Airlines
Aer Lingus
Aer Lingus, (/ˌɛər ˈlɪŋɡəs/, an anglicisation of the Irish Aer Loingeas meaning "air fleet") is the flag carrier airline of Ireland and the second-largest airline in Ireland. Founded by the Irish government, it was privatised between 2006 and 2015 and it is now a subsidiary of International Airlines Group (IAG), the parent company of British Airways, Iberia and Vueling. The airline's head office is on the grounds of Dublin Airport in Cloghran, County Dublin, Ireland. Formed in 1936, Aer Lingus is a former member of the Oneworld airline alliance, which it left on 31 March 2007; however, after the takeover by IAG it is expected that Aer Lingus will re-enter Oneworld in the foreseeable future. The airline has codeshares with Oneworld, Star Alliance and SkyTeam members, as well as interline agreements with Etihad Airways, JetBlue Airways and United Airlines. Aer Lingus has a hybrid business model, operating a mixed fare service on its European and North African routes and full service, two-class flights on transatlantic routes. Ryanair used to own over 29% of Aer Lingus stock and the Irish state owned over 25%. These shareholders were lost after IAG bought the airline. The state had previously held an 85% shareholding until the Government's decision to float the company on the Dublin and London Stock Exchanges on 2 October 2006. The principal group companies include Aer Lingus Limited, Aer Lingus Beachey Limited, Aer Lingus (Ireland) Limited and Dirnan Insurance Company Limited, all of which are wholly owned. On 26 May 2015, after months of negotiations on a possible IAG takeover, the Irish government agreed to sell its 25% stake in the company. Ryanair retained a 30% stake in Aer Lingus which it agreed to sell to IAG on 10 July 2015 for €2.55 per share. In August 2015, Aer Lingus' shareholders officially accepted IAG's takeover offer. IAG subsequently assumed control of Aer Lingus on 2 September 2015.
Air Canada
Air Canada (TSX: AC) is the flag carrier and largest airline of Canada. The airline, founded in 1937, provides scheduled and charter air transport for passengers and cargo to 182 destinations worldwide. It is the world's tenth-largest passenger airline by fleet size, and is a founding member of the Star Alliance. Air Canada's corporate headquarters are located in Montreal, Quebec. Air Canada had passenger revenues of CA$13.8 billion in 2015. The airline's regional service is Air Canada Express. Air Canada, along with Air China, British Airways, Delta Air Lines, Emirates, Etihad Airways, Korean Air, Qantas, Qatar Airways, Singapore Airlines, South African Airways and United Airlines are the only airlines in the world to fly to all six inhabited continents. Canada's national airline originated from the Canadian federal government's 1936 creation of Trans-Canada Airlines (TCA), which began operating their first transcontinental flight routes in 1938. In 1965, TCA was renamed Air Canada following government approval. After the deregulation of the Canadian airline market in the 1980s, the airline was privatized in 1988. On 4 January 2000, Air Canada acquired their largest rival, Canadian Airlines. In 2003, the airline filed for bankruptcy protection and in the following year emerged and reorganized under the holding company ACE Aviation Holdings Inc. In 2006, 34 million people flew with Air Canada as the airline celebrated their 70th anniversary. Air Canada is recognized as the Skytrax Best International Airline in North America, and was ranked as a 4 Star Airline by Skytrax in 2013. It is also one of Canada's best managed companies.[citation needed] Air Canada has a fleet of Airbus A330, Boeing 767, Boeing 777, and Boeing 787 wide-body jetliners on long-haul routes and uses the Airbus A320 family aircraft, including the A319, A320, and A321 variations, and Embraer E190 family aircraft on short-haul routes. The carrier's operating divisions include Air Canada Cargo, Air Canada Express and Air Canada rouge. Their subsidiary, Air Canada Vacations, provides vacation packages to over 90 destinations. Together with their regional partners, the airline operates on average more than 1,530 scheduled flights daily. Furthermore, according to JACDEC, Air Canada has the 4th best safety record of any airline, behind Cathay Pacific, Emirates, & EVA Air respectively.
Air France
Air France (French pronunciation: [ɛːʁ fʁɑ̃s]; formally Société Air France, S.A.), stylized as AIRFRANCE, is the French flag carrier headquartered in Tremblay-en-France, (north of Paris). It is a subsidiary of the Air France-KLM Group and a founding member of the SkyTeam global airline alliance. As of 2013 Air France serves 36 destinations in France and operates worldwide scheduled passenger and cargo services to 168 destinations in 93 countries (including overseas departments and territories of France) and also carried 46,803,000 passengers in 2015. The airline's global hub is at Charles de Gaulle Airport, with Orly Airport, Lyon-Saint Exupéry Airport, Marseille Provence Airport, Toulouse Blagnac Airport, and Nice Côte d'Azur Airport serving as secondary hubs. Air France's corporate headquarters, previously in Montparnasse, Paris, are located on the grounds of Charles de Gaulle Airport, north of Paris. Air France was formed on 7 October 1933 from a merger of Air Orient, Air Union, Compagnie Générale Aéropostale, Compagnie Internationale de Navigation Aérienne (CIDNA), and Société Générale de Transport Aérien (SGTA). During the Cold War, from 1950 until 1990, it was one of the three main Allied scheduled airlines operating in Germany at West Berlin's Tempelhof and Tegel airports. In 1990, it acquired the operations of French domestic carrier Air Inter and international rival UTA - Union de Transports Aériens. It served as France's primary national flag carrier for seven decades prior to its 2003 merger with KLM. Between April 2001 and March 2002, the airline carried 43.3 million passengers and had a total revenue of €12.53bn. In November 2004, Air France ranked as the largest European airline with 25.5% total market share, and was the largest airline in the world in terms of operating revenue. Air France operates a mixed fleet of Airbus and Boeing wide-body jets on long-haul routes, and uses Airbus A320 family aircraft on short-haul routes. Air France introduced the A380 on 20 November 2009 with service to New York City's JFK Airport from Paris' Charles de Gaulle Airport. The carrier's regional airline subsidiary, HOP!, operates the majority of its regional domestic and European scheduled services with a fleet of regional jet aircraft.
Air India
Air India is the flag carrier airline of India and the third-largest airline in India in terms of passengers carried, after IndiGo and Jet Airways. It is owned by Air India Limited, a Government of India enterprise, and operates a fleet of Airbus and Boeing aircraft serving 85 domestic and international destinations. It is headquartered in New Delhi. Air India has its main hub at Indira Gandhi International Airport, New Delhi and a secondary hub at Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport, Mumbai. Air India became the 27th member of Star Alliance on 11 July 2014. The airline was founded by J. R. D. Tata as Tata Airlines in 1932; Tata himself flew its first single-engine de Havilland Puss Moth, carrying air mail from Karachi to Bombay's Juhu aerodrome and later continuing to Madras (currently Chennai). After World War II, it became a public limited company and was renamed as Air India. On 21 February 1960, it took delivery of its first Boeing 707-420 named Gauri Shankar and became the first Asian airline to induct a jet aircraft in its fleet. In 2000-01, attempts were made to privatize Air India and from 2006 onwards, it suffered losses after its merger with Indian. Air India also operates flights to domestic and Asian destinations through its subsidiaries Air India Regional and Air India Express. Air India uses the Airbus A320 family and Boeing 787 aircraft for selected domestic routes while long distance services use the Boeing 777-300ER, 747 and 787 aircraft. Air India's mascot is the Maharajah (Emperor) and the logo consists of a flying swan with the wheel of Konark inside it.
