Frontier and Spirit Airlines will once again try to merge, only months after the Biden administration won a key antitrust court battle to block an attempt by JetBlue to buy Spirit.

Frontier and Spirit Airlines will once again try to merge, only months after the Biden administration won a key antitrust court battle to block an attempt by JetBlue to buy Spirit. A combination of the two ultra-low-cost carriers would produce the country’s fifth largest airline,

Spirit, which filed for bankruptcy protection last year, says it has rejected the new Frontier overture but would be open to a higher offer.

Frontier said in a release that it has met with Spirit’s board and executives since it made its proposal this month.

Rather than accept Frontier’s offer, Spirit said it will stick to its current plan to emerge from Chapter 11 bankruptcy.

Discount carrier says a merger would be a better path out of bankruptcy for Spirit, which has rebuffed the latest proposal.

Frontier Airlines is attempting for a second time to merge with the now bankrupt Spirit Airlines, which declared bankruptcy late last year as budget airlines struggle.

Frontier Airlines has made another bid for Spirit Airlines, but the offer failed to sway the South Florida-based ULCC as it proceeds through a Chapter 11 restructuring.

Amidst ongoing restructuring under Chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings, Spirit Airlines might be considering reigniting a merger with a low-cost rival airline (via The Points Guy ).

Spirit Airlines rejected Frontier Airlines’s second merger bid, opting to continue on its current path to emerge from bankruptcy. The low-cost airline filed for bankruptcy last year after the Justice Department blocked a proposed merger with JetBlue.