Spirit pilot ‘overwhelmed’ by rival airline’s gesture after his final flight before retirement is canceled

NewsWorldAmericasSpirit pilot ‘overwhelmed’ by rival airline’s gesture after his final flight before retirement is canceledCaptain Jon Jackson was supposed to retire from Spirit on Saturday, the same day the low-cost airline announced it would cease operations immediatelyIsabel Keane in New York Sunday 03 May 2026 22:35 BSTBookmarkCommentsGo to commentsBookmark popoverRemoved from bookmarksClose popover{"translations":{"comments":"Go to comments","share":"Share","copyLink":"Copy link","bookmark":"Bookmark","removeBookmark":"Remove bookmark"},"showComments":true,"showBookmark":true,"articleId":"b2969861","articleMeta":{"url":"https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/spirit-pilot-retirement-honored-southwest-airlines-b2969861.html","title":"Rival airline honors Spirit pilot whose final flight before retirement was canceled"}}CloseSpirit pilot signs off as airline shuts downThe latest headlines from our reporters across the US sent straight to your inbox each weekdayYour briefing on the latest headlines from across the USYour briefing on the latest headlines from across the USEmail*SIGN UPI would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our Privacy notice{"className":"sc-1ge0fwe-0","newsletterData":{"regSourceNewsletter":"IND_Evening_Newsletter","regTitle":"Evening Headlines","subscriptionGroup":"us_evening_headlines","subscriptionGroupId":"4326e634-422a-4447-8e1e-604a937cd3b5","type":"daily_news","pathPrefix":["/us","/news/world/americas","/news/world/americas/crime"],"title":"The latest headlines from our reporters across the US sent straight to your inbox each weekday","mobileTitle":"Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US","imageSrc":"https://static.independent.co.uk/static-assets/images/newsletters/usEveningHeadlines1_1.png","label":"I would like to receive morning headlines Monday - Friday plus breaking news alerts by email","newsletterKey":"receiveEveningHeadlinesUSNews","regSourceSection":"Americas...