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Entry into Merger Agreement with Spirit Airlines
12 Months Ended
Dec. 31, 2022
Business Combination and Asset Acquisition [Abstract]  
Entry into Merger Agreement with Spirit Airlines Entry into Merger Agreement with Spirit Airlines
On July 28, 2022, JetBlue entered into an Agreement and Plan of Merger (the “Merger Agreement”) with Spirit Airlines, Inc., a Delaware corporation (“Spirit”), and Sundown Acquisition Corp., a Delaware corporation and a direct wholly owned subsidiary of JetBlue (“Merger Sub”), pursuant to which and subject to the terms and conditions therein, Merger Sub will merge with and into Spirit, with Spirit continuing as the surviving corporation (the “Merger”). On October 19, 2022, Spirit announced that its stockholders approved the Merger Agreement.
As a result of the Merger, each existing share (“Share”) of Spirit’s common stock, par value $0.0001 per share, will be converted at the effective time of the Merger into the right to receive an amount in cash per Share, without interest, equal to (a) $33.50 minus (b) (i) to the extent paid, an amount in cash equal to $2.50 per Share and (ii) the lesser of (A) $1.15 and (B) the product of (1) $0.10 multiplied by (2) the number of Additional Prepayments (as defined below) paid prior to the date of the closing of the Merger (the “Closing Date”) (such amount in subclause (B), the “Aggregate Additional Prepayment Amount”).
On October 26, 2022, in accordance with the Merger Agreement, JetBlue paid $2.50 per share to each holder of record as of September 12, 2022, the record date for the special meeting of Spirit stockholders. The total payment came to $272 million. This amount is included as Other Assets in the Company's Consolidated Balance Sheet as of December 31, 2022 and reported as Payment for Spirit Airlines Acquisition in the Company's Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows for the twelve months ended December 31, 2022.
On or prior to the last business day of each calendar month commencing after December 31, 2022, until the earlier of (a) the Closing Date and (b) the termination of the Merger Agreement in accordance with its terms, JetBlue will pay or cause to be paid to the holders of record of outstanding Shares as of a date not more than five business days prior to the last business day of such month, an amount in cash equal to $0.10 per Share (such amount, the “Additional Prepayment Amount,” each such monthly payment, an “Additional Prepayment”).
The Closing is subject to the satisfaction or waiver of certain closing conditions, including, among other things: (a) receipt of Spirit stockholder approval, which was obtained on October 19, 2022; (b) receipt of applicable regulatory approvals, including approvals from the U.S. Federal Communications Commission, U.S. Federal Aviation Administration and the U.S. Department of Transportation; (c) the expiration or early termination of the statutory waiting period under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act of 1976, as amended (the “HSR Act”) and any customary timing agreement with any governmental entity not to consummate the Merger and approval under certain foreign antitrust laws; (d) the absence of any law or order prohibiting the consummation of the transactions; and (e) the absence of any material adverse effect on Spirit (as defined in the Merger Agreement).
Spirit, JetBlue, and Merger Sub each make certain customary representations, warranties and covenants, as applicable, in the Merger Agreement.
The Merger Agreement also contains certain provisions relating to efforts to obtain regulatory approval of the Merger, including to provide that JetBlue and Spirit, in connection with obtaining any necessary approval of a governmental entity (including under the HSR Act), will use their respective reasonable best efforts to take, or cause to be taken, all appropriate actions to obtain such approvals, including, to contest, defend, and appeal any proceeding brought by a governmental entity challenging or seeking to prohibit the consummation of the Merger, provided that JetBlue shall not be required to take any divestiture actions if such action would or would reasonably be expected to result in a material adverse effect on JetBlue and its subsidiaries (including Spirit and its subsidiaries) after giving effect to the transactions contemplated by the Merger Agreement, taken as a whole, and in no event shall JetBlue be required to agree to any such divestiture action that, in JetBlue’s discretion, would be reasonably likely to materially and adversely affect the anticipated benefits of the parties to the Northeast Alliance Agreement between JetBlue and American Airlines, Inc., dated as of July 15, 2020, and the agreements contemplated thereby. Any such divestiture action may be conditioned upon the closing of the Merger.
