Spirit Airlines and Frontier call off a proposed merger.

The effort by Frontier Airlines to acquire Spirit Airlines ended on Wednesday when they called off their proposal.

Shortly before the results of the shareholder vote on Frontier were announced, the announcement was made. As it tried to convince shareholders to support the deal, Spirit delayed the vote several times.

Ted Christie, Spirit's chief executive, said in a statement that they are proud of the team members who worked on the transaction over the course of many months. As we pursue the best path forward for Spirit and our stockholders, the board of directors will continue their discussions with the airline.

Frontier was disappointed that the shareholders didn't support the deal. The airline said it was poised for growth.

The merger would have created a national carrier. Both airlines share a low-cost business model with different geographic strengths.

The executives of Spirit wondered if the offer was intended to ruin the combination with Frontier. Experts said that both deals would be subject to intense federal scrutiny and that antitrust regulators would probably stand in the way of a merger.

It doesn't mean that the offer will be accepted by the airlines. It is not known if a majority of the shareholders of Spirit would support the offer. Regulators could derail the combination or demand stiff concessions from the airlines if they chose to do so.

A trial will be held in the fall to stop a partnership between American Airlines and JetBlue at airports in Boston and New York.

The creation of the nation's fifth- largest airline would be accelerated by the acquisition of Spirit. The airlines control less than 10 percent of the market. The fourth largest airline has a market share of 13.9%.

TheSpirit deal was called off at the same time as Frontier's financial results were reported. In the three months that ended in June, the airline made a $13 million profit. Revenue and profits improved from a year earlier.