Spirit Airlines is finding out that if you take on one old soldier, you can end up facing an army.

Veterans groups around the nation are rallying to the side of dying Vietnam veteran and ex-Marine Jerry Meekins, 76, of Clearwater, Fla., following the airline’s refusal to refund him $197 for a ticket after the doctor treating him for terminal esophageal cancer told him not to fly. Meekins told FoxNews.com he's received "hundreds of calls" from veterans nationwide who are as mad at Spirit as he is.

“The response from most veterans is that they’re going to boycott Spirit Airlines,” Meekins told FoxNews.com. “We’re talking 6 or 7 million people.”

Military men and women, who live the credo of taking care of their own, can't believe an airline would turn its back on someone who had sacrificed so much. Meekins said Spirit denied his request even though he provided a note from his physician and his prepaid funeral service to the airline.

“They’ve got no humanity, they’ve got no patriotism,” Peter Forbes, president of the Veterans of the Vietnam War and the Veterans Coalition, told FoxNews.com. “[Meekins] deserves a little bit better treatment … Give him a hand up and not a handout, he’s not asking for much at all.”

Spirit has a hard-and-fast "no refund" rule for customers who don't pay extra for insurance, and while company officials expressed sympathy for Meekins, they refuse to make an exception in his case. The ex-cop had hoped to fly to Atlantic City to see his daughter, who is undergoing an operation, but was grounded by his doctor -- then denied by Spirit. Meekins made it up by land, and was with his daughter Tuesday - no thanks to the notoriously tight-fisted airline. Meekins would've liked to have put the ticket money into his gas tank for the two-day drive north.

In addition to ticking off veterans everywhere, his plight has given a shot in the arm to the “Boycott Spirit Airlines” Facebook page.

Forbes said his 70,000-member, Pennsylvania-based organization fired off a letter to the Fort Lauderdale-based carrier, calling on it to reverse its decision.

"What would have happened if this patriotic American said “no” when called to serve his country? Life at Spirit Airlines might never happened," the letter obtained by FoxNews.com reads.

“We’re happy to look at [letters in support of Meekins]; however, we are standing by our decision not to provide the refund,” Spirit spokeswoman Misty Pinson told FoxNews.com.

Forbes said his office was fielding calls from outraged veterans in support of Meekins early Tuesday.

“It’s in the spirit of what they should be doing,” Forbes said. “Spirit Airlines should have some honor for veterans. Give him a break, for God’s save. Have a bit of love for your country and for patriotism.”

Picking a fight with Meekins is a bad idea, said Army veteran Mike Saunders, deputy legislative director for The Retired Enlisted Association, which fights to ensure veterans get the health and welfare entitlements promised them.

"As this becomes well-known in the veterans community, there could be a big backlash against Spirit Airlines," said Saunders. "They feel like they gave up a lot, they went and served in Vietnam during their youth, and a little bit compassion on the back end seems only right."

Meekins protested near the airline’s ticket counter at Tampa International Airport last month and was joined by other veterans, including one who voiced the potential of a boycott.

"We've got 3 million Legionnaires, and when you take into account all veterans, you're talking 10 million people,” said Bill Hamlin, commander of American Legion Post 5 in Tampa. “Can Spirit Airlines really afford the negative publicity and the possible boycott of at least 10 million veterans?”

The 180,000-member AMVETS is in the foxhole with Meekins, too.

"AMVETS supports Mr. Meekins, and we view this episode as an opportunity for Spirit Airlines to demonstrate common sense and good corporate citizenship by reviewing its refund policy in light of the circumstances surrounding the request of Meekins, a terminally ill Marine Corps veteran," AMVETS spokesman Jay Agg wrote FoxNews.com in an email.

The airline insists that making an exception would force the cost of providing refunds on to other customers. Pinson noted customers have the option of buying travel insurance, which could help them get their money back, an option Meekins apparently did not choose.

The airline, which has angered consumer groups with its pioneering charges for carry-on baggage and $5 fee for having a boarding pass printed at the airport, claim the no-refunds approach allows the airline to pass savings on to customers.

Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/us/2012/05/01/veteran-group-calls-on-spirit-airlines-to-reverse-decision-denying-refund/#ixzz1tfCQNRFt

No disrespect intended,, but its in black and white on their site and proabably on their tickets too


its an already cheap airline, I understand why they dont make exceptions

it would have been an EXCEPTIONAL thing to do,, but not gonna boycott over their following of their own black and white policy that any purchaser can read for themself,,,

No disrespect intended Ms, but I think incidents like that should allow for a little "bending" of the rules. It's a simple move on the part of their PR dept. But now their name will get varnished with a cloudy residue that says, "We don't care about you."

That's not exactly what they're trying to say, but in this society, it's the message that will be remembered. $300 lost, as opposed to the millions they might lose seems to warrant another look at the situation before it escalates further.

I think it's due time that vets get the real thanks they deserve. If not for them, there might not be a Spirit Airlines.

And don't go spouting the "rules are rules ..... printed right on the ticket ... " argument either. Put yourself in his shoes and imagine it was your child and then tell me if you feel the same way.

Totally agree.
He was able to buy the cheap ticket
because of those very rules in place.

over an already highly discounted ticket? actually, I would let it go as following policy

people can come up with millions of reasons they should be an exception,,,its up to the person giving the service or selling the product to decide if they are and to then explain to every person following them why they ARENT as much of an exception,,,,,

I see nothing wrong with this response. I agree with msharmony its a policy they get to choose there policies, and regardless of if the policy makes sense, we the paying public get to respond to that policy how we see fit.

This to me is a good thing. The free market plus global information systems make for a consumer base that can show companies what we want, and what we expect.

Free markets at there best in IMHO. I would have refunded his money without question, but choices are good things, and they have consequences even when justified.

Lpdon, would you feel the same if this happened to someone other than a soldier?

this is true, I think most the people who utilize Spirit for its cheap prices arent really gonna stop over this particular passenger being held to policy,,,,if anything, the current customers may feel that the airline can be trusted to follow its own policies and procedures fairly and with all customers,,,

I just got a cheap flight on Spirit Airlines, I paid an extra $38 for the cancellation insurance.

I think it would have been nice for the airline to refund his ticket, but I don't see them as being the villain for sticking to a reasonable company policy.

Probably not. The guy defended his country and is now dying. He should be cut a break.

the break is in the discounted ticket,,,and the option to purchase insurance

if he chose not to,,,defending his country is not an excuse,,,