List of airline mergers and acquisitions
Encyclopedia
This article lists airline mergers and acquisitions, with a brief history of each:
- Air BerlinAir BerlinAir Berlin PLC & Co. Luftverkehrs KG is Germany's second largest airline, after Lufthansa, and Europe's sixth largest airline in terms of passengers....
- 2006 - Acquired dba.
- 2007 - Acquired LTULTU InternationalLTU Lufttransport-Unternehmen GmbH was an airline based in Düsseldorf, Germany, now fully owned by Air Berlin. The initials stand for the German phrase LuftTransport-Unternehmen . It operated scheduled services on medium and long-haul routes, as well as charter services...
. - 2009 - Merged with TUIflyTUIflyTUIfly Vermarktungs GmbH is an airline based at Hannover Airport in Langenhagen, Lower Saxony, Germany. The airline offers both charter and scheduled low-cost flights. About 60% of all seats are sold directly, 30% as a part of a TUI holiday package and 10% by other agencies...
and acquired a majority of their fleet. - 2009 - Acquired LGW.
- Air New ZealandAir New ZealandAir New Zealand Limited is the national airline and flag carrier of New Zealand. Based in Auckland, New Zealand, the airline operates scheduled passenger flights to 26 domestic destinations and 24 international destinations in 15 countries across Asia, Europe, North America and Oceania, and is...
- 2000 - Acquired Ansett AustraliaAnsett AustraliaAnsett Australia, Ansett, Ansett Airlines of Australia, or ANSETT-ANA as it was commonly known in earlier years, was a major Australian airline group, based in Melbourne. The airlines flew domestically within Australia and to destinations in Asia during its operation in 1996...
, Ansett collapsed, proving to be more of a drain than asset.
- 2000 - Acquired Ansett Australia
- Air CanadaAir CanadaAir Canada is the flag carrier and largest airline of Canada. The airline, founded in 1936, provides scheduled and charter air transport for passengers and cargo to 178 destinations worldwide. It is the world's tenth largest passenger airline by number of destinations, and the airline is a...
- 2000 - Acquired Canadian AirlinesCanadian AirlinesCanadian Airlines International Ltd. was a Canadian airline that operated from 1987 until 2001. The airline was Canada's second largest airline after Air Canada, and carried more than 11.9 million passengers to over 160 destinations in 17 countries on five continents at its height in 1996...
.
- 2000 - Acquired Canadian Airlines
- Air FranceAir FranceAir France , stylised as AIRFRANCE, is the French flag carrier headquartered in Tremblay-en-France, , and is one of the world's largest airlines. It is a subsidiary of the Air France-KLM Group and a founding member of the SkyTeam global airline alliance...
- 2004 - Acquired KLM Royal Dutch AirlinesKLM Royal Dutch AirlinesKoninklijke Luchtvaart Maatschappij N.V., operating under the name KLM Royal Dutch Airlines , is the flag carrier airline of the Netherlands and is part of Air France-KLM...
, changing the company name to Air France KLM, although the two airlines still operate as separate airlines.
- 2004 - Acquired KLM Royal Dutch Airlines
- Air JamaicaAir JamaicaAir Jamaica is the current national airline of Jamaica. It is has been owned and operated by Caribbean Airlines since 26 May 2011. The airline, headquartered in Piarco, Trinidad and Tobago also has administrative offices located in Norman Manley International Airport in Kingston, Jamaica...
- 2010 - Acquired by Caribbean AirlinesCaribbean AirlinesCaribbean Airlines Limited operating as Caribbean Airlines is the national airline of Trinidad and Tobago. The airline is also flag carrier to Jamaica through its subsidiary, Caribbean Airlines-Air Jamaica Transition Limited or Air Jamaica....
- 2010 - Acquired by Caribbean Airlines
- Air WestHughes AirwestHughes Airwest was an airline that was backed by Howard Hughes. Hughes Airwest flew routes around the western United States and to certain points in Mexico and Canada. The airline was purchased by Republic Airlines on October 1, 1980...
- 1968 - Pacific Air Lines (originally Southwest Airways), Bonanza Air Lines, and West Coast Airlines merged to form Air West
- 1970 - Howard Hughes purchased Air West and renamed it Hughes Airwest
- AirTran AirwaysAirTran AirwaysAirTran Airways, a subsidiary of the Dallas, Texas-based Southwest Airlines, is an American low-cost airline headquartered in Orlando, Florida. AirTran operates over 650 daily flights , primarily in the eastern and midwestern United States...