Air New Zealand
Air New Zealand Limited is the national airline of New Zealand. Based in Auckland, the airline operates scheduled passenger flights to 21 domestic and 30 international destinations in 16 countries around the Pacific rim and the United Kingdom.[6] The airline has been a member of the Star Alliance since 1999.[7] Air New Zealand originated in 1940 as Tasman Empire Airways Limited (TEAL), a company operating trans-Tasman flights between New Zealand and Australia. TEAL became wholly owned by the New Zealand government in 1965, whereupon it was renamed Air New Zealand. The airline served international routes until 1978, when the government merged it and the domestic New Zealand National Airways Corporation (NAC) into a single airline under the Air New Zealand name. Air New Zealand was privatised in 1989, but returned to majority government ownership in 2001 after near bankruptcy due to the failed tie up with Australian carrier Ansett Australia. In the 2015 financial year to June, Air New Zealand carried 14.29 million passengers. Air New Zealand's route network focuses on Australasia and the South Pacific, with long-haul services to eastern Asia, the Americas and the United Kingdom. It was the last airline to circumnavigate the world with flights to Heathrow via both Los Angeles and via Hong Kong. The latter ended in March 2013 when Air New Zealand stopped Hong Kong - London flights, in favour of a code sharing deal with Cathay Pacific. The airline's main hub is Auckland Airport, located near Mangere in the southern part of the Auckland urban area. Air New Zealand is headquartered in a building called "The Hub", located 20 km (12 mi) from Auckland Airport, in Auckland's Wynyard Quarter. Air New Zealand currently operates an international long-haul fleet consisting of Boeing 777 family, Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner, and Boeing 767-300ER aircraft. Airbus A320 aircraft operate on routes to Australia and the Pacific Islands, and on domestic routes. Air New Zealand's regional subsidiaries, Air Nelson and Mount Cook Airline, operate additional domestic services using turboprop aircraft. Air New Zealand was awarded Airline of the Year in 2010 and 2012 by the Air Transport World Global Airline Awards. In 2014, Air New Zealand was ranked the safest airline in the world by JACDEC.
Airtran
AirTran Airways was an American low-cost airline headquartered originally in Orlando, Florida, then in Dallas, Texas, after its acquisition by Southwest Airlines, into which it was integrated. AirTran operated nearly 700 daily flights, primarily in the eastern and midwestern United States, with its principal hub at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport where it operated nearly 200 daily departures. AirTran's fleet consisted of Boeing 717-200 aircraft, of which it was the world's largest operator, and Boeing 737-700 aircraft. It was fully integrated into Southwest Airlines on December 28, 2014.
Alaska Airlines
Alaska Airlines is an American airline based in the Seattle metropolitan area, Washington. Before this they were McGee Airways in 1932, offering flights from Anchorage, Alaska. Today, Alaska has flights to more than one hundred destinations in the contiguous United States, Alaska, Hawaii, Canada, Costa Rica and Mexico. The airline is a major air carrier and, along with its sister airline Horizon Air, is part of the Alaska Air Group. The airline has been ranked by J. D. Power and Associates as having the highest customer satisfaction of the traditional airlines for nine consecutive years. The airline operates its largest hub at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (known as Sea-Tac). It also operates secondary hubs in Portland and Anchorage, and focus cities at San Diego and San Jose. Although most of its revenue and traffic comes from locations outside of Alaska, the airline plays a major role in air transportation in the state. It operates many flights linking small towns to major transportation hubs and carries more passengers between Alaska and the contiguous United States than any other airline. Alaska Airlines is not a member of any of the three major airline alliances. However, it has codeshare agreements with some members of oneworld, such as American Airlines, British Airways, and LATAM Chile, and with some SkyTeam members, including Air France, KLM, Korean Air and Delta Air Lines. Delta, despite cooperating through codeshares, is a major competitor to Alaska Air in its Sea-Tac market. The Alaska Air Group has been a part of the Dow Jones Transportation Average since 2011, when it replaced the then-parent company of American Airlines, AMR Corporation, in the index.
American Airlines
American Airlines, Inc. (AA), commonly referred to as American, is a major American airline headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas. It is the world's largest airline when measured by fleet size, revenue, and scheduled passenger-kilometres flown, and the second largest by number of destinations served. American together with its regional partners operates an extensive international and domestic network with an average of nearly 6,700 flights per day to nearly 350 destinations in more than 50 countries. American Airlines is a founding member of Oneworld alliance, the third largest airline alliance in the world and coordinates fares, services, and scheduling with alliance partners British Airways, Iberia, and Finnair in the transatlantic market and with Cathay Pacific and Japan Airlines in the transpacific market. Regional service is operated by independent and subsidiary carriers under the brand name of American Eagle. American operates out of ten hubs located in Dallas, Charlotte, Chicago, Philadelphia, Miami, Phoenix, Washington, D.C., Los Angeles, New York-JFK, and New York-LaGuardia. American operates its primary maintenance base at Tulsa International Airport in addition to the maintenance locations located at its hubs. Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport in Dallas is American's largest passenger carrying hub handling 51.1 million passengers annually with an average of 140,000 passengers daily. The company as of 2015 employs over 113,300 people. Through the airline's parent company, American Airlines Group, it is publicly traded under NASDAQ: AAL with a market capitalization of over $40.99 billion as of 2015.
Asiana Airlines
Asiana Airlines Inc. (Hangul: 아시아나항공; RR: Asiana Hanggong, simplified Chinese: 韩亚航空; traditional Chinese: 韓亞航空; literally: "Korea Asia Airlines" ; KRX: 020560; formerly Seoul Airlines) is one of South Korea's two major airlines, along with Korean Air. Asiana has its headquarters in Asiana Town building in Seoul.[3] The airline has its domestic hub at Gimpo International Airport and its international hub at Incheon International Airport (70 kilometres (43 mi) from central Seoul). As a member of Star Alliance, it operates 14 domestic and 90 international passenger routes, and 27 cargo routes throughout Asia, Europe, North America, and Oceania.[4] As of December 2014, the company employs 10,183 people. The majority of Asiana's pilots, ground staff, and flight attendants are based in Seoul. Asiana Airlines is the largest shareholder in Air Busan, a low-cost regional carrier joint venture with Busan Metropolitan City. Asiana is also currently an official sponsor of the South Korea national football team and The Presidents Cup 2015.
Australian Airlines
Australian Airlines was a full-service airline based in Australia, servicing Australian and Asian destinations between 2002 and 2006. It was an all-economy, full-service international leisure carrier, and was a wholly owned subsidiary of Qantas, (although run independently of the mainline carrier). Its main base was at Cairns International Airport, with a secondary hub at Sydney Airport. The airline ceased operations under its own livery on 30 June 2006, but continued to operate flights for Qantas under a wet lease agreement. This means Australian Airlines operated flights for Qantas using its own crew/cost base, but under the Qantas brand. Qantas decided to discontinue the public use of the Australian Airlines brand in favour of having Jetstar Airways as its leisure, now low-cost, carrier. Qantas and Jetstar are operating services to replace Australian Airlines' routes, with Jetstar International introduced in late 2006 to help expand the Qantas Group's international presence.
