# List of airline mergers and acquisitions

This article lists airline mergers and acquisitions, with a brief history of each:
Air India
* 2007 - Merged with Indian Airlines. Kept Air India name.
* 2022 - Acquires Vistara
Air Berlin
* 2006 - Acquired dba
* 2007 - Acquired LTU International
* 2009 - Acquired LGW
* 2009 - Acquired Belair
* 2011 - Acquired flyNiki
* 2017 - Filed for insolvency
Air New Zealand
Air Canada
Air France
* 1990 - Acquired Air Inter, fully absorbing it into Air France in April 1997
* 2004 - Merged with KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, changing the company name to Air France-KLM, although the two airlines still operate as separate