Frontier, Spirit tie-up to face close scrutiny from US Justice Dept

A bid by budget carriers Frontier Group Holdings and Spirit Airlines Inc to create the fifth-largest U.S. airline will face close scrutiny from the Justice Department, lawyers said Monday.

The Biden administration has made injecting more competition into U.S. industries a key priority.

Andre Barlow, an antitrust lawyer at Doyle, Barlow & Mazard LLC, said in the "antitrust environment" the airlines would have trouble getting the deal past the department's Antitrust Division.

"Given the administration's stance against mergers, it will be difficult for these two low-budget competitors to convince the antitrust enforcers that its merger will lead to lower prices,"