Austrian Airlines
Austrian Airlines AG, sometimes shortened to Austrian, is the flag carrier of Austria and a subsidiary of the Lufthansa Group. The airline is headquartered in the grounds of Vienna International Airport in Schwechat where it also maintains its hub. It flies to 6 domestic and more than 120 international year-round and seasonal destinations in 55 countries as of July 2016 and is a member of the Star Alliance. The airline was formed in 1957 by the merger of Air Austria and Austrian Airways, but traces its history back to 1923 at the founding of Austrian Airways. During the 2000s, the airline expanded through the acquisitions of Rheintalflug and Lauda Air, and adopted the shortened Austrian name in 2003. Throughout the decade, Austrian sustained several years of losses, and in 2008 its owner, the Austrian Government was advised to sell the airline to a foreign company. In 2009, the Lufthansa Group purchased the airline after receiving approval from the European Commission following an investigation into the tendering process. Following disputes with staff over cost-cutting, all Austrian Airlines' flights transferred on 1 July 2012 to its subsidiary Tyrolean Airways, which operated under the Austrian brand. On 1 April 2015, all flights transferred back to Austrian, and Tyrolean Airways was merged into its parent.
Bangkok Air
Bangkok Airways Public Company Limited (Thai: บางกอกแอร์เวย์) is a regional airline based in Bangkok, Thailand. It operates scheduled services to destinations in Thailand, Bangladesh, Cambodia, China, Hong Kong, Laos, Maldives, Burma, India, and Singapore. Its main base is Suvarnabhumi Airport, Bangkok. Bangkok Airways is currently an official sponsor of Bangkok Glass FC, Chiangrai UTD, Chiang Mai FC, Trat FC, Lampang FC, Sukhothai FC and Bangkok Christian College FC. Airline ranking company Skytrax has consistently ranked Bangkok Airways very highly, currently giving them a four-star rating
British Airways
British Airways, often shortened to BA, is the flag carrier and the largest airline in the United Kingdom based on fleet size. When measured by passengers carried, it is second-largest in the United Kingdom behind easyJet. The airline is based in Waterside near its main hub at London Heathrow Airport. A British Airways Board was established by the United Kingdom government in 1972 to manage the two nationalised airline corporations, British Overseas Airways Corporation and British European Airways, and two smaller, regional airlines, Cambrian Airways, from Cardiff, and Northeast Airlines, from Newcastle upon Tyne. On 31 March 1974, all four companies were merged to form British Airways. After almost 13 years as a state company, British Airways was privatised in February 1987 as part of a wider privatisation plan by the Conservative government. The carrier soon expanded with the acquisition of British Caledonian in 1987, followed by Dan-Air in 1992 and British Midland International in 2012. British Airways is a founding member of the Oneworld airline alliance, along with American Airlines, Cathay Pacific, Qantas, and the now defunct Canadian Airlines. The alliance has since grown to become the third-largest, after SkyTeam and Star Alliance. British Airways merged with Iberia on 21 January 2011, formally creating the International Airlines Group (IAG), the world's third-largest airline group in terms of annual revenue and the second-largest in Europe. IAG is listed on the London Stock Exchange and in the FTSE 100 Index. A long-time Boeing customer, British Airways ordered 59 Airbus A320 family aircraft in August 1998. In 2007 it purchased 12 Airbus A380s and 24 Boeing 787 Dreamliners, marking the start of its long-haul fleet replacement. The centrepiece of the airline's long-haul fleet is the Boeing 777, with 58 in the fleet. British Airways is the largest operator of the Boeing 747-400 in the world, with 51 registered to the airline.
Cathay Pacific
Cathay Pacific (Chinese: 國泰航空) (SEHK: 0293), is the flag carrier of Hong Kong, with its head office and main hub located at Hong Kong International Airport. The airline's operations include scheduled passenger and cargo services to 200 destinations in 52 countries worldwide, codeshares, and joint ventures, with a fleet of wide-body aircraft, consisting of Airbus A330, Airbus A340, Airbus A350, and Boeing 777 equipment. Its wholly owned subsidiary, Dragonair, operates to 44 destinations in the Asia-Pacific region from its Hong Kong base. In 2010, Cathay Pacific and Dragonair carried nearly 27 million passengers and over 1.8 million tons of cargo and mail. The airline was founded on September 24,1946 by Australian Sydney H. de Kantzow and American Roy C. Farrell, with each man putting up HK$1 to register the airline. The airline made the world's first non-stop transpolar flight flying over the North Pole in July 1998, which was also the maiden flight to arrive at the then new Hong Kong International Airport. The airline celebrated its 60th anniversary in 2006; and as of October 2009, its major shareholders are Swire Pacific and Air China. It is reciprocally one of the major shareholders of Air China. Cathay Pacific is the world's tenth largest airline measured in terms of sales, and fourteenth largest measured in terms of market capitalisation. In 2010, Cathay Pacific became the world's largest international cargo airline, along with main hub Hong Kong International Airport as the world's busiest airport in terms of cargo traffic. Cathay Pacific is a founding member of the Oneworld alliance. Cathay Pacific's subsidiary Dragonair is an affiliate member of Oneworld. Cathay Pacific was awarded Skytrax's 2014 Airline of the Year. Cathay Pacific has won the "World's Best Airline" award four times, more than any other airline.
China Airlines
China Airlines (CAL) (Chinese: 中華航空; pinyin: Zhōnghuá Hángkōng) (TWSE: 2610) is the flag carrier and largest airline of Taiwan. It is headquartered in Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport and has 11,154 regular employees. China Airlines operates over 1,400 flights weekly to 118 airports in 115 cities (including codeshare) across Asia, Europe, North America and Oceania. The cargo division operates 91 pure freighter flights weekly to 33 destinations. The carrier was, in 2013, the 29th and 10th largest airline in the world in terms of passenger revenue per kilometer (RPK) and freight RPK, respectively. China Airlines has three airline subsidiaries: Mandarin Airlines operates flights to domestic and low-demand regional destinations; China Airlines Cargo, a member of Skyteam Cargo, operates a fleet of freighter aircraft and manages its parent airline's cargo-hold capacity; Tigerair Taiwan is a low-cost carrier established by China Airlines and Singaporean airline group Tigerair Holdings.
Delta
Delta Air Lines, Inc. ("Delta";NYSE: DAL) is a major American airline, with its headquarters and largest hub at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport in Atlanta, Georgia. The airline along with its subsidiaries operate over 5,400 flights daily and serve an extensive domestic and international network that includes 334 destinations in 64 countries on six continents, as of June 2015. Delta is one of the four founding members of the SkyTeam airline alliance, and operates joint ventures with Air France-KLM, Alitalia, Virgin Atlantic, and Virgin Australia. Regional service is operated under the brand name Delta Connection. Delta is the sixth-oldest operating airline by foundation date, and the oldest airline still operating in the United States. The company's historican be traced back to Huff Daland Dusters, founded in 1924 in Macon, Georgia as a crop dusting operation. The company moved to Monroe, Louisiana, and was later renamedDelta Air Services, in reference to the nearby Mississippi Delta region, and commenced passenger services on June 17, 1929. Among predecessors of today's Delta Air Lines, Western Airlines and Northwest Airlines began flying passengers in 1926 and 1927, respectively. In 2013, Delta Air Lines was the world's largest airline in terms of scheduled passengers carried (120.6 million),and the second-largest in terms of both revenue passenger-kilometers flown (277.6 billion) and capacity (4.4 billion ASM/week; March 2013).
