Frontier Airlines facts for kids
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| Founded | February 8, 1994 |
|---|---|
| Commenced operations | July 5, 1994 |
| AOC # | F3LA008Y |
| Operating bases |
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| Frequent-flyer program | FRONTIER Miles |
| Fleet size | 135 |
| Destinations | 85 |
| Parent company | Indigo Partners |
| Headquarters | Denver, Colorado, United States |
| Key people | |
| Revenue |  US$3.33 billion (2022) |
| Operating income | US$-45 million (2022) |
| Net income | US$-37 million (2022) |
| Employees | 6,550 (2023) |
Frontier Airlines is a big American airline based in Denver, Colorado. It's known as an ultra low-cost airline, which means it tries to offer very affordable flights. Frontier flies to over 100 places in the United States and 31 international spots. It has more than 3,000 employees. The airline is part of a company called Indigo Partners. Its main hub is at Denver International Airport, and it has many other important cities it flies to across the U.S. and Puerto Rico.
Contents
History
The 1990s: How it Started
Frontier Airlines was started by Frederick W. "Rick" Brown, his wife Janice Brown, and Bob Schulman in 1994. Rick was a pilot for United Airlines, and Janice and Bob had worked for the original Frontier Airlines (which existed from 1950 to 1986).
They first thought about creating a charter airline called AeroDenver Travel Services. But then, another airline, Continental Airlines, started reducing its flights from Denver. So, the founders decided to create a new airline to serve those routes, and they named it Frontier Airlines.
Scheduled flights began on July 5, 1994. They used Boeing 737-200 planes and flew from Denver to four cities in North Dakota. Many of their first employees and leaders had worked for the original Frontier Airlines. By 1995, Frontier had grown its network to include cities in New Mexico, Montana, Nevada, and Arizona. For its first nine years, Frontier used the slogan "The Spirit of the West."
In 1999, Frontier began getting newer Airbus planes, like the A318 and A319, and also added Boeing 737-300 jets. By September 1999, Frontier flew to many major cities across the U.S., from Atlanta to Los Angeles and New York City.
The 2000s: New Planes and Challenges
Frontier received its first Airbus plane, an A319, in 2001. With it, they introduced in-flight TV and a new look for their planes. In 2003, Frontier was the very first airline to use the Airbus A318. By April 2005, Frontier had only Airbus planes, as they stopped using their Boeing 737s.
In 2006, Frontier created a new parent company called Frontier Airlines Holdings to help them stay competitive. They also started a smaller airline called Lynx Aviation in 2007.
On April 10, 2008, Frontier faced financial difficulties and filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. This allowed them to keep operating while they reorganized their business to ensure they could continue flying. Their flights continued without interruption.
In 2009, another airline company, Republic Airways Holdings, decided to buy Frontier Airlines. This deal was completed on October 1, 2009, and Frontier officially came out of bankruptcy as a new airline under Republic.
In 2010, Frontier's CEO, Bryan Bedford, even appeared on the TV show Undercover Boss. Republic Airways also owned Midwest Airlines. To make things more efficient, Republic decided to merge the Frontier and Midwest brands, keeping the Frontier name.
The 2010s: Becoming an Ultra-Low-Cost Airline
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After merging with Midwest Airlines in 2010, Frontier reduced many flights from Milwaukee in 2011 and 2012.
In 2012, Republic Airways Holdings decided to sell Frontier. David Siegel became Frontier's new CEO, and he moved to Denver to help Frontier become an ultra-low-cost carrier (ULCC). This means focusing on offering the lowest possible fares.
In November 2012, Frontier started flying from Trenton–Mercer Airport in New Jersey, which didn't have commercial flights at the time. They later expanded service from Trenton. In 2013, they also started flights from Wilmington-New Castle Airport in Delaware. Frontier promoted these smaller airports as easier and cheaper options than bigger nearby airports.
In October 2013, a private investment firm called Indigo Partners bought Frontier Airlines for about $145 million. This sale helped Frontier continue its plan to become an ultra-low-cost airline. The airline's headquarters stayed in Denver.
In 2014, Frontier officially announced its transition to an ultra-low-cost carrier. They also made changes to their operations, including closing call centers in Denver and Milwaukee in 2015, which led to some job changes. They also stopped offering a toll-free phone number for customer service, encouraging customers to use online options.
Frontier continued to expand its routes, adding Atlanta as a focus city in 2015. They also started new routes from many other airports across the country in 2016. In 2017, they opened a new crew base in Las Vegas.
In 2015, David Siegel left as CEO, and his duties were split between Barry Biffle (the president) and Bill Franke (the chairman of Indigo).
Frontier faced some challenges in the mid-2010s, including customer complaints and flight delays. For example, a winter storm in December 2016 caused many delays and cancellations, affecting flights across the country.
The 2020s: Going Public and Big Deals
In 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic, Frontier received money from the U.S. government to help the airline industry.
On April 1, 2021, Frontier became a public company, meaning its shares could be bought and sold on the Nasdaq stock exchange. Its stock symbol is ULCC, which stands for "ultra low-cost carrier."
In early 2022, Frontier tried to buy Spirit Airlines, another ultra-low-cost airline, in a deal worth $2.8 billion. If it had happened, it would have created the fifth-largest airline in the U.S. However, Spirit's shareholders decided not to accept Frontier's offer.
In November 2022, Frontier announced a new crew base at Dallas Fort Worth International Airport (DFW). That same month, Frontier completely removed its customer service phone line. Now, customers need to use online chat, social media, or WhatsApp to get help.
Corporate Affairs
Management
Dave Siegel became the chief executive officer (CEO) of Frontier in January 2012. He left in May 2015 for personal reasons. After he left, the company's chairman, Bill Franke, took over the strategy and finances. Barry L. Biffle, who was the company's president, took charge of the daily operations.