The Merger Agreement contains certain customary termination rights for JetBlue and Spirit, including, without limitation, a right for either party to terminate if the Merger is not consummated on or before July 28, 2023, which may be extended to January 28, 2024 and to July 24, 2024 in certain circumstances (such date, as extended, the “Outside Date”) if needed to obtain the required regulatory approvals. Upon the termination of the Merger Agreement under specified circumstances, Spirit will be required to pay JetBlue a breakup fee of $94 million. The Merger Agreement also provides the methodology by which certain expenses of JetBlue will be borne by Spirit. In addition, upon the termination of the Merger Agreement by JetBlue because of a material, uncured breach by Spirit of the Merger Agreement, Spirit will be required to pay JetBlue an amount equal to the sum of all amounts paid by JetBlue to the Spirit stockholders prior to the date of such termination.
In the event that the Merger Agreement is terminated due to either (a) a governmental entity issuing an order or taking any other action permanently enjoining or otherwise prohibiting the Merger under U.S. federal competition laws, or (b) the Merger having not occurred by the Outside Date solely to the extent that the closing condition requiring (i) the waiting period applicable to the consummation of the Merger under the HSR Act (and any customary timing agreement with any governmental entity to toll, stay, or extend any such waiting period, or to delay or not to consummate the Merger contemplated by the Merger Agreement entered into in connection therewith) to have expired or been terminated or (ii) that no governmental entity has issued an order or taken any other action (whether temporary, preliminary or permanent) enjoining or otherwise prohibiting the Merger under U.S. federal competition laws, and that no law shall be in effect making the Merger illegal or preventing the consummation of the Merger under U.S. federal competition laws, in either case, has not been satisfied at a time when all other closing conditions to JetBlue’s obligations to consummate the Merger have been satisfied (or are capable of being satisfied if the closing were to occur on such date of termination), then (i) solely to the extent that the Remaining Parent Regulatory Fee (as defined in the Merger Agreement) is greater than zero, (A) JetBlue will pay directly to the stockholders of Spirit as of a record date that is five business days following the date of such termination an amount per Share in cash equal to the Remaining Regulatory Fee Per Share Amount (as defined in the Merger Agreement) and (B) JetBlue will pay to Spirit an amount equal to
the Remaining Regulatory Fee Award Amount, in each case, on the second business day following such record date, and (ii) JetBlue will pay Spirit a fee in the amount of $70 million (the “Additional Parent Regulatory Fee”) within two business days following the date of such termination; provided, however, that neither the Remaining Parent Regulatory Fee nor the Additional Parent Regulatory Fee will be payable by JetBlue pursuant to the terms of the Merger Agreement under specified circumstances.
Refer to Note 3 to our consolidated financial statements for further detail of the $3.5 billion Senior Secured Bridge Facility issued to fund the purchase of Spirit.
Prior to the execution of the Merger Agreement, Spirit terminated the Agreement and Plan of Merger (the “Frontier Merger Agreement”), dated as of February 5, 2022, by and among Frontier Group Holdings, Inc. (“Frontier”), Top Gun Acquisition Corp., and Spirit, in accordance with its terms and pursuant to a Termination Agreement (the “Termination Agreement”) among the parties. Consistent with the Frontier Merger Agreement and pursuant to the Termination Agreement, on July 29, 2022, Spirit paid $25 million to Frontier for the reimbursement of transaction expenses incurred by Frontier. In accordance with the Merger Agreement, on August 2, 2022, JetBlue reimbursed Spirit for the $25 million paid to Frontier. This amount is included as Other Assets in the Company's Consolidated Balance Sheet as of December 31, 2022 and reported as Payment for Spirit Airlines Acquisition in the Company's Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows for the twelve months ended December 31, 2022.