The aviation business is difficult to navigate. Between fluctuating fuel costs, accidents, hijackings, and trying to keep passengers happy while squeezing every dime out of them, many airlines just don't succeed. Some companies from the golden age of flying, like Pan Am, are thought of fondly, but some airlines, like Hooters Air, are best forgotten. How many of these defunct airlines do you remember?
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1945-1972
Serving the mid-Atlantic region, Mohawk Airlines was founded in 1945 by an aerial photographer from Ithaca, New York. Ruth Carol Taylor, the first Black flight attendant, was employed by Mohawk, though she was dismissed only six months after her first historic flight because she got married. (It was common for airlines to require stewardesses to remain single back then.) Pilot strikes eventually hobbled the company, and it merged with Allegheny Airlines, which became US Airways.
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1966-1982
Freewheeling British businessman Sir Freddie Laker founded his namesake airline in London's Gatwick airport in 1966. It was one of the first low-cost, no-frills airlines, paving the way for all the budget airlines that came after. Its primary route was from London to New York’s Kennedy Airport on the Skytrain service, but the company was not able to weather the early 1980s recession, especially once Pan Am lowered its transatlantic fares in 1981.
1928-1982
Operating primarily in the central U.S., Mexico, and Latin America, long-serving airline Braniff is considered to be a precursor to Southwest. Based in Texas, it was well known for its colorful designer flight attendant uniforms. Though it went belly up in 1982 after racking up $773 million in debt, some still recognize the logo from the end of "South Park" episodes — Trey Parker and Matt Stone named their production company after the airline.
1927-1991
Pan Am was the epitome of style and glamor in the glory days of air travel. It started as a tiny airline flying from Florida to Cuba and grew into the largest airline in the world, setting plenty of firsts along the way, such as the first airline to use computerized reservation systems. It flew the Beatles to New York City in 1964, and it started the high-end InterContinental hotel chain. After an oil crisis in the 1970s, hijackings, and other operational setbacks that put the company $1 billion in the hole, Pan Am filed for bankruptcy in 1991.
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1958-1991
Interflug was the state-owned airline of East Germany. Its 8,000 employees were under the same command as the East German Forces, and flight crews weren’t allowed to associate with employees from nonsocialist countries. Any of the planes could be requisitioned for military purposes at any time, which would have led to some pretty awkward flights. After German Reunification, no one wanted to invest in keeping the company alive, so it was liquidated.
1988-1998
Carnival Cruise Lines decided it wanted to get into the airline business, presumably because its customers needed a way to get to their cruise ships. The cruise company purchased Pacific Interstate Airlines, renamed it Carnival Air Lines, and based it in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, not far from Miami's cruise port and other vacation destinations, such as the Bahamas. It was bought out by Pan Am, but before that deal was completed, the company filed for bankruptcy.
1930-2001
TWA was originally formed out of a government-forced merger because the Postmaster General wanted larger airlines for government contracts in 1930. Pilot and businessman Howard Hughes acquired it in 1939 and grew it to become the second largest airline behind Pan Am. Though it filed for three bankruptcies before being acquired by American Airlines in 2001, you can still see its most famous legacy at JFK airport: the soaring Eero Saarinen-designed Terminal 5 and TWA Hotel.
1931-2002
Swissair, the national airline of Switzerland, was practically a national symbol of the country and carried the nickname "Flying Bank" because of the country’s respected position in the world's financial system and its financial stability. But over expansion and a high-profile lawsuit due to the crash of Flight 111 that killed all 229 people on board fueled its demise. The airline was kept alive by the Swiss government until 2002 when Crossair took over its assets.
2003-2006
Yes, that Hooters. Founded by the notorious breastaurant's owner in 2003 and based in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, Hooters Air was marketed as the best way to get to warm weather golf destinations. It was operated by Pace Airlines, but it had its own orange jets that included two scantily clad Hooters employees assisting the flight attendants. It ceased operations in 2006, citing rising fuel costs after hurricanes Katrina and Rita.
1946-2008
Aloha Airlines was founded with a World War II surplus plane in 1946 after the founder was bumped from flights on Hawaiian Airlines, the only other inter-island carrier at the time and the main competition. It operated flights between the Hawaiian islands, Hawaii and the West Coast, and some other Pacific island nations. The company filed bankruptcy in 2008, citing a number of factors including stiff competition from Go, another island airline.
1973-2008
ATA started as a charter airline based in Indianapolis. It started scheduled service in the 1980s, and focused mostly on vacation destinations like Florida and Hawaii from hubs at Chicago Midway and Indianapolis airports. Because of the downturn in airline travel after the Sept. 11 attacks, ATA eventually filed for bankruptcy twice, shutting down many operations to try and salvage the company. But in 2008, the company was purchased by Southwest Airlines.
2004-2009
The catchy, perfunctory name of Ted came from the end of the airline's parent company: United. It was another ultra-low-cost airline that only offered economy class, and it had cheeky marketing, complete with “Tedevision” onboard entertainment and branded teddy bears sold onboard. Based at Denver International Airport, Ted’s primary competitors were JetBlue and Frontier, but rising fuel costs led to Ted being folded back into United in 2009.
1984-2010
Have you ever eaten a hot-from-the-oven chocolate chip cookie on a plane before? Then you've likely traveled on a Midwest flight. Cookies were baked and served on every single flight, which was only one of the unusual amenities, including extra legroom. With hubs at Kansas City Airport and Mitchell Airport in Milwaukee, it operated mostly in the central U.S., but branched out in later years. Ever since it was acquired by Frontier Airlines in 2010, there's been talks of investors bringing the beloved airline back, but nothing's ever materialized.
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2005-2012
India-based Kingfisher Airlines got its name because its founder, Vijay Mallya, also owns United Breweries Group, the maker of Kingfisher beer. That's probably why its first-class area on flights to London included a bar. At one point, Kingfisher held a large share of India's domestic flights, but it was also plagued with financial woes. India suspended its license in 2012 for inability to pay taxes, and Mallya left India to escape any legal proceedings that may have resulted.
2012-2019
The striking purple planes of WOW weren't enough to keep the ultra-low-cost airline in business. Since it was basded in Iceland, flights between the island nation, Europe, and North America were its bread and butter, but somehow no one saw its bankruptcy coming. It was so suddenly announced after a merger with Icelandair fell through that passengers were stranded in Europe and had to find their own way to their destinations.
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1979-2020
Though many U.S. travelers may not have heard of Flybe, it was one of the largest independent regional airlines in Europe. The British company was based in Exeter, England, and despite having a number of names throughout its 41-year history, it operated 200 routes at its height. But the airline went into administration in 2020, blaming its money troubles on the sharp downturn in flying due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
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