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Area Development - Site Selection, Facility Planning and Workforce Development

Spirit Airlines to Relocate Operations Center to Williamson County, Tennessee

02/14/2020
Spirit Airlines will invest $11.3 million to relocate its operations control center from Miramar, Florida, to Williamson County, Tennessee.

The project will bring 345 jobs to Tennessee over the next five years. Spirit will relocate more than 240 positions to Tennessee and create 100 additional jobs in Williamson County.

Headquartered in South Florida, Spirit is the seventh-largest commercial airline in the U.S. and operates more than 650 flights a day to 77 destinations throughout the U.S., Caribbean and Latin America.

The OCC move coincides with Spirit’s plan to double its all-Airbus fleet to about 300 aircraft over the next five years. The airline recently finalized an order for the delivery of 100 new Airbus A320neo Family Aircraft through 2027.

“Nashville clearly came out on top in a nationwide search due to geographic location, business climate and its growing aviation sector. We look forward to building on our plans for future network expansion and protecting our growing 24/7 operation by starting this new chapter in Nashville. In addition to the OCC, we recently started offering service from Nashville International Airport to six destinations, plus four more on the way,” Ted Christie, President and CEO of Spirit Airlines said.

Spirit’s OCC serves as the company’s 24/7, mission-critical operations function that directs operational control over all Spirit flights. It includes functions such as flight dispatch, crew scheduling, maintenance control, aircraft routing, air traffic control coordination, guest solutions and more. The facility will contain robust infrastructure to support significant technology and operational reliability.

Spirit is America’s fastest-growing airline and recently entered the Nashville market in October 2019 with nonstop flights to Baltimore/Washington, Fort Lauderdale, Las Vegas, New Orleans, Orlando and Tampa. Spirit will also begin service from Nashville to Austin, Cancun, Newark and Los Angeles in the coming months, creating more jobs at the Nashville International Airport.

“I’d like to welcome Spirit Airlines to Tennessee and thank its team for being one of the latest companies to call our state home. Last year, Tennessee was named the number one best fiscally managed state in the country for the first time, and we are proud to highlight this ranking as we continue to recruit companies from around the globe to do business in the Volunteer State,” said Governor Bill Lee.

“In the past year, we’ve seen an influx of companies choosing to locate new operations in Tennessee, which is a tremendous vote of confidence to our state’s thriving business climate and superior workforce. We are honored that Spirit Airlines has chosen Tennessee as the home of its Operations Control Center and are appreciative of the company’s investment and commitment to bring nearly 350 jobs to Williamson County,” added Bob Rolfe, Commissioner of TNECD.

“TVA congratulates Spirit Airlines on its decision to locate in Nashville and create hundreds of new job opportunities. Attracting and retaining quality jobs and investment in our communities is fundamental to TVA’s mission of service, and we are proud to work with our partners to help further that mission and support Spirit’s success in the Valley,” said John Bradley, TVA senior vice president of Economic Development.

“Spirit Airlines is part of the BNA family, and we are thrilled that the company has chosen to extend its presence into Middle Tennessee. It was a pleasure to be a part of the recruitment process, and we look forward to growing our partnership and air service with the Spirit team as they set up their new operations, “ Doug Kreulen, President and CEO of Nashville International Airport added.

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