- 1997 - Bought by ValuJet AirlinesValuJet AirlinesValuJet Airlines was an American low-cost carrier, headquartered in unincorporated Clayton County, Georgia, that operated regularly scheduled domestic and international flights in the Eastern United States and Canada during the 1990s...
, keeping the AirTran brand
- 1997 - Bought by ValuJet Airlines
- Alaska AirlinesAlaska AirlinesAlaska Airlines is an airline based in the Seattle suburb of SeaTac, Washington in the United States. The airline originated in 1932 as McGee Airways. After many mergers with and acquisitions of other airlines, including Star Air Service, it became known as Alaska Airlines in 1944...
- 1986 - Acquired Jet America AirlinesJet America AirlinesJet America Airlines was an airline that operated domestic flights in the United States between 1981 and 1987. It was headquartered in Signal Hill, California, near Long Beach.-History:...
. - 1986 - Acquired Horizon AirHorizon AirHorizon Air Industries, Inc. is a regional low-cost airline based in SeaTac, Washington, United States. It is the eighth largest regional airline in the USA, serving 52 cities in the United States, Canada and Mexico....
, which continues to operate as a separate airline.
- 1986 - Acquired Jet America Airlines
- America West AirlinesAmerica West AirlinesAmerica West Airlines corporate offices were in Tempe, Arizona and the main hub was at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport. The airline became part of the US Airways Group after a merger in 2005....
- 2005 - Acquired bankrupt US AirwaysUS AirwaysUS Airways, Inc. is a major airline based in the U.S. city of Tempe, Arizona. The airline is an operating unit of US Airways Group and is the sixth largest airline by traffic and eighth largest by market value in the country....
, retaining the US Airways name.
- 2005 - Acquired bankrupt US Airways
- American AirlinesAmerican AirlinesAmerican Airlines, Inc. is the world's fourth-largest airline in passenger miles transported and operating revenues. American Airlines is a subsidiary of the AMR Corporation and is headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas adjacent to its largest hub at Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport...
- 1971 - Acquired Trans Caribbean AirwaysTrans Caribbean AirwaysTrans Caribbean Airways is a former airline owned by O. Roy Chalk. Its hub was San Juan, Puerto Rico. Founded in 1945, it was acquired by American Airlines in 1971. Its headquarters was located in Midtown Manhattan, New York City....
- 1987 - Acquired Air CaliforniaAir CaliforniaAir California, later AirCal, was a regional airline using mainline equipment and serving different points in the state of California and some neighboring western U.S. states. It was founded by a partnership of Orange County businessmen as an alternative to other airlines and what was left of the...
- 1987 - Acquired Reno AirReno AirReno Air was a scheduled passenger airline headquartered in Reno, Nevada, United States.Reno Air provided service from its hubs at Reno/Tahoe International Airport in Reno, Nevada and San Jose International Airport in San Jose, California to destinations throughout the western United States, Canada...
- 2001 - Acquired TWATwaThe Twa are any of several hunting peoples of Africa who live interdependently with agricultural Bantu populations, and generally hold a socially subordinate position: They provide the farming population with game in exchange for agricultural products....
- 1971 - Acquired Trans Caribbean Airways
- Canadian AirlinesCanadian AirlinesCanadian Airlines International Ltd. was a Canadian airline that operated from 1987 until 2001. The airline was Canada's second largest airline after Air Canada, and carried more than 11.9 million passengers to over 160 destinations in 17 countries on five continents at its height in 1996...
- 1987 - Formed by merger of Canadian Pacific AirlinesCanadian Pacific AirlinesCanadian Pacific Air Lines was a Canadian airline that operated from 1942 to 1987. It operated under the name CP Air from 1968 to 1986...
, Eastern Provincial AirwaysEastern Provincial AirwaysEastern Provincial Airways traces its history from Maritime Central Airways from 1961 and merged with CP Air to form Canadian Pacific Airlines in 1986.EPA, as it was known, was the backbone of air travel in Eastern Canada in the 1970s...
, NordairNordairNordair is a defunct Quebec-based regional airline founded in 1947 from the merger of Boreal Airways and Mont Laurier Aviation. The airline operated from the 1950s to the 1980s. Most of its business was international and transatlantic passenger and freight charters and other contracts. It also...
, and Pacific Western AirlinesPacific Western AirlinesPacific Western Airlines was an airline that operated scheduled flights throughout western Canada and charter services around the world from the 1950s through the 1980s...
