Spirit Leaves Lubavs Stranded

By Wall Street Journal and COLlive

Spirit Airlines, grounded by a pilot strike that began early Saturday, extended its flight cancellations through Wednesday and showed little evidence it has succeeded in putting stranded passengers on other airlines.

Among them were many Luabvitch Chassidim and Chabad House members who were planning on flying in to New York for Tuesday’s Gimmel Tamuz, the 16th yahrzeit of the Rebbe.

Mrs. Tzippy Weiss, shlucha in Miami Lakes, Florida said she and her husband Rabbi Mendy Weiss had purchased tickets for Tuesday’s flight to New York.

“We had 20 tickets for my husband’s students who were supposed to come to New York with us for Gimmel Tamuz,” she told COLlive. “His entire class was on the verge of tears today when they found out the flight was cancelled.”

The discount carrier, based in Miramar, Florida, directed customers who are seeking refunds for their canceled flights to call its toll-free number to request assistance, the Wall Street Journal reported.

But some travelers said the wait times stretched for hours.

Spirit also said it will give passengers flight credits, good for one year, for the full amount of their unflown flights, plus $100 vouchers for future travel.

Other carriers won’t accept Spirit tickets. FlyersRights.org recommended that Spirit customers, if they can’t get refunds from the airline, contact their credit-card companies and ask for credit against their canceled flights.

The group also urged passengers to file complaints with the U.S. Department of Transportation.

But the Rebbe’s followers who want to pray his his grave site Ohel in Cambria Heights, Queens, resorted to purchasing a second ticket on a separate airline for a high price due to last-minute booking.

Spirit, which is closely held and has been profitable for the past three years, operates about 150 flights a day and carries about 16,000 daily passengers to destinations in the eastern U.S., Caribbean and Latin America.