A Spirit aircraft.
AIRPORT--Spirit Airlines will be officially expanding its non-stop flight service to St. Maarten.
As of October 5, the low-cost carrier will increase its flights between Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport (FLL) and St Maarten’s Princess Juliana International Airport (SXM) to four times per week, adding Thursdays and Sundays to its existing schedule, and Spirit’s services will be increased to daily starting on November 15.
According to a press release, the additional service will bring immediate economic benefit to St. Maarten by providing a low-fare means to travel between the US and the world’s smallest island shared by two governments. In addition to non-stop service from its Fort Lauderdale hub, Spirit will also offer connecting service from its domestic network.
Spirit had added a second weekly flight between FLL and SXM on February 8 this year. This flight complements the weekly Saturday service from Fort Lauderdale, which has for years been the only flight from Fort Lauderdale to St. Maarten. The Wednesday flight departs Fort Lauderdale at 10:40am, landing in St. Maarten at 2:51pm.
“We are very happy that Spirit has St. Maarten in their expansion plans, and look forward to continued growth. The collaborated hard work of the entire team of TEATT Ministry and St. Maarten Tourism Bureau, as well as SXM Airport has made this a success and the ministry appreciates,” Minister of Tourism, Economic Affairs, Transport and Telecommunications (TEATT) Arthur Lambriex said in the release.
“I look forward to continuing discussions with our stakeholders to ensure we do all possible to keep good connectivity and continue to find strategic ways to ensure airfares are more affordable. It will bring a positive impact to our economy.”
Spirit Airlines, Inc., is a major United States ultra-low-cost airline headquartered in Miramar, Florida, in the Miami metropolitan area, that operates scheduled flights throughout the United States, the Caribbean and Latin America. Spirit is the seventh-largest passenger carrier in North America as of 2023, as well as the largest ultra-low-cost carrier in North America with a fleet of more than 197 that flies to 83 cities.
