Frontier’s cancellations and delays ‘not acceptable,’ new CEO says, vowing to get better

Enough is enough: That’s the message from Frontier Airlines’ new leader about the budget airline’s turbulent history of flight delays and cancellations.

And the airline is prepared, he said, to make major changes to get better.

“We’re simply not satisfied with our past record,” recently appointed CEO James Dempsey said on the company’s earnings call Wednesday. “The status quo is not acceptable.”

Frontier has long struggled with operational reliability. It’s been a lingering frustration for passengers — especially those who get stranded on routes the airline only flies two or three times per week.

According to U.S. Department of Transportation statistics, Frontier canceled 2.3% of all flights in 2024 — the last full year with data available. That was by far the worst result of any major U.S. airline.

The carrier also saw its planes get to the gate late at a higher rate than any of its competitors. And last summer, it turned in a last-place finish in TPG’s Best Airlines Report.

Fixing those problems is a top priority in 2026, said Dempsey, who recently assumed the CEO post after the abrupt departure late last year by longtime executive Barry Biffle.

“Every available option is on the table,” Dempsey said, “to improve our performance.”

What’s Frontier doing to improve?

Among other moves, the carrier is working to get faster at prepping planes for takeoff after they get to the gate — and smarter about aircraft maintenance, in hopes of avoiding dreaded mechanical delays.

Frontier is also planning to improve the alerts it sends to customers when problems arise, after beefing up its mobile app, which is now used, the carrier said, by around 85% of flyers.

More flights on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Saturdays

Simplifying matters, the airline will have fewer planes to contend with.

After losing $137 million in 2025, Frontier on Wednesday announced a deal to cut short its leases on two dozen aircraft.

Instead, the airline plans to squeeze more flights out of its other planes.

That includes more flights on quieter days of the week.

A more ‘balanced’ flight schedule

Have you ever noticed that Frontier offers some flights on certain days of the week from your home airport … but not others?

There’s a reason.

In recent years, Frontier has packed its schedule with flights on peak travel days like Fridays and Sundays — but flown a much lighter schedule on lower-demand days, such as Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Saturdays.

The thinking: “Why fly on days when fewer people want to travel?”

But more day-to-day consistency is coming. And it’s due in part to the struggles of Spirit Airlines.

Frontier’s top budget airline competitor is currently embroiled in Chapter 11 bankruptcy, and has slashed flights from its schedule.

With less competition, Frontier thinks it should be able to fill up more planes on more days of the week.

“Two years ago, the overlap [on routes] between Frontier and Spirit was close to 50%. It’s now meaningfully lower than that,” Dempsey said — especially in the western U.S.

Second place in Atlanta

It’s not just Spirit’s cutbacks that Frontier is seizing on.

The carrier is taking advantage of Southwest Airlines’ thinner schedule in Atlanta to grab an advantage at the world’s busiest airport.

In 2025, Frontier offered nearly 3.5 million seats out of Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport (ATL), according to data from aviation analytics firm Cirium.

That edged out Southwest for the second-highest number of seats offered by an airline at the Georgia hub.

Reality check: Second-best is all any airline can hope for at an airport dominated by Delta Air Lines.

But Frontier has doubled down on the airport, adding a bunch of new routes in 2025 — including destinations in Latin America.

The carrier expects that growth to continue in 2026: During the first half of this year, its total seats from the airport are set to be up a whopping 75% over last year, Cirium shows.

“You’ve seen Southwest and Spirit reduce capacity in Atlanta,” Dempsey told analysts. “We’re really happy with the performance of the base.”

Up next: First class

The biggest change Frontier flyers will see in the coming months: first-class seats.

Those were slated to debut by spring, and will eventually occupy the first two rows of all its planes.

Also on tap: onboard Wi-Fi. After months of speculation, Dempsey on Wednesday confirmed Frontier plans to add inflight internet service to its jets between now and early 2027.

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