JetBlue Airways and South Florida-based Spirit Airlines asked a federal appellate court Tuesday to expedite their appeal of a judge’s ruling that blocked their proposed merger earlier this month.

The airlines asked the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit to place the appeal on a fast track because an agreement that envisions JetBlue buying Spirit has a closing date of July 24. U.S. District Judge William Young of Boston refused to approve the deal after the U.S. Justice Department sued to halt the transaction. The government alleged consumers would end up paying higher fares and lose access to an ultra low-cost industry competitor in Spirit.

The carriers’ joint appeal said the district court ruling  “disregards the benefits of the transaction to the majority of the flying public.” They said if their appeal is not given a priority by the appellate court, judges might not be able to deliver a ruling in time.

The two discount carriers filed their petition on the same day JetBlue announced a $104 million loss for its fourth quarter, and declared 2024 as a “transformation” year designed to return to profitability. During a Tuesday morning conference call with Wall Street analysts, JetBlue executives disclosed a voluntary employee buyout plan, a slowdown in new aircraft acquisitions, and a systemwide reduction in seating capacity.

JetBlue, which along with Spirit is a predominant carrier at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport, said nothing further about the possibility of breaking off its stalled $3.8 billion buyout. JetBlue said in a regulatory filing last week that unspecified conditions might scuttle the agreement. Spirit said it expects JetBlue to follow through.

The shares of Spirit, which is based in Miramar, rose 5.8% to $6.38 after news of the appeal circulated. JetBlue’s stock slipped by 1.5% in premarket trading to $5.42. The share price has declined by 30% over the last year.

“We closed the year on a strong note thanks to the hard work and continued execution of our team as fourth quarter revenue and costs beat our expectations,” said Robin Hayes, JetBlue’s outgoing chief executive officer. He is leaving the company Feb. 12; Joanna Geraghty, the chief operating officer, is taking his place.

“Looking ahead, I am confident that the next chapter of JetBlue, under Joanna’s leadership, will deliver a refreshed focus on our core customer, expanded opportunities for our crewmembers, and a return to JetBlue’s historical earnings power for our shareholders,” Hayes said in a statement issued early Tuesday.

“We remain intensely focused on restoring profitability, taking steps to ensure every dollar we invest is making an impact,” Chief Financial Officer Ursula Hurley said.

“2024 is an important year of change for JetBlue and we are taking aggressive action, including launching $300 million of revenue initiatives, to return to profitability and deliver value for our shareholders,” Geraghty said.

“We have to be more selective of where we fly,” she told the analysts.

The executives acknowledged that the 2024 plans they discussed Tuesday are based on JetBlue operating as a stand-alone company.

JetBlue has agreed to help build a new terminal at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood, and recently launched service from the airport to Tallahassee.

For the third year running, The Wall Street Journal recently ranked the airline as the worst of the nine major U.S. carriers. The paper’s analysis of federal and other data placed JetBlue last in on-time arrivals, cancellations, delays of more than 45 minutes and tarmac delays.

The airline blamed bad weather at its JFK International Airport operation in New York and poor air traffic control along many of its routes.

Delta Air Lines finished atop the survey while Spirit ranked seventh.