Spirit Steps Up Flights to Honduras, Cancun

Spirit Airlines said Monday that it is adding two new direct international flights from Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport, one to Cancun, Mexico, and the other to San Pedro Sula, Honduras, despite the widespread disruption to international travel in recent weeks because of the coronavirus epidemic.

According to Aviation Pros, Ted Christie, Spirit's chief executive officer, said that like governments and industry leaders everywhere, he is monitoring the situation and trying to assess the potential damage that the increasing number of infections globally might wreak on the travel and tourism industries and the world economy.

However, Christie noted that Monday's announcement of additional flights from New Orleans to Latin American destinations underlines that Spirit's focus outside of its domestic travel network is to the Caribbean, Mexico and Central and South America, which together account for about 15% of the airlines' overall business.

Airlines' shares have been slammed in recent days amid a broader selloff tied to the coronavirus. Investors are concerned that precautions to contain the virus will slow down manufacturing, travel, business gatherings and other commerce.

Shares in Spirit, which ranks as the eighth-largest U.S. airline by enplaned passengers, have slumped by about 40% since mid-February and were down another 4% on Monday at $27.25.

Looking past current airline industry concerns, local officials cheered the additional international connections. Kevin Dolliole, director of aviation at the airport, noted that Spirit Airlines, which started its first flight from New Orleans to Dallas-Fort Worth in 2013, is the fastest-growing airline operating from New Orleans.

In announcing the new route to Honduras, Spirit noted that New Orleans has a population of Honduran nationals estimated to be 100,000, one of the largest in the U.S., and there is regular demand from individuals traveling to and from their country of origin.

The budget airline's flights to San Pedro Sula, which is Honduras' industrial center and the second-largest city after the capital, Tegucigalpa, will start June 11 and run on Sundays, Tuesdays and Thursdays.

The new flights to Cancun, starting June 10, will bring the total Spirit flights to the Mexican holiday destination to four a week. Spirit also said it is also adding an additional daily flight from New Orleans to Orlando, Florida, starting April 22.