Hours after Spirit’s collapse leaves BWI travelers in the lurch, new JetBlue service announced

Hours after Spirit Airlines ceased operations and left Baltimore-Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport travelers scrambling to rebook flights, JetBlue Airways announced Saturday morning it will begin new service at the airport this summer.

The airline plans three daily flights starting July 9 between BWI and Fort Lauderdale, Florida, followed by service to San Juan, Puerto Rico, on Nov. 2, as airport officials said they are working to expand options for passengers affected by the sudden loss of Spirit’s routes.

“We are thrilled to welcome JetBlue, which means more convenience and more access to key travel destinations,” said Shannetta Griffin, executive director and CEO of BWI. “We remain committed to working with airlines to strengthen and expand air service opportunities. At BWI Marshall Airport, we look forward to a successful partnership with JetBlue to benefit our passengers and the region.”

Spirit Airlines shut down operations abruptly Saturday and said it has gone out of business after 34 years.

The low-cost airline that once operated hundreds of daily flights on its bright yellow planes and employed about 17,000 people said it had “started an orderly wind-down of our operations, effective immediately.”

Spirit Airlines was the sixth-busiest carrier at BWI, spokesperson Jonathan Dean said. It offered up to nine daily departures from BWI to six destinations, Dean said, making up 2.6% of all flights.

BWI announced on social media that travelers should contact their booking providers or credit card companies about refunds or alternative airlines for rebooking options.

“Customers that were scheduled to fly with Spirit Airlines are advised not to travel to BWI Marshall Airport,” the statement said. “There are no Spirit Airlines staff on-site to assist travelers with refunds or rebooking.”

Just before 11 a.m. on Saturday, BWI workers began shutting off the screens at the Spirit check-in area.

Airport workers said few people had come in for flights scheduled through the airline that morning, but many at the airport were taken by surprise.

Estefani Reynoso was supposed to fly on Spirit with her two daughters from Florida to meet her mother in Philadelphia. Instead, around 4 a.m., Reynoso rebooked on Frontier Airlines for about $200 more for each of them. They landed in Baltimore, where her mother said she would meet them.

Reynoso said she is “devastated” because Spirit was her go-to airline.

“They had perfect times” for her regular routes to New York and the Dominican Republic from Florida. “I was a gold member with them. I had the credit card, all the perks,” she said. “And now they’re gone.”

The Florida mother said she’d have to “shop around and see” which airline could take Spirit’s place.

JetBlue is also welcoming any travelers impacted by the Spirit Airlines shutdown.

BWI offers approximately 300 daily nonstop departures to about 90 domestic and international destinations.