Lufthansa
Deutsche Lufthansa AG (FWB: LHA) (German pronunciation: [ˈdɔʏtʃə ˈlʊfthanzaː]), commonly known as Lufthansa (sometimes also as Lufthansa German Airlines), is the largest German airline and, when combined with its subsidiaries, also thelargest airline in Europe, both in terms of passengers carried and fleet size.[12] It operates services to 18 domestic destinations and 197 international destinations in 78 countries across Africa, the Americas, Asia, and Europe, using a fleet of more than 260 aircraft. Lufthansa is one of the five founding members of Star Alliance, the world's largest airline alliance, formed in 1997.[14] The name of the company is derived from Luft (the German word for "air"), and Hansa (a Latin term meaning "guild" most commonly used historically in reference to the Hanseatic League). Besides its own passenger airlines Austrian Airlines, Swiss International Air Lines, and Eurowings including Germanwings (referred to in English by Lufthansa as itsPassenger Airline Group), Deutsche Lufthansa AG owns several aviation-related companies such as Lufthansa Technik as part of the Lufthansa Group. Combined with its subsidiaries, the group has over 615 aircraft, making it one of the largest passenger airline fleets in the world. In 2014, the group carried over 106 million passengers. Lufthansa's registered office and corporate headquarters are in Cologne. The main operations base, called Lufthansa Aviation Center (LAC), is at Lufthansa's primary hub at Frankfurt Airport. The majority of Lufthansa's pilots, ground staff, and flight attendants are based there. Lufthansa's secondary hub is Munich Airport. Lufthansa was a state-owned enterprise (and flag carrier) until 1994. In its annual report for 2014, Lufthansa reported around 60% of its shares were owned by institutional investors and around 40% by private individuals. Since 1970, Lufthansa has involved its employees in profit sharing, giving them the opportunity to choose between cash and preference shares. When Lufthansa was privatised, employees received more than 3% of its shares.
Eva Air
EVA Air Corporation (pronounced "E-V-A Air"; Chinese: 長榮航空; pinyin: Chángróng Hángkōng; Pe̍h-ōe-jī: Tióng-êng Hâng-khong) (TWSE: 2618) is a Taiwanese international airline based at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport near Taipei, Taiwan, operating passenger and dedicated cargo services to over 40 international destinations in Asia, Australia, Europe, and North America. EVA Air is largely privately owned and flies a fully international route network. It is a 5 star airline, rated by Skytrax. It is the second largest Taiwanese airline. EVA Air is headquartered in Luzhu, Taoyuan City, Taiwan. Since its founding in 1989 as an affiliate of shipping conglomerate Evergreen Group, EVA Air has expanded to include air cargo, airline catering, ground handling, and aviation engineering services. Its cargo arm, EVA Air Cargo, links with the Evergreen worldwide shipping network on sea and land. Its domestic and regional subsidiary, UNI Air, operates a medium and short-haul network to destinations in Taiwan, Macau and China with its main hub in Kaohsiung, Taiwan. As of January 2015, EVA Air is the 3rd safest airline in the world, with no hull losses, accidents, or fatalities since its establishment. EVA Air operates a mixed fleet of Airbus and Boeing aircraft, with Airbus A330, Boeing 747, Airbus A321, and Boeing 777 airliners primarily used on passenger routes, along with Boeing 747 freighters used on cargo routes. The airline was one of the first carriers to introduce the Premium Economy class (called Elite class in EVA Air), which it debuted in 1991. Elite class is onboard Boeing 777 and selected Boeing 747 aircraft.
Emirates
Emirates (Arabic: طَيَران الإمارات DMG: Ṭayarān Al-Imārāt) is an airline based in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. The airline is a subsidiary of The Emirates Group, which is wholly owned by the government of Dubai's Investment Corporation of Dubai. It is the largest airline in theMiddle East, operating over 3,300 flights per week from its hub at Dubai International Airport, to more than 148 cities in 78 countries across six continents. Cargo activities are undertaken by Emirates SkyCargo. Emirates is the world's third largest international carrierby scheduled passenger-kilometres flown, the seventh largest airline in the world in terms of revenue, and the largest airline in the Middle East in terms of revenue, fleet size, and passengers carried. The airline is also the fourth-largest airline in the world in terms of international passengers carried. Emirates launched the longest non-stop commercial flight from Dubai to Auckland on March 1, 2016. During the mid-1980s, Gulf Air began to cut back its services to Dubai. As a result, Emirates was conceived in March 1985 with backing from Dubai's royal family, withPakistan International Airlines providing two of the airline's first aircraft on wet-lease. With $10 million in start-up capital it was required to operate independently of government subsidy. Pakistan International Airlines provided training facilities to Emirates' cabin crew in its academy. The airline was headed by Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, the airline's present chairman. In the years following its founding, the airline expanded both its fleet and its destinations. In October 2008, Emirates moved all operations at Dubai International Airport to Terminal 3. Emirates operates a mixed fleet of Airbus and Boeing wide- body aircraft and is one of the few airlines to operate an all-wide-body aircraft fleet. Emirates has orders for 76 Airbus A380s and is the largest A380 operator. Emirates also has orders for 150 Boeing 777-X and 36 Boeing 777-300ER aircraft, and is the world's largest Boeing 777 operator.
Etihad
Etihad Airways, the national airline of the United Arab Emirates, has in just eight years established itself as the world's leading airline. "Etihad" is the Arabic word for "union". Set up by Royal (Amiri) Decree in July 2003, Etihad commenced commercial operations in November, 2003, and has gone on to become the fastest growing airline in the history of commercial aviation. Abu Dhabi, the capital of the United Arab Emirates, is the airline's hub. Etihad's fleet of 66 aircraft operates more than 1000 flighs per week, serving an international network of 84 passenger and cargo destinations in the Middle East, Africa, Europe, Asia, Australia and North America. Etihad Airways also owns nearly 30 percent of airberlin, Europe's sixth largest carrier and 40 percent of Air Seychelles. The airline seeks to reflect the best of Arabian hospitality - cultured, considerate, warm and generous - as well as enhance the prestige of Abu Dhabi as a centre of hospitality between East and West. Etihad Airways has received a range of awards that reflect its position as the leading premium airline brand in the world, including 'World's Leading Airline' at the World Travel Awards in 2009, 2010 and 2011.
Finnair
Finnair (Finnish: Finnair Oyj, Swedish: Finnair Abp) is the flag carrier and largest airline of Finland, with its headquarters in Vantaa and its main hub at Helsinki-Vantaa Airport. Finnair and its subsidiaries dominate both domestic and international air travel in Finland. Its major shareholder is the government of Finland, with 55.8% of the shares. Finnair is a member of the Oneworld airline alliance. In 2015, it transported over 10 million passengers to over 60 European, 13 Asian and 4 North-American destinations. As of January 2016, the airline employed 4,817 people. Finnair is the fifth oldest airline in the world with uninterrupted existence. With no fatal or hull-loss accidents since 1963, Finnair is consistently on the list of safest airlines in the world (#3 in 2014).
Hawaiian Airlines
Hawaiian Airlines is the largest airline in Hawaii. It is the 8th largest commercial airline in the US, and is based in Honolulu, Hawaii. The airline operates its main hub at Honolulu International Airport and a secondary hub out of Kahului Airport on the island of Maui.[1] Hawaiian Airlines operates flights to Asia, Hawaii, New Zealand, Australia and the United States Mainland. Hawaiian Airlines is owned by Hawaiian Holdings, Inc. of which Mark Dunkerley is the current President and Chief Executive Officer. Hawaiian is the oldest US carrier that has never had a fatal accident or a hull loss throughout its history, and frequently tops the on-time carrier list in the United States, as well as the fewest cancellations, oversales and baggage handling issues. It has also rated as the best carrier serving Hawaii by Travel + Leisure, Zagat and Condé Nast Traveler.
