Spirit collapse leaves Newark like a plane graveyard

Like many of you, I was struck by the news of Spirit Airlines closing overnight, literally ceasing operations at 3 a.m., Saturday, May 2.

A reported 17,000 employees are now out of work and thousands of passengers stranded at destinations hoping they would be on a flight home Saturday morning.

This was one of the lead stories on Wake-Up America Weekend on Newsmax.

Spirit Airlines shutdown shocks travelers and workers

I was in New York this weekend co-hosting with Sarah Williamson and we shared stories on air about travel and employment woes.

On the way back from NYC on Saturday, I snapped a pic of the Spirit planes, which were moved away from the gates and lined up along the edge of the tarmac adjacent to the New Jersey Turnpike.

On Sunday, I had a bit of an adventure getting home after the show ended at 10 a.m., with the five-borough bike annual bike tour closing pretty much every road I needed to "escape from New York."

After about an hour and a half, I was finally headed south on the Turnpike past the airport. I saw that there were several spirit planes added to the lineup, so I clicked on the video and took in the sight of this temporary plane graveyard.

Another aviation scare unfolds near Newark Airport

About an hour after I got home on Sunday, I got a text from a friend about the United flight that clipped a pole and a truck on landing.

When I went online to see the video, It's nearly identical, I was in the exact spot an hour before the mishap, taking video.

Not that there would have been any danger, but after a harrowing experience getting out of the city, seeing that would not have been a surprise at all.

Could the Spirit and JetBlue merger have saved the airline?

Honestly, you've got to feel for all the guys now scrambling for work, and this was entirely preventable.

Just look at the sheer incompetence of the Biden administration in actively preventing the proposed merger between Spirit and JetBlue.

Not a government bailout, nope, just a non-government merger that may have saved thousands of jobs and thousands of dollars for families scrambling to get home.

The post above reflects the thoughts and observations of New Jersey 101.5 talk show host Bill Spadea. Any opinions expressed are Bill's own.

Report a correction 👈

FOLLOW BILL: Join the Bill Spadea's New Jersey channel on our Facebook page.