs reached out to Spirit for a response to JetBlue’s latest move but did not immediately receive a response.

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