Japan Airlines
Japan Airlines Co., Ltd. (JAL) (日本航空株式会社 Nihon Kōkū Kabushiki-gaisha?, TYO: 9201, OTC Pink: JAPSY), is the flag carrier airline of Japan and the second largest in the country behind All Nippon Airways. It is headquartered in Shinagawa, Tokyo, Japan; and its main hubs are Tokyo's Narita International Airport and Tokyo International Airport (Haneda Airport), as well as Osaka's Kansai International Airport and Osaka International Airport. JAL group companies include Japan Airlines, J-Air, JAL Express, Japan Air Commuter, Japan Transocean Air and Ryukyu Air Commuter for domestic feeder services; and JAL Cargo for cargo and mail services. JAL group operations include scheduled and non-scheduled international and domestic passenger and cargo services to 220 destinations in 35 countries worldwide, including codeshares. The group has a fleet of 279 aircraft. In the fiscal year ended 31 March 2009, the airline group carried over 52 million passengers and over 1.1 million tons of cargo and mail. Japan Airlines, J-Air, JAL Express, and Japan Transocean Air are members of the Oneworld airline alliance. JAL was established in 1951 and became the national airline of Japan in 1953. After over three decades of service and expansion, the airline was fully privatized in 1987. In 2002, the airline merged with Japan Air System, Japan's third-largest airline and became the sixth largest airline in the world by passengers carried. Japan Airlines is currently an official sponsor of Japan Football Association, Japan national football team, Shimizu S-Pulse and Consadole Sapporo. All Nippon Airways, the largest airline in Japan, is JAL's main competitor.
jetBlue
JetBlue Airways Corporation (NASDAQ: JBLU), stylized as jetBlue, is an American low-cost airline and the 5th largest airline in the United States. The company is headquartered in the Long Island City neighborhood of the New York City borough of Queens, with its main base at John F. Kennedy International Airport. It also maintains a corporate office in Cottonwood Heights, Utah. The airline mainly serves destinations in the United States, along with flights to the The Bahamas, Bermuda, Barbados, Colombia, Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic, Grenada, Jamaica, Mexico, Peru, Puerto Rico, Trinidad and Tobago, and many more. As of March 2016, JetBlue serves 97 destinations in the U.S., Mexico, the Caribbean, Central America, and South America. As of 2016, the airline is one of two in the United States with a four-star rating from Skytrax, along with competing airline Virgin America.
Jetstar
Jetstar Airways Pty Ltd, trading as Jetstar, is an Australian low-cost airline (self-described as "value based") headquartered in Melbourne. It is a wholly owned subsidiary of Qantas, created in response to the threat posed by low-cost airline Virgin Blue. Jetstar is part of Qantas' two brand strategy of having Qantas Airways for the premium full-service market and Jetstar for the low-cost market. Jetstar carries 8.5% of all passengers travelling in and out of Australia. The airline operates an extensive domestic network as well as regional and international services from its main base at Melbourne Airport, using a mixed fleet of the Airbus A320 family and the Boeing 787 Dreamliner. Like its Qantas parent, Jetstar competes with Virgin Australia and its fully owned low-cost subsidiary Tigerair Australia. Qantas, through the Jetstar Group, also has stakes in sister airlines Jetstar Asia Airways, Jetstar Pacific Airlines and Jetstar Japan.
KLM
KLM, legally Koninklijke Luchtvaart Maatschappij N.V. (Royal Dutch Airlines), is the flag carrier airline of the Netherlands. KLM is headquartered in Amstelveen, with its hub at nearby Amsterdam Airport Schiphol. It is part of the Air France-KLM group, and is a member of the SkyTeam airline alliance. KLM was founded in 1919; it is the oldest airline in the world still operating under its original name and had 32,505 employees as of 2013. KLM operates scheduled passenger and cargo services to approximately 130 destinations. Passenger aircraft are configured in a three-class layout, including Business Class, Economy Comfort, Economy Class. KLM has a reputation as one of the world's safest airlines. Its frequent-flyer program is called Flying Blue, and has codeshare agreements with other airlines—both members and non-members of SkyTeam.
Korean Air
Korean Air Lines Co., Ltd. (Hangul: 대한항공; RR: Daehan Hanggong) (KRX: 003490), operating as Korean Air, is the largest airline and flag carrier of South Korea based on fleet size, international destinations and international flights. The airline's global headquarters are located in Seoul, Republic of Korea. Korean Air was originally founded as Korean National Airlines in 1946. After several years of service and expansion, the airline was fully privatized in 1969. Korean Air's international passenger division and related subsidiary cargo division together serve 127 cities in 44 countries, while its domestic division serves 12 destinations. It is among the top 20 airlines in the world in terms of passengers carried and is also the top-ranked international cargo airline. Incheon International Airport serves as Korean Air's international hub. Korean Air also maintains a satellite headquarters campus at Incheon. The majority of Korean Air's pilots, ground staff, and flight attendants are based in Seoul. Korean Air is the parent company of Jin Air and is a founding member of the SkyTeam airline alliance. The alliance has since become the second largest in the world, behind Star Alliance. It was voted Asia's best airline by Business Traveler readers in 2012.
Malaysia Airlines
Malaysia Airlines Berhad (MAB) (Malay: Penerbangan Malaysia Berhad) formerly known as Malaysian Airline System Berhad (MAS; Malay: Sistem Penerbangan Malaysia); branded as Malaysia Airlines; (Malay: Penerbangan Malaysia; MYX: 3786 as Malaysian Airline System Berhad) is a major airline operating flights from Kuala Lumpur International Airport and from secondary hubs in Kota Kinabalu and Kuching to destinations throughout Asia, Oceania and Europe. Malaysia Airlines is the flag carrier of Malaysia and a member of the oneworld airline alliance. The company's headquarters are located at Kuala Lumpur International Airport. In August 2014, the Malaysian government's sovereign wealth fund Khazanah Nasional—which then owned 69.37% of the airline—announced its intention to purchase remaining ownership from minority shareholders and de-list the airline from Malaysia's stock exchange, thereby renationalising the airline. Malaysia Airlines owns two subsidiary airlines: Firefly and MASwings. Firefly operates scheduled flights from its two home bases Penang International Airport and Subang International Airport. The airline focuses on tertiary cities. MASwings focuses on inter-Borneo flights. Malaysia Airlines has a freighter fleet operated by MASkargo, which manages freighter flights and aircraft cargo-hold capacity for all Malaysia Airlines' passenger flights. The airline began as Malayan Airways Limited and flew its first commercial flight in 1947. Malayan Airways was headquartered in Singapore. A few years after Singapore's expulsion from Malaysia, the airline was renamed Malaysia Singapore Airlines (MSA), before its assets were divided in 1972 to form Singapore flag carrier Singapore Airlines and Malaysian flag carrier Malaysian Airline System. Despite numerous awards from aviation industry and recognition from the World Travel Awards as the leading airline in and to Asia (2010-11, 2013) the airline struggled to cut costs to compete with new, low-cost carriers in the region since the early 2000s. In 2013, the airline initiated a turnaround plan after large losses beginning in 2011 and cut routes to prominent, but unprofitable, long-haul destinations, such as the Americas (Los Angeles and Buenos Aires) and South Africa.[6] Malaysia Airlines also began an internal restructuring and intended to sell units such as engineering and pilot training. In 2014, Malaysia Airlines lost two aircraft—Flight 370 and Flight 17—less than five months apart, exacerbating the airline's financial troubles and leading to the renationalisation of the airline. Prior to 2014, MAS had one of the world's best safety records—just two fatal accidents in 68 years of operation, including the hijacking in 1977 of Flight 653 that resulted in 100 deaths.