. - 2000 - Acquired by Air CanadaAir CanadaAir Canada is the flag carrier and largest airline of Canada. The airline, founded in 1936, provides scheduled and charter air transport for passengers and cargo to 178 destinations worldwide. It is the world's tenth largest passenger airline by number of destinations, and the airline is a...
.
- 1987 - Formed by merger of Canadian Pacific Airlines
- Caribbean AirlinesCaribbean AirlinesCaribbean Airlines Limited operating as Caribbean Airlines is the national airline of Trinidad and Tobago. The airline is also flag carrier to Jamaica through its subsidiary, Caribbean Airlines-Air Jamaica Transition Limited or Air Jamaica....
- 2010 - Acquired Air JamaicaAir JamaicaAir Jamaica is the current national airline of Jamaica. It is has been owned and operated by Caribbean Airlines since 26 May 2011. The airline, headquartered in Piarco, Trinidad and Tobago also has administrative offices located in Norman Manley International Airport in Kingston, Jamaica...
.
- 2010 - Acquired Air Jamaica
- Cathay Pacific Airways
- 2006 - Acquired full ownership over DragonairDragonairHong Kong Dragon Airlines Limited , operating as Dragonair, is an international airline and flag carrier headquartered in Hong Kong; with its corporate headquarters, Dragonair House Hong Kong Dragon Airlines Limited (T: 港龍航空有限公司, S: 港龙航空有限公司, Cantonese: gong2 lung4 hong4 hung1 jau5 haan6 gung1 si1,...
, which continues to operate as a separate airline.
- 2006 - Acquired full ownership over Dragonair
- Cimber Air
- 2008 - Acquired bankrupt SterlingSterling AirlinesSterling Airlines A/S was a low-cost airline with its head office at Copenhagen Airport South in Dragør, Dragør Municipality, Denmark. It was created in September 2005 through the merger of two Danish airlines — Sterling European Airlines and Maersk Air — which had been bought by the Icelandic...
to form Cimber SterlingCimber SterlingCimber Sterling A/S, still known as Cimber Air and styled as Cimber Sterling, is a Danish airline based in Sønderborg, Sønderborg Municipality, Denmark, operating scheduled domestic and international services in co-operation with Scandinavian Airlines and Lufthansa...
.
- 2008 - Acquired bankrupt Sterling
- Continental AirlinesContinental AirlinesContinental Airlines was a major American airline now merged with United Airlines. On May 3, 2010, Continental Airlines, Inc. and UAL, Inc. announced a merger via a stock swap, and on October 1, 2010, the merger closed and UAL changed its name to United Continental Holdings, Inc...
- - Texas International
- - Frontier
- - People Express
- - New York Air
- 2010 - Merger with United Airlines to form the world's largest carrier under the name United
- Delta Air LinesDelta Air LinesDelta Air Lines, Inc. is a major airline based in the United States and headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia. The airline operates an extensive domestic and international network serving all continents except Antarctica. Delta and its subsidiaries operate over 4,000 flights every day...
- 1924 - Started as Huff Daland Dusters
- 1928 - Huff Daland Dusters was purchased by C.E. Woolman and renamed Delta Air Service after the Mississippi Delta
- 1953 - Purchased the Chicago and Southern Air Lines, and flew under the name Delta C&S for the next two years
- 1972 - Purchased Northeast Airlines
- 1984 - Established the Delta Connection (ASA, Comair, Skywest, ...)
- 1987 - Merged with Western Airlines
- 1991 - Purchase of Pan Am's European routes, and acquired Pan Am's shuttle, forming what is today Delta Shuttle
- 1996 - Delta Express began service, ended November 2003
- 2003 - Song began service, ended May 2006
- 2008-2010 - Merged with Northwest Airlines. Became the world's largest carrier by passenger traffic (to become second-largest by passenger traffic after United), kept Delta name
- Eastern Airlines
- 1991 -ceased operation while in bankruptcy
- Hughes AirwestHughes AirwestHughes Airwest was an airline that was backed by Howard Hughes. Hughes Airwest flew routes around the western United States and to certain points in Mexico and Canada. The airline was purchased by Republic Airlines on October 1, 1980...
- 1970 - Howard Hughes purchased Air West and renamed it Hughes Airwest
- 1980 - Republic Airlines bought out Hughes Airwest
- KLM Royal Dutch AirlinesKLM Royal Dutch AirlinesKoninklijke Luchtvaart Maatschappij N.V., operating under the name KLM Royal Dutch Airlines , is the flag carrier airline of the Netherlands and is part of Air France-KLM...
