#517: The Fastest Growing, Least Popular Airline In America




Planet Money show

Summary: <p style="font-size: 14px; margin: 0px 0px 10px;">It's cheap to fly on Spirit Airlines, but you have to pay extra for perks. And by perks, we mean a bottle of water or space in the overhead bin.</p><p style="font-size: 14px; margin: 0px 0px 10px;">It's totally rational: pay for what you use, don't pay for what you don't use. And it's increasingly popular: Spirit is the fastest growing airline in America.</p><p style="font-size: 14px; margin: 0px 0px 10px;">And yet. Lots of people really don't like Spirit Airlines. In a <a href="http://www.consumerreports.org/cro/magazine/2013/07/best-worst-airlines/index.htm?loginMethod=auto" target="_blank">Consumer Reports survey</a> published last year, Spirit finished last among U.S. airlines.</p><p style="font-size: 14px; margin: 0px 0px 10px;">How is the fastest growing airline also the least popular? On today's show, we fly Spirit Airlines to Florida and ask the CEO.</p>