JetBlue Makes Offer For Spirit Airlines, Could Spark Bidding War

Spirit said it received an unsolicited bid from JetBlue, two months after Spirit announced plans to merge with Frontier Airlines.

JetBlue Airways has offered to buy Spirit Airlines for about $3.6 billion and break up a plan for Spirit to merge with rival budget carrier Frontier Airlines.

Spirit said Tuesday that it received an unsolicited bid from JetBlue. It said its board will evaluate the offer and decide what's best for shareholders.

In a statement, New York-based JetBlue said combining with Spirit would lead to lower fares by creating "the most compelling national low-fare challenger" to the nation's four biggest airlines: American, Delta, United and Southwest.