- 2004 - Acquired by Air FranceAir FranceAir France , stylised as AIRFRANCE, is the French flag carrier headquartered in Tremblay-en-France, , and is one of the world's largest airlines. It is a subsidiary of the Air France-KLM Group and a founding member of the SkyTeam global airline alliance...
, which changed its company name to Air France KLM, although the two airlines still operate as separate airlines.
- 2004 - Acquired by Air France
- National AirlinesNational Airlines (NA)National Airlines was an airline founded in 1934 and was headquartered on the grounds of Miami International Airport in unincorporated Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States near Miami.- History :...
- 1979 - Merged with Pan Am
- Northeast AirlinesNortheast AirlinesNortheast Airlines was an American airline based in Boston, Massachusetts. They began as Boston-Maine Airways, which was founded as a Pan Am contract carrier on July 20, 1931, by the Boston and Maine Railroad and Maine Central Railroad offering service from Boston to Bangor via Portland...
- 1972 - Delta purchased Northeast Airlines
- Northwest AirlinesNorthwest AirlinesNorthwest Airlines, Inc. was a major United States airline founded in 1926 and absorbed into Delta Air Lines by a merger approved on October 29, 2008, making Delta the largest airline in the world...
- 1916 - Founded by Col. Lewis Patenaude, under the name Northwest Airways
- 1927 - Began flying passengers
- 1949 - With its new routes to the far east, re-branded itself as Northwest Orient Airlines
- 1986 - Purchased Republic Airlines, and dropped the word Orient from its brand name
- 2008-2010 - Merged with Delta to form the world's largest carrier under the Delta name
- 1916 - Founded by Col. Lewis Patenaude, under the name Northwest Airways
- Ozark Airlines
- 1986 - Purchased by TWA
- Pan Am
- 1979 - Merged with National Airlines
- 1991 - Delta Air Lines purchased Pan Am's European routes, and acquired Pan Am's Shuttle
- Republic AirlinesRepublic AirlinesRepublic Airline, Inc., operating as Republic Airlines is a regional airline subsidiary of Republic Airways Holdings that operates service as Frontier Airlines, Midwest Airlines and US Airways Express using a fleet of Bombardier Q400, Embraer 170, Embraer 175 and Embraer 190 aircraft...
- 1979 - Formed by the merger of North Central Airlines and Southern Airways
- 1980 - Bought out Hughes Airwest
- 1986 - Northwest purchased Republic Airlines
- Republic Airways HoldingsRepublic Airways HoldingsRepublic Airways Holdings, Inc. is an aviation holding corporation based in Indianapolis, Indiana, which owns six airlines operating in the United States: Chautauqua Airlines, Frontier Airlines, Republic Airlines, Shuttle America, and the former Lynx Aviation....
- 2005 - Acquired Shuttle AmericaShuttle AmericaShuttle America Corporation is a regional airline based in Indianapolis, Indiana, USA. It feeds United Airlines flights at Chicago, Denver, and Washington as United Express, and feeds Delta Air Lines flights at Atlanta and New York as Delta Connection and Delta Shuttle.-History:Shuttle America...
. - 2009 - Acquired Midwest AirlinesMidwest AirlinesMidwest Airlines was a U.S.-based airline and was also an operating brand of Republic Airways Holdings based in Oak Creek, Wisconsin. operating from Milwaukee's General Mitchell International Airport...
. - 2009 - Acquired Frontier AirlinesFrontier AirlinesFrontier Airlines, Inc., is an American airline headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana, United States. The carrier, which is a subsidiary and operating brand of Republic Airways Holdings, operates flights to 83 destinations throughout the United States, Mexico, and Costa Rica and maintains hubs at...
.
- 2005 - Acquired Shuttle America
- SkyWest AirlinesSkywest AirlinesSkywest Airlines Pty Ltd is a regional airline company based in Perth, Western Australia, Australia; servicing key towns in the state of Western Australia, Darwin, Northern Territory and Melbourne, Victoria; as well as charter flights to Bali, Indonesia....
- - Acquired Atlantic Southeast AirlinesAtlantic Southeast AirlinesAtlantic Southeast Airlines is an American airline based in the A-Tech Center in College Park, Georgia, flying to 144 destinations as a Delta Connection carrier and, as of February 2010, commenced service as a United Express carrier. It is a wholly owned subsidiary of SkyWest, Inc. ASA operates...
- - Acquired Atlantic Southeast Airlines
- Southwest AirlinesSouthwest AirlinesSouthwest Airlines Co. is an American low-cost airline based in Dallas, Texas. Southwest is the largest airline in the United States, based upon domestic passengers carried,...
