Spirit Airlines Prepares to Shut Down
5/1/202612 min
P.M. Edition for May 1. Spirit Airlines prepares to stop operating after a government rescue falls apart. Journal reporter Alison Sider walks us through what happened and how Spirit changed the American travel industry. Plus, why some credit-card issuers are warning they’ll leave the state of Illinois. Ben Glickman, who covers payments, joins us to discuss the state law banning some credit-card fees that’s set this off. And after years of hope and disappointment, robotaxis are finally hitting the streets—at least, in some American cities. We hear from WSJ reporter Sean McLain about how the rollout is going and what’s next. Alex Ossola hosts. Sign up for the WSJ's free What's News newsletter. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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Alex Ossola· Host0:14
[upbeat music] Spirit Airlines prepares to shut down after a rescue deal falls apart. Plus, President Trump threatens to raise tariffs on autos from the European Union. And a new law in Illinois banning some credit card fees has banks up in arms.
Ben Glickman· Guest0:34
This opens up the possibility of other state legislation that could more significantly impede their ability to collect fees.
Alex Ossola· Host0:41
It's Friday, May 1st. I'm Alex Osoleff for The Wall Street Journal. This is the PM edition of What's News, the top headlines and business stories that moved the world today. First up, Spirit Airlines is preparing to end operations. After spending much of the past year and a half in Chapter 11, Spirit had been hoping to finalize a $500 million lifeline from the government before running out of cash. The Journal has learned that that bailout has fizzled. Now the airline is preparing to shut down. I'm joined now by WSJ reporter, Alison Sider. Alison, what happened to the bailout plan?
Alison Sider· Guest1:19
The rescue that Spirit and the government and its bond holders have been talking about for the last couple of weeks, some of its bond holders dug in their heels against the deal, convinced that it