May 1 (UPI) -- President Donald Trump on Friday said that his administration had made a "final" bailout offer to Spirit Airlines as reports suggest it is on the verge of shutting down.
Although Trump said his administration is still discussing a $500 million bailout for the beleaguered airline, its investors have not agreed to the government's proposal and Spirit could shut down as soon as Saturday, The Wall Street Journal and CBS News reported.
Trump has for the past two weeks said the government would try to get involved to save the airline and its 7,500 employees, unveiling last weekend a plan to loan Spirit $500 million under the Defense Production Act and become its main debtor.
The price of jet fuel has doubled since Feb. 28 because of the war in Iran, raising costs for all airlines globally, but Spirit has been working to emerge from bankruptcy for the second time in a year and its financial plan has been completely upended.
"We're looking at it," Trump told reporters on Friday, hours after reports of the airline's demise started to spread.
