The CEO of Spirit Airlines Has Flown the Coop — Let's Take a Look at Ted Christie's Net Worth

Over the years, a lot of jokes have been made at the expense of Spirit Airlines. Unlike some airlines we won't mention, most of the issues with Spirit are not safety-related. They have a lot of annoying quirks, such as a strangely strict dress code for passengers and charging for almost everything, including water. Despite this, Spirit has become sort of a cult hero amongst travelers, especially now that it's the little turbofan engine that could.

In December 2023, JetBlue proposed a $3.8 billion acquisition of Spirit Airlines that was blocked by the Department of Justice a month later, per The New York Times. By the end of 2024, Spirit filed for bankruptcy and basically did a hard reboot. Honestly, it's kind of an inspiring story if you completely ignore their baggage fees. In the wake of the reorganization, Spirit Airlines CEO Ted Christie resigned. Let's take a look at his net worth.

There are conflicting reports regarding Christie's net worth, but according to the Board of Directors Salary website, he's worth at least $7.43 million. One week before Spirit Airlines filed for bankruptcy, The New York Post reported that Christie received a $3.8 million bonus. Christie was elevated to CEO in 2019 and before that, he served as CFO at the troubled airline company. He and his wife live close to the Spirit Airlines headquarters, in a $2.5 million home they purchased in 2012 for $1.2 million.

After Christie graduated from the University of Arizona in 1992, he briefly dabbled in music before ending up in finance. From 1992 until 2002, he was the Vice President of Finance at Alexander Capital, which is a full-service investment bank and brokerage firm. His airline career began at Frontier Airlines in 2002, per his bio. Christie quickly moved up from VP of Finance to CFO in 2008. While there, he "helped the carrier to restructure and to achieve a competitive cost structure."

After landing at Spirit Airlines in 2012, Christie spent five years as the Senior Vice President and CFO until he was promoted to Executive Vice President and CFO in 2017. He was named President one year later, followed by President, CEO, and director in January 2019. Six years later, Christie was waving bon voyage to Spirit Airlines.

Christie resigned from Spirit Airlines amid the shakeup that occurred after the company filed for bankruptcy. There have been no public statements regarding Christie's departure beyond the company's interest in finding his successor, per The Globe and Mail. Spirit Airlines is looking for someone who can help them during this transitional period and carry the company into more stable territory.