- 1985 - Acquired Muse Air
- 1993 - Acquired Morris AirMorris AirMorris Air was a low-fare airline based in Salt Lake City, Utah, USA. It began operations in 1992. It was sold to Southwest Airlines in December 1993 for over $130 million. The airline officially became part of Southwest in Summer 1994.-History:...
- 2008 - Acquired certain assets of bankrupt ATA AirlinesATA AirlinesATA Airlines, Inc., formerly known as American Trans Air, was an American low-cost scheduled service and charter airline based in Indianapolis, Indiana. ATA operated scheduled passenger flights throughout the US mainland and Hawaii, as well as military and commercial charter flights around the world...
- 2010 - Acquired AirTran and will retain name Southwest AirlinesSouthwest AirlinesSouthwest Airlines Co. is an American low-cost airline based in Dallas, Texas. Southwest is the largest airline in the United States, based upon domestic passengers carried,...
- Trans World AirlinesTrans World AirlinesTrans World Airlines was an American airline that existed from 1925 until it was bought out by and merged with American Airlines in 2001. It was a major domestic airline in the United States and the main U.S.-based competitor of Pan American World Airways on intercontinental routes from 1946...
- 1986 - Purchased Ozark Airlines
- 2001 - American Airlines purchased TWA
- United AirlinesUnited AirlinesUnited Air Lines, Inc., is the world's largest airline with 86,852 employees United Air Lines, Inc., is the world's largest airline with 86,852 employees United Air Lines, Inc., is the world's largest airline with 86,852 employees (which includes the entire holding company United Continental...
- - Merged with Capital
- 2010 - Merger with Continental Airlines, to become world's largest carrier by passenger traffic, will keep the United name.
- US AirwaysUS AirwaysUS Airways, Inc. is a major airline based in the U.S. city of Tempe, Arizona. The airline is an operating unit of US Airways Group and is the sixth largest airline by traffic and eighth largest by market value in the country....
- - Started as All American Aviation CompanyAll American Aviation CompanyAll American Aviation Inc was an airline company founded by Dr. Lytle Schooler Adams in 1937. All American Aviation was originally a Patent Holding Company and it's sister company was Tri-State Aviation founded on the same date. Tri- State was the operating Company. Dr. Adams was the first...
, renamed All American Airlines and then Allegheny AirlinesAllegheny AirlinesAllegheny Airlines was an airline operating out of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States, from 1952 to 1979. It was a forerunner of today’s US Airways. Its headquarters were located on the grounds of Washington National Airport in Arlington County, Virginia.... - - Purchased Lake Central AirlinesLake Central AirlinesLake Central Airlines was an airline that served points in the midwestern United States from 1950 to 1968, when it was merged into Allegheny Airlines. Founded as Roscoe Turner Airlines, the company was based at Weir-Cook Airport in Indianapolis, IN. It serviced communities principally in...
and Mohawk AirlinesMohawk AirlinesMohawk Airlines was an airline that operated in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States, primarily the states of New York and Pennsylvania from the mid-1940s until its acquisition by Allegheny Airlines in 1972... - - Changed name to USAir
- - Purchased Pacific Southwest AirlinesPacific Southwest AirlinesPacific Southwest Airlines was a United States airline headquartered in San Diego, California, that operated from 1949 to 1988. It was one of the first large discount airlines in the United States and is considered a precursor to Southwest Airlines...
and Piedmont Airlines - - Changed name to US Airways
- 2005 - Bought out by America West, keeping the US Airways brand
- - Started as All American Aviation Company
- Western AirlinesWestern AirlinesWestern Airlines was a large airline based in California, with operations throughout the Western United States, and hubs at Los Angeles International Airport, Salt Lake City International Airport, and the former Stapleton International Airport in Denver...
- 1925 - First incorporated as Western Air Express by Harris Hanshue
- 1926 - Western's first flight took place
- 1928 - Reincorporated as Western Air Express Corp.
- 1930 - Purchased Standard Airlines (subsidiary of Aero Corp. of Ca. founded in 1926). WAE with Fokker aircraft merged with Transcontinental Air Transport to form TWA.
- 1934 - Western Air Express broke off from TWA and briefly changed its name to General Air Lines, returning to the name Western Air Express after several months
- 1941 - Western Air Express changed its name to Western Air Lines, which was later altered to Western Airlines
- 1967 - merged with Pacific Northern Airlines
- 1987 - Delta merged with Western Airlines (kept Delta name)
See also
- List of airline holding companies - the actual enterprises and business entities which do the acquisitions and mergers.