Spirit Airlines, Inc.

Thank you for standing by. My name is Bailey and I will be your conference operator today. At this time, I would like to welcome everyone to the Spirit Airlines Q1 2023 earnings conference call. All lines have been placed on mute to prevent any background noise. After the speaker's remarks, there will be a question and answer session. If you would like to ask a question during this time, simply press star followed by the number one on your telephone keypad. If you would like to withdraw your question, Again, press the star key, followed by the number one. I will now turn the conference over to Vivian Traveris. You may begin.

Thank you, Bailey, and welcome everyone to Seward Airlines' first quarter 2023 earnings conference call. This call is being recorded and simultaneously webcast. A replay of this call will be archived on our website for a minimum of 60 days. Presenting on today's call are Ted Kersey, Seward's Chief Executive Officer, Matt Klein, our chief commercial officer, and Scott Harrelson, our chief financial officer. Also joining us are other members of our senior leadership team. Following our prepared remarks, there will be a question and answer session for analysts. Today's discussion contains forward-looking statements that are based on the company's current expectations and are not a guarantee of future performance. There could be significant risks and uncertainties that cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in our forward-looking statements, including but not limited to various risks and uncertainties related to the acquisition of Spirit by JetBlue and other risk factors discussed in our reports on file with the SEC. We undertake no duties to update any forward-looking statements, and investors should not place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements. In comparing results today, we will be adjusting all periods to exclude special items unless otherwise noted. For an explanation and reconciliation of these non-GAAP measures to GAAP, please refer to the reconciliation table provided in our first quarter 2023 earnings release, a copy of which is available on our website under the investor relations section at ir.spirit.com. I will now turn the call over to Ted Christie, Spirit's President and CEO.

Thanks Viv, and thanks to everyone for joining us on the call today. I want to start by thanking all our team members and business partners across the network for their contributions in delivering a high value experience for our guests. Spirit recently had the privilege of being named Value Airline of the Year by ATW and the most affordable airline and number two overall airline in WalletHub's 2023 Best Airline Awards. I am proud of the Spirit family who made these recognitions possible through their hard work, innovation, and commitment to serving each other and our guests. Regarding our merger with JetBlue, as expected in early March, the DOJ sued to block the transaction. The trial date has been set for October 16th, 2023. The creation of a fifth challenger to the Big Four with both low costs and low fares seems to us to be 100% aligned with the government's views on a competitive industry. So, while we are disappointed with the DOJ's decision, we are confident that we can successfully illustrate to the court the significant benefits to both consumers and employees of the JetBlue Spirit merger. Turning now to our first quarter 2023 performance, our adjusted operating margin came in better than expected at negative 6.8%, helped by lower fuel and a strong total RASM performance. Operationally, numerous weather events during the first quarter made for a challenging operating environment, and it was exacerbated by the continued understaffing at various air traffic control centers throughout the country. Lately, we've seen Las Vegas, where we are now the number two carrier, emerge as the newest hotspot as runway construction has driven unprecedented approach and departure configuration changes and ground delay programs, creating significant delays and cancellations. That said, Our team has done an excellent job minimizing the impact to our network and solving for problems within our control. In our mid-March update, we shared that we pulled about a half a percentage point of capacity from the first quarter due to an increase in the number of unscheduled engine removals. Pratt is a long-term partner and is working closely with us to help solve these engine availability issues. Unfortunately, there is no quick fix, but we do expect to see some improvement as we move throughout the year. Before I turn it over to Matt, I want to give some extra kudos to our entire Spirit team. In mid-April, the Fort Lauderdale area experienced severe flash flooding, referred to by meteorologists as a 1,000-year event, requiring a 40-hour closure of the Fort Lauderdale Airport, where we are the number one carrier. As a result of this weather event, Spirit canceled nearly 600 flights and diverted many others, disrupting travel plans for a substantial number of our guests and driving numerous complications for our crews. Despite the significant and outsized disruption to our network, our team was primed and ready to go on Friday morning once the airport reopened. The quick recovery is a testament to the diligent efforts of our entire team, as well as the innovative changes we have put in place to help accelerate recovery operations. I also want to thank the Broward County Aviation Department and the FAA for their assistance in getting the airport up and running as quickly as possible. Matt, over to you.