Spirit Airlines to begin flying out of Kansas City in August

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Spirit Airlines, which features low-cost flights with almost no free amenities, will begin offering five daily routes out of Kansas City in August.

The low-budget airline announced Wednesday it will offer flights to Chicago, Dallas-Fort Worth, Detroit and Las Vegas beginning Aug. 7. A round-trip flight to Houston will begin Aug. 8.

The airline, based in Miramar, Fla., offers inexpensive flights but also charges for services such as soft drinks, carry-on bags and assigned seats. It also has more seats, which don't recline, in its airplanes.

Mark Kopczak, Spirit's vice president of network planning, said in a news release that the airline looked forward to helping people "traveling to or from the Kansas City area to save money with our ultralow fares and optional services for a total price that is tough to beat."

Kansas City will be the 56th city in Spirit's network. The airline is the first carrier to start service at Kansas City International Airport since Alaska Airlines began offering one flight a day to Seattle two years ago.

"Spirit has selected five key destinations from Kansas City that will benefit both leisure and business customers alike," Mark VanLoh, director of aviation for the Kansas City Aviation Department, said in the release.

A report released last week by the U.S. Public Interest Research Group said more customers complained about Spirit than any other U.S. carrier from 2009 to 2013. The report was based on U.S. Department of Transportation data, The Kansas City Star reported.

Spirit executives responded that eight out of every 100,000 of the airline's customers filed complaints with the Department of Transportation, which meant nearly all of its customers didn't complain. The airline said customers who complained were probably not familiar with its business model.