Former Regional Partners
Over the years, Frontier Airlines has worked with several smaller airlines to operate regional flights, often called "Frontier JetExpress" or "Frontier Express." These smaller planes helped Frontier serve cities that didn't have enough passengers for their larger jets. Some of these partners included Mesa Airlines, Horizon Air, Republic Airways, Chautauqua Airlines, Maverick Airways, Aspen Mountain Air, and Great Lakes Airlines. These partnerships helped Frontier expand its reach to more places.
Airline Branding
Frontier Airlines is famous for the animals on the tails of its planes!
From 1994 to 2001, the planes had green "Frontier" words and different wildlife pictures on each side of the tail.
In 2001, they introduced a new look with large silver "FRONTIER" words and kept the animal tails. They also changed their slogan to "A whole different animal."
In 2013, they updated the look again, keeping the animals but changing the side of the plane to say "FLYFRONTIER.COM" to promote their website.
On September 9, 2014, Frontier launched its current look. It brought back a green "FRONTIER" font, similar to the original airline's design from 1978. Each plane also has the animal's name written near the front.
These animal characters are a big part of Frontier's marketing. Each animal has a name and personality, like Jack the rabbit, Grizwald the bear, Foxy the fox, Flip the dolphin, Larry the lynx, Hector the sea otter, and Sal the cougar. There are also the singing Penguins Jim, Joe, Jay, and Gary!
Destinations
Frontier Airlines currently flies to 94 places. These include cities all over the United States, and also in El Salvador, Mexico, Guatemala, Puerto Rico, the Dominican Republic, and Costa Rica.
Fleet
Current Fleet
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As of January 2024, Frontier Airlines uses only Airbus A320ceo and A320neo family planes. These are modern and fuel-efficient aircraft.
| Aircraft | In service | Orders | Passengers | Notes/sources |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Airbus A320-200 | 8 | — | 180 | Will be retired in 2024. |
| Airbus A320neo | 82 | 49 | 186 | New planes arriving until 2026. Frontier is the biggest user of this type in the US. |
| Airbus A321-200 | 21 | — | 230 | Will be retired by 2029. |
| Airbus A321neo | 24 | 136 | 240 | New planes arriving from 2022 to 2029. They can change 18 planes to Airbus A321XLR. |
| Airbus A321XLR | — | 18 | TBD | New planes arriving from 2026. |
| Total | 135 | 203 | ||
Fleet Development
Frontier Airlines has been ordering many new Airbus planes to keep its fleet modern. In 2011, they ordered 60 A320neo and 20 A319neo planes. In 2014, they ordered 19 Airbus A321neos. In October 2016, Frontier received its first Airbus A320neo.
On November 15, 2017, Frontier announced a huge order for 134 more A320neo family aircraft. This big order helps Frontier have one of the newest and most fuel-efficient fleets in the airline industry.
Historical Fleet
Frontier Airlines has used different types of planes in the past:
| Aircraft | Total | Introduced | Retired | Replacement | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Airbus A318-100 | 11 | 2003 | 2013 | Airbus A320 family | First airline to use this type |
| Airbus A319-100 | 53 | 2001 | 2021 | Airbus A320neo | |
| Boeing 737-200 | 12 | 1994 | 2006 | Airbus A320 family | |
| Boeing 737-300 | 19 | 1995 | 2005 | ||
| Bombardier CRJ200 | 6 | 2004 | 2006 | Bombardier CRJ700 | Operated by Mesa Airlines |
| Bombardier CRJ700 | 6 | 2004 | 2006 | Bombardier Q400 | Operated by Horizon Air |
| Bombardier Q400 | 11 | 2007 | 2012 | None | Operated by Lynx Aviation |
| Embraer 170 | 10 | 2010 | 2013 | Airbus A320 family | Operated by Republic Airways |
| Embraer 190 | 10 | 2010 | 2013 | Operated by Republic Airways |
Frontier was the first airline to use the Airbus A318. They received 11 of these planes between 2003 and 2007. They stopped using them by 2013.
Services
In-flight Services
Frontier's Airbus 321s and A320s have middle seats that are wider than the window and aisle seats, making them the widest middle seats on any U.S. airline since 2015.
On longer flights, like those using the A321ceo and A321neo, the seats have a standard amount of legroom. However, on shorter flights using the A320ceo and A320neo, the seats have less legroom than most other airlines.
To save weight, the seats are "pre-reclined" (they don't recline much), and there are no TVs on the back of the seats.
You can pay extra for "Stretch" seats, which give you more legroom and a seat that reclines more. These are free for members of the Frontier Elite Program.
Frequent-Flyer Program
Frontier Miles is Frontier Airlines' program for frequent flyers. You can earn miles by flying with Frontier, using their credit card, or spending money with their hotel and car rental partners.
You can use your Frontier Miles for flights, magazine subscriptions, car rentals, and hotel stays.
Frontier has three levels for frequent flyers: Elite 20K, Elite 50K, and Elite 100K. As you fly more, you reach higher levels and get benefits like free carry-on and checked bags, choosing your seat for free, priority boarding, and more.
Accidents and Incidents
- On November 30, 2018, a Frontier Airlines Airbus A320-200 had parts of its engine cover come off during takeoff. The crew thought a foreign object on the runway might have caused it. The plane landed safely, and no one was hurt.
- On August 8, 2019, a Frontier Airlines Airbus A321-200 hit its tail on the runway during landing. The plane was repaired, and no one was injured.
Images for kids
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Frontier Express Embraer ERJ-145 operated by Chautauqua Airlines in 2011.
See also
In Spanish: Frontier Airlines para niños
- List of Colorado companies
- Air transportation in the United States
