JetBlue acquires Spirit's LaGuardia Airport slots, eyes former terminal

JetBlue Airways has won Spirit Airlines slots at New York's LaGuardia Airport and is looking to move back into the failed budget carrier's old home, a major reshuffling at the congested airport less than three months after the discounter collapsed in the biggest U.S. airline failure in decades.

The slots at the tightly controlled airport are for 12 round-trip flights and are still subject to final court and regulatory approvals, JetBlue said.

Slots and gates are valuable in congested airports like LaGuardia because tight airspace restrictions and crowded airports in a big city like New York cap airline growth.

Carriers have turned to using larger planes that fit more passengers to boost their capacity in some cases because infrastructure is so limited.

JetBlue told staff in a note Monday, which was seen by CNBC, that it's now turning to "evaluating our plans for the slots as we consider opportunities for our network strategy" noting that any expansion won't happen until 2027.

According to the note, JetBlue wants to move to Terminal A, also known as the Marine Air Terminal, an Art Deco facility that Spirit operated out of until it shut down in early May. JetBlue previously operated out of the space before relocating to a newer terminal years ago.

"It's a convenient terminal travelers love," JetBlue said of the Marine Air Terminal.

The New York-based airline, which is in the midst of a big expansion at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport in Florida, last month said it would reduce its staffing footprint at LaGuardia and Newark Liberty International Airport in New Jersey and ramp up service in Fort Lauderdale.

Spirit's airport assets are now winding their way through U.S. Bankruptcy Court in New York.