Dj Frontier Airlines Names Interim Ceo, Biffle To Exit

By Allison Pohle and Elias Schisgall

A new CEO will take the reins at Frontier Airlines, as the budget carrier battles tougher competition from big carriers.

Frontier Group Holdings named James Dempsey interim chief executive officer effective immediately, succeeding Barry Biffle, who had been at the company for 11 years and served as CEO since 2016.

Biffle will remain in an advisory capacity through the end of the year, Frontier said Monday. It didn't provide a reason for his departure.

Dempsey, currently Frontier's president, joined in 2014 as finance chief. Before that, he served in management roles at Ryanair Holdings and PricewaterhouseCoopers.

"We believe Jimmy is uniquely qualified to guide our airline into the future," said Bill Franke, chairman of Frontier's board.

Frontier reiterated its guidance for the current quarter. The company's shares were 1.4% lower in after-hours trade.

Ultralow-cost carriers have struggled in recent months, and Frontier's stock is down 20% year-to-date. Low-cost carriers have grappled with rising costs, including for labor, as well as more competition from larger airlines, which can profit off long haul, international flights and have adopted budget carrier tactics such as charging for seat assignments and bag fees.

Frontier plans to cater to bigger spenders by introducing first-class seats, which Biffle teased in a LinkedIn post one week ago.

Frontier promoted Biffle to CEO in 2016 from his role as president. Before joining Frontier, Biffle was chief executive of VivaColombia, a low-cost airline, and spent many years at Spirit Airlines.

The two low-cost carriers have had a turbulent relationship in recent years, as Spirit, Frontier's main competitor, has struggled with solvency.

The two airlines were set to merge in 2022, but JetBlue came through with a higher offer for Spirit. That proposal was ultimately rejected by a federal judge. Frontier made another attempt to merge in January of this year, but Spirit rejected the offer.

Frontier has said a combination with Spirit would create the fifth-largest U.S. carrier, a budget airline with the scale to compete against the larger airlines that dominate the business.

Write to Allison Pohle at allison.pohle@wsj.com and Elias Schisgall at elias.schisgall@wsj.com

By Elias Schisgall

Frontier Group Holdings, the parent company of Frontier Airlines, named James Dempsey interim chief executive officer effective immediately, succeeding Barry Biffle.

Biffle, who has been at the company for 11 years, will remain in an advisory capacity through the end of the year, Frontier said Monday. It did not provide a reason for his departure.

Dempsey, who currently serves as president of the company, first joined in 2014 as finance chief. Prior to that, he served in management roles at Ryanair Holdings and PricewaterhouseCoopers.

The company said it was reiterating its guidance for the current fourth quarter.

Write to Elias Schisgall at elias.schisgall@wsj.com