MEA (Middle East Airlines)
Middle East Airlines - Air Liban S.A.L. (Arabic: طيران الشرق الأوسط ـ الخطوط الجوية اللبنانية Ṭayyarān al-Sharq al-Awsaṭ - al-Khuṭūṭ al-jawiyyah al-lubnāniyyah), more commonly known as Middle East Airlines (MEA) (Arabic: طيران الشرق الأوسط Ṭayyarān al-Sharq al-Awsaṭ), is the national flag-carrier airline of Lebanon, with its head office in Beirut, near Beirut Rafic Hariri International Airport. It operates scheduled international flights to Asia, Europe, the Middle East and Africa from its base at Rafic Hariri International Airport. Middle East Airlines (MEA) is a member of the SkyTeam airline alliance, the Arab Air Carriers Organization (AACO), and the International Air Transport Association (IATA). The airline expressed its interest in becoming a SkyTeam associate member in early 2006 at a press conference in New York. On 28 February 2011, MEA officially signed the partnership agreement with SkyTeam in an official ceremony in Beirut. On 28 June 2012, MEA officially joined SkyTeam to become its 17th member, as well as its second member airline in the Middle East.
Siberian Airlines (S7 Airlines)
PJSC Siberia Airlines (Russian: ПАО «Авиакомпания „Сибирь"» "PАО Aviakompania Sibir"), operating as S7 Airlines, is an airline headquartered in Novosibirsk Oblast, Russia, with offices in Moscow. As of 2008, it was Russia's biggest domestic airline. Its main bases are Domodedovo International Airport and Tolmachevo Airport.
Philippines Airlines
Philippine Airlines (PAL), a trade name of PAL Holdings, Inc. (PSE: PAL), also known historically (until 1970) as Philippine Air Lines, is the flag carrier of the Philippines. Headquartered at the PNB Financial Center in Pasay City, the airline was founded in 1941 and is the first and oldest commercial airline in Asia operating under its original name. Out of its hubs at Ninoy Aquino International Airport of Manila and Mactan-Cebu International Airport of Cebu, Philippine Airlines serves 31 destinations in the Philippines and 41 overseas destinations in Southeast Asia, East Asia, Middle East, Oceania, North America and Europe. A Philippine Airline Boeing 777-300ER, PAL's flagship aircraft Formerly one of the largest Asian airlines, PAL was severely affected by the 1997 Asian Financial Crisis. In one of the Philippines' biggest corporate failures, PAL was forced to downsize its international operations by completely cutting flights to Europe and Middle East, cutting virtually all domestic flights except routes operated from Manila, reducing the size of its fleet, and laying off thousands of employees. The airline was placed under receivership in 1998, and gradually restored operations to many destinations. After PAL's exit from receivership in 2007, PAL embarked on a frequent revamp of management. However, PAL's vision to re-establish itself as one of Asia's premier carriers, is still the matter of greatest importance.
LOT Polish airlines
Polskie Linie Lotnicze LOT S.A. (Polish pronunciation: [lɔt], flight), trading as LOT Polish Airlines, is the flag carrier of Poland. Based in Warsaw and established in 1929, it is one of the world's oldest airlines still in operation. With a fleet of 45 aircraft, LOT operates a network to 60 destinations in Europe, the Middle East, North America, and Asia. Most of the destinations originate from its hub, Warsaw Chopin Airport. LOT is also a member of the Star Alliance. As Poland made the transition to a market economy from 1989, LOT began its own transformation from a wholly state-run carrier to a commercial European flag carrier. LOT started a process of fleet renewal with the purchase of modern aircraft. With the arrival of the first Boeing 767-300ER, LOT started inter-continental services to Chicago, Newark, Toronto, and New York City. These four main routes have been some of the most popular flights that LOT operates, especially during the summer season. LOT found itself undergoing constant management change in the late 2000s due to reductions in market share. In 2012 the company took delivery of one of the most modern aircraft in the world, the Boeing 787 Dreamliner, however, after placing orders for several aircraft and taking delivery of two, the carrier found itself "nearly insolvent" due to the January 2013 grounding of the Boeing 787. Like other traditional airlines, it offers two service classes on its flights: Economy and Business class. LOT has also won numerous awards including "Best Airline in Eastern Europe" in 2008, 2009 and 2010 according to the magazine Global Traveler and has been hailed as one of the safest airlines in the world.
Qantas
Qantas is Australia's largest airline and one of the oldest airlines in the world. Qantas has gone from two fragile biplanes carrying two passengers and a pilot, to an Airbus A380 flying 450 people around the world. Qantas was founded in Winton, Queensland on 16 November 1920 as Queensland and Northern Territory Aerial Services Limited by Paul McGinness, Hudson Fysh, Fergus McMaster and Arthur Baird. Initially the airline operated air mail services subsidied by the Australian government, linking railheads in western Queensland. Between 1926 and 1928 Qantas built several aircraft in Longreach and made the inaugural flight of the Royal Flying Doctor Service of Australia, departing from Cloncurry. Qantas Empire Airways Limited (QEA) was formed by Qantas and Britain's Imperial Airways in 1934. They flew internationally from May 1935, when the service from Darwin was extended to Singapore. As operations expanded with flying boat service World War disrupted air travel until 1943. In 1947, QEA was nationalized, with the Australian Labor government buying the shares. In the same year the airline took delivery of Lockheed L-749 Constellations and these took over the trunk route to London. In 1958, Qantas became the second round-the-world airline, flying Super Constellations westward from Australia to London through Asia and the Middle East. In 1956, Qantas ordered the Boeing 707-138 jet airliner and the first was delivered in June 1959. The first jet service operated by Qantas was on 29 July 1959 from Sydney to San Francisco via Nadi and Honolulu. On 5 September 1959 Qantas became the third airline to fly jets across the North Atlantic. In 1966, the airline diversified its business by opening the 450 room Wentworth Hotel in Sydney. In 1967, the airline placed orders for the Boeing 747 and Qantas Empire Airways changed its name to Qantas Airways. WhenCyclone Tracy devastated the town of Darwin at Christmas 1974, Qantas established a world record for the most people ever embarked on a single aircraft when it evacuated 673 people on a single Boeing 747 flight. In March 1979, Qantas operated its final Boeing 707 flight from Auckland to Sydney, and became the only airline in the world to have a fleet that consisted of Boeing 747s only. The Boeing 747 fleet was upgraded from 1989 with the arrival of the new Boeing 747-400 series. The delivery flight of the first 747-400 was a world record for commercial aircraft, flying the 18,001 kilometers (11,185 mi) from London to Sydney non-stop. The Australian Government sold the domestic carrierAustralian Airlines to Qantas in August 1992. This provided Qantas access to the Australian domestic market for the first time in its history. Qantas was privatised in March 1993. Qantas ordered twelve Airbus A380-800s in 2000 and was soon the third airline to receive A380s, after Singapore Airlines and Emirates. The airline created a new cut-price subsidiary airline, Jetstar Airways after Virgin Blue expanded in October 2001. On 13 December 2004, the first flight of Jetstar Asia Airways took off from its Singapore hub to Hong Kong, marking Qantas' entry into the Asian cut-price market. Before 29 October 2011, Qantas operated a significant number of international flights into and out ofSingapore Changi, Auckland Airport, Brisbane Airport, Los Angeles International and London Heathrow airports. Qantas has been one of the most profitable airlines in the world. In 2008, the first Qantas Airbus A380 was handed over by Airbus at a ceremony on 19 September. The first route for the A380 wasMelbourne to Los Angeles.
