Spirit Airlines is no longer flying. The budget carrier, known for its bare-bones fares and fees, has shut down after years of financial struggles. The collapse stranded tens of thousands of customers who held tickets for future travel or found themselves mid-journey. According to CNBC’s Leslie Josephs, the airline will now begin the monthslong process of dismantling the company.

For travelers, the sudden end means scrambling to rebook or get refunds. For the airline’s employees, it means joining a growing list of aviation workers left without jobs. And for the industry, the disappearance of one of the most aggressive discount carriers reshapes the competitive landscape.

This is a story that had been building for years. Spirit struggled with rising fuel costs, labor disputes, and a wave of debt that it could never quite shake. The airline tried mergers, route cutbacks, and fare restructuring, but the math never worked. When the shutdown finally came, it was abrupt, but not surprising to anyone who had been watching the company’s balance sheet.

Stranded passengers face a messy situation. Tickets for flights that were never flown are supposed to be refunded, but airline bankruptcies often turn those refunds into claims against a company that no longer has money. Customers booked on tickets bought through third-party sites face even more complications. Those who were mid-trip when the shutdown hit have been left to find their own way home, with little help from the now-defunct airline.

The logistics of closing an airline are brutal. Planes have to be parked, leased equipment returned, and employees laid off. The process, as described in the CNBC report, will take months. It involves selling off or returning aircraft, terminating airport leases, honoring or breaking maintenance contracts, and dealing with a mountain of unpaid bills. Creditors will line up for whatever cash remains, and the government will likely step in to handle consumer complaints and oversee the orderly wind-down.

Spirit’s collapse is a cautionary tale for the ultra-low-cost model. By stripping away everything except a seat, Spirit attracted price-sensitive travelers but also alienated many who found the experience uncomfortable. The airline generated headlines for charging for carry-on bags, water, and even printing boarding passes at the airport. Those fees kept base fares low, but they also turned flying into a headache. When costs rose and consumers started demanding more from their travel experience, Spirit had little room to adapt.

The airline industry is capital-intensive and thin-margined. A few bad quarters can break a carrier that isn’t diversified. Spirit relied on a single business model: fly cheap, fill seats, and make money on extras. That model worked for a while, but it left no buffer for shocks. The pandemic, inflation, and changing consumer preferences all took their toll.

What happens to the people who worked for Spirit? Tens of thousands of travelers are not the only ones affected. The airline employed pilots, flight attendants, mechanics, gate agents, and back-office staff. Many of them face uncertain futures. Some may find work at other carriers, but the industry is not hiring at the same pace it was a year ago. Others will have to switch industries entirely. The dismantling process will include severance packages, transition assistance, and likely a lot of legal maneuvering.

For the broader travel market, Spirit’s exit reduces capacity on the routes it served. Other airlines, particularly ultra-low-cost competitors like Frontier and Allegiant, may pick up some of the slack, but they face the same cost pressures that killed Spirit. Legacy carriers like Delta, American, and United may add a few flights in Spirit’s former strongholds, but they are unlikely to replicate the rock-bottom prices. Travelers who relied on Spirit for cheap trips to Florida, Las Vegas, and the Caribbean will find fewer options and higher fares.

The dismantling process is not just about planes and people. It is also about legacy. Spirit was a brand built on being the opposite of luxury. Its bright yellow planes and no-frills service were a bet that enough travelers would trade comfort for savings. That bet eventually failed. The company’s collapse will be studied in business schools as an example of what happens when a low-cost strategy cannot adapt to a changing market.

Right now, the immediate priority is helping stranded passengers. The Department of Transportation and consumer advocacy groups are pushing Spirit to provide refunds and rebooking options, but with the airline effectively dead, those promises are hard to enforce. Travel insurance may help some, but most people who booked Spirit tickets did not buy insurance. The lesson for consumers is clear: when you fly an airline that is struggling financially, you are taking a risk.

Spirit’s closure is a reminder that the airline industry is not like other businesses. You cannot just lock the doors and go home. There are planes in the air, passengers at gates, and employees at work. An orderly shutdown takes months of coordination with creditors, regulators, and other airlines. CNBC’s report notes that the process is already underway, but the full resolution will not come quickly.

In the end, Spirit Airlines joins the list of carriers that could not make the numbers work. The budget sector will survive, but it will be smaller and more cautious. Travelers who want cheap tickets will have fewer choices, and those who fly on a whim will think twice before booking with an airline that might not be there tomorrow.

For now, the focus is on the messy, monthslong dismantling of a company that once promised to democratize air travel. It delivered low fares, but it could not deliver a sustainable business. The wreckage will take a long time to clear.