Spirit Airlines teeters on the edge. Creditors mull liquidation. Jet fuel prices have doubled since late February. The trigger? A U.S.-Iran war that choked the Strait of Hormuz.

The budget carrier filed its first Chapter 11 bankruptcy in November 2024, emerging briefly in March 2025 before plunging back in August 2025 with $7.4 billion in debt against $337 million in cash. Now, plans for an early summer exit from bankruptcy court look shaky. Lenders object. They demand proof of viability amid soaring costs.

Fuel accounts for airlines’ largest expense after labor. Prices hit $4.88 a gallon across major U.S. hubs by April 2, up 95% since the war began on February 28, when U.S. and Israeli strikes prompted Iran’s near-total closure of the strait—a chokepoint for 20% of global oil. Normalization could take months, even if shipping resumes.

Spirit can’t pass on costs like bigger rivals. It cancels routes outright. Newark to Savannah? Gone. International and domestic cuts started mid-April.…