Qatar
Qatar Airways Company Q.C.S.C. (Arabic: القطرية, Al Qatariyah), operating as Qatar Airways, is the state-owned flag carrier of Qatar. Headquartered in the Qatar Airways Tower in Doha, the airline operates a hub-and-spoke network, linking over 150 international destinations across Africa, Central Asia, Europe, Far East, South Asia, Middle East, North America, South America and Oceania from its base at Hamad International Airport, using a fleet of more than 150 aircraft. Qatar Airways Group employs more than 40,000 people, of whom 24,000 work directly for Qatar Airways. The carrier has been a member of the Oneworld alliance since October 2013, the first Gulf carrier to sign with one of the three airline alliances.
Rex (Regional Express)
Regional Express (also known as Rex) is an Australian airline based in Mascot, New South Wales. It operates scheduled regional services. It is Australia's largest regional airline outside the Qantas group of companies and serves New South Wales,South Australia, Victoria, North Queensland, Tasmania and Western Australia. Its entire fleet consists of 52 Swedish built Saab 340 turboprop aircraft seating 33, 34 or 36 passengers. Rex formerly flew some Fairchild Metro 23s.
Ryanair
Ryanair Ltd. (ISEQ: RYA, LSE: RYA, NASDAQ: RYAAY) is an Irish low-cost airline headquartered in Swords, Dublin, Ireland, with its primary operational bases at Dublin and London Stansted Airports. In 2013, Ryanair was both the largest European airline by scheduled passengers carried, and the busiest international airline by passenger numbers. Ryanair operates over 350 Boeing 737-800 aircraft, with a single 737-700 maintained on the roster as a backup plane and for pilot training. The airline has been characterised by its rapid expansion, a result of the deregulation of the aviation industry in Europe in 1997 and the success of its low-cost business model. Ryanair's route network serves 32 countries in Europe, Africa (Morocco), and the Middle East (Israel).
Singapore Airlines
Singapore Airlines Limited (SIA; SGX: C6L) is the flag carrier of Singapore with its hub at Singapore Changi Airport. It is regarded as a Singaporean national symbol and icon. The airline utilises the Singapore Girl as its central figure in its corporate branding. The Singapore Airlines group includes many airline-related subsidiaries. SIA Engineering Company handles maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) business across nine countries, with a portfolio of 27 joint ventures, including with Boeing and Rolls-Royce. Singapore Airlines Cargo operates SIA's freighter fleet and manages the cargo-hold capacity in SIA's passenger aircraft. It has three subsidiaries: SilkAir operates regional flights to secondary cities, while Scoot and Tigerair operate as low-cost carriers. Singapore Airlines was the launch customer for the Airbus A380, the world's largest passenger aircraft. It ranks amongst the top 15 carriers worldwide in terms of revenue passenger kilometers, and is ranked 10th in the world for international passengers carried. On 15 December 2010, Singapore Airlines was named by the International Air Transport Association as the second largest airline in the world by market capitalisation, worth 14 billion US dollars.
Southwest
Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE: LUV) is a majorU.S. airline, the world's largest low-cost carrier, headquartered in Dallas, Texas. The airline was established in 1967 by Herb Kelleher and adopted its current name (Southwest Airlines) in 1971. The airline has nearly 46,000 employees as of December 2014 and operates more than 3,800 flights per day. As of 2014, it carried the most domestic passengers of any U.S. airline. As of May 2016, Southwest Airlines has scheduled service to 97 destinations in 40 states, Puerto Rico, and abroad. Southwest Airlines has used only Boeing 737s, except for several years in the 1970s and 1980s, when it leased some Boeing 727s from Braniff. As of January 2016, Southwest is the largest operator of the Boeing 737 worldwide, with over 700 in service, each averaging six flights per day.
Swiss Air
Swissair AG/S.A. (German: Schweizerische Luftverkehr-AG; French: S.A. Suisse pour la Navigation Aérienne) was for many years the national airline of Switzerland. It was formed from a merger between Balair and Ad Astra Aero (To the Stars), in 1931. For most of its 71 years, Swissair was one of the major international airlines and known as the "Flying Bank" due to the financial stability of the airline, causing it to be regarded as a Swiss national symbol and icon. The airline thrived into the 1980s, when it was one of the "Seven Sisters"[citation needed] of Western European commercial aviation. It was headquartered at Zurich Airport and in Kloten. In 1997 the Swissair Group was renamed SAirGroup (although it was again renamed Swissair Group in 2001), with four subdivisions: SAirlines (to which Swissair, Crossair, Balair and FlightLease belonged), SAirServices, SAirLogistics and SAirRelations. Burdened by over-expansion due to the controversial "Hunter Strategy" in the late 1990s and after the economic downturn following the September 11 attacks, Swissair's assets dramatically lost value, grounding the already-troubled airline in October 2001. The airline was kept alive until 31 March 2002 by the Swiss Federal government. On 1 April 2002 successor airline Swiss International Air Lines was founded on the base of former Crossair, taking over most of the routes, planes and staff of the former Swissair. Today, The SAirGroup company still exists and is in the process of being liquidated. Swiss International Air Lines was taken over by the German airline Lufthansa in 2005.
Thai Airways
Thai Airways International Public Company Limited, trading as THAI (SET: THAI, Thai: บริษัท การบินไทย จำกัด (มหาชน)) is the flag carrier airline of Thailand. Formed in 1988, the airline has its corporate headquarters in Vibhavadi Rangsit Road, Chatuchak District, Bangkok, and primarily operates out of Suvarnabhumi Airport. THAI is a founding member of the Star Alliance. The airline is the largest shareholder of the low-cost carrier Nok Air with a 39 percent stake, and it launched a regional carrier under the name Thai Smile in the middle of 2012 using new Airbus A320 aircraft. From its hub at Suvarnabhumi Airport, THAI flies to 80 destinations in 37 countries, using a fleet of more than 90 aircraft. The airline was once the operator of two of the world's longest non-stop routes between Bangkok and Los Angeles and New York City, but due to high fuel prices, the withdrawal of aircraft, luggage weight limits and rising airfares, the airline abandoned all non-stop US services in 2012 indefinitely. As of 2013, services between Bangkok and Los Angeles are served via Incheon International Airport near Seoul, however, it ended its service to the US on 25 October 2015. THAI's route network is dominated by flights to Europe, East Asia, and South/Southwest Asia, though the airline serves five cities in Oceania. THAI was the first Asia-Pacific airline to serve London Heathrow Airport. Among Asia-Pacific carriers, THAI has one of the largest passenger operations in Europe. THAI is an official sponsor of Bangkok United, Reading F.C., and Red Bull Racing.
Thomas Cook
Thomas Cook Airlines (UK) Limited, is a British airline based in Manchester, England. It serves leisure destinations worldwide from its main bases at Manchester and London Gatwick Airport. It also operates services from eight other bases around the United Kingdom. It was formed by the rebranding of JMC Air in 2003. Following the merger of the MyTravel Group with Thomas Cook in 2008, Thomas Cook Airlines UK Ltd was merged withMyTravel Airways. Thomas Cook Airlines is part of the airline division of the Thomas Cook Group, which consists of several sister airlines, all of which have a joint fleet management: Thomas Cook Airlines Belgium, Thomas Cook Airlines Scandinavia and German based Condor. The airline holds a United Kingdom Civil Aviation Authority Type A Operating License, permitting it to carry passengers, cargo and mail on aircraft with 20 or more seats.
Tigerair
Tiger Airways Singapore Pte Ltd, operating as Tigerair, is a budget airline headquartered in Singapore. It operates services to regional destinations in Southeast Asia, China and India from its main base at Singapore Changi Airport. Originally founded as an independent airline in 2003, it was floated on the Singapore Stock Exchange under the Tiger Airways Holdings banner in 2010. In October 2014, parent company Tiger Airways Holdings became a subsidiary of the SIA Group, who took a 56% ownership stake. Tigerair won the CAPA Low Cost Airline of the Year Award for 2006 and 2010. On 16 May 2016, Tigerair joined the world's largest low cost carrier alliance, Value Alliance. On 18 May 2016, Singapore Airlines established Budget Aviation Holdings, a holding company to own and manage its budget airlines Scoot and Tiger Airways following the delisting of Tiger Airways from the Singapore stock exchange.
Turkish Airlines
Turkish Airlines (Turkish: Türk Hava Yolları) (BİST: THYAO) is the national flag carrier airline of Turkey, headquartered at the Turkish Airlines General Management Building on the grounds of Atatürk Airport in Yeşilköy, Bakırköy, Istanbul. As of July 2015, it operates scheduled services to 290 destinations in Europe, Asia, Africa, and the Americas, making it the fourth-largest carrier in the world by number of destinations, as of 2014. It serves more destinations non-stop from a single airport than any other airline in Europe. Turkish Airlines flies to 115 countries, more than any other airline. With an operational fleet of ten cargo aircraft, the airline's cargo division serves 52 destinations. Istanbul Atatürk Airport is its main base, and there are secondary hubs at Esenboğa International Airport, Sabiha Gökçen International Airport, and Adnan Menderes Airport. Turkish Airlines has been a member of the Star Alliance network since 1 April 2008.
United
United Airlines, Inc., commonly referred to as United, is a majorAmerican airline headquartered in Chicago, Illinois. It is the world's second largest airline when measured by number of destinations served, and the second largest when measured by scheduled passenger - kilometers flown. United operates a comprehensive domestic and international route network, and has significant presence in the Asia-Pacific region. In the late 1920s, just prior to the use of the United Airlines name, The Boeing Company, currently one of the world's largest aircraft manufacturers, operated a predecessor airline. United was previously known as United Air Lines(UAL). United is a founding member of Star Alliance, the world's largest global airline alliance. Regional service is operated by independent carriers under the brand name United Express. Its main competitors areAmerican Airlines, Delta Air Lines, and Southwest Airlines. United operates out of nine airline hubs located in Houston, Chicago,Newark/New York, Denver, San Francisco, Washington, D.C., Los Angeles, Guam, and Tokyo. George Bush Intercontinental Airport inHouston is United's largest passenger carrying hub handling 16.6 million passengers annually with an average of 45,413 passengers daily, while Chicago-O'Hare is its largest hub in terms of daily departures. The company employs over 86,000 people while maintaining its headquarters in Chicago's Willis Tower (formerly known as Sears Tower). Through the airline's parent company, United Continental Holdings, it is publicly traded under NYSE: UAL with a market capitalization of over $18 billion as of September, 2014. United operates maintenance bases in Cleveland and Orlando in addition to the maintenance locations located at United's hubs.
Vietnam Airlines
Vietnam Airlines (Vietnamese: Hãng Hàng không Quốc gia Việt Nam) is the flag carrier of Vietnam. Founded in 1956 under the name Vietnam Civil Aviation, the airline was established as a state-owned enterprise in April 1989. Vietnam Airlines is headquartered in Long Bien District, Hanoi, with hubs at Noi Bai International Airport and Tan Son Nhat International Airport. The airline flies to 52 destinations in 17 countries, excluding codeshared services. From its inception until the early 1990s, Vietnam Airlines was a minor carrier within the aviation industry as it was hampered by a variety of factors including the socio-economic and political situation of the country. With the government's normalization of relations with the United States, the airline was able to expand, improve its products and services, and modernize its ageing fleet. In 1996, the Vietnamese government brought together 20 service companies to form Vietnam Airlines Corporation, with the airline itself as the centrepiece. In 2010, the corporation was restructured into a limited liability company and renamed Vietnam Airlines Company Limited. A seven-seat management board, members of which are appointed by the Vietnamese Prime Minister, oversees the company. As passenger transport constitutes its core activity, Vietnam Airlines plays a crucial role in the economic development of the country. It owns 100% of Vietnam Air Service Company - a regional airline in southern Vietnam, 70% of the low-cost carrier Jetstar Pacific Airlines, and 49% of the Cambodian national airline Cambodia Angkor Air. In addition, the corporation earns revenue from airline catering and the maintenance and overhauling of aircraft through a number of its subsidiaries, including Vietnam Airlines Engineering Company and Vietnam Airlines Caterers. The company has also diversified its investments in the aircraft-leasing and airport ground-servicing industries, and is looking to manufacture aircraft components. It controls and operates a cargo division, Vietnam Airlines Cargo. Vietnam Airlines became a member of SkyTeam in June 2010, making it the first Southeast Asian carrier to have joined that alliance. It is expected to be restructured and partially privatized by 2015 to help it streamline its services and better compete with other airlines. This would facilitate its long-term development plan that involves the improvement of its products and services, and the expansion of its fleet and flight network, as the airline aspires to become the second-largest full-service carrier in Southeast Asia by 2020.
Virgin (Atlantic)
Virgin Atlantic, a trade name of Virgin Atlantic Airways Limited, is a British airline with its head office in Crawley, United Kingdom. The airline was established in 1984 as British Atlantic Airways, and was originally planned by its co-founders Randolph Fields and Alan Hellary to fly between London and the Falkland Islands. Soon after changing the name to Virgin Atlantic Airways, Fields sold his shares in the company after disagreements with Sir Richard Branson over the management of the company. The maiden flight from London Gatwick to Newark Liberty International Airport took place on 22 June 1984. The airline along with Virgin Holidays is controlled by a holding company, Virgin Atlantic Limited, which is 51% owned by the Virgin Group and 49% by Delta Air Lines. It is administratively separate from other Virgin-branded airlines. Virgin Atlantic uses a mixed fleet of Airbus and Boeing wide-body aircraft and operates to destinations in North America, the Caribbean, Africa, the Middle East and Asia from its main bases at London Heathrow and London Gatwick and its secondary base at Manchester. The airline also operates flights from Glasgow and seasonal flights from Belfast. In 2012, Virgin Atlantic carried 5.4 million passengers,[5] making it the seventh-largest UK airline in terms of passenger volume. In the year to 31 December 2013, it reported a £51 million group pre-tax loss (approximately US$87 million),[6] however, in the year to 31 December 2014 the airline reported a return to pre-tax profit of £14.4 million.[7] Virgin Atlantic holds a Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) Type A Operating Licence, which permits it to carry passengers, cargo, and mail on aircraft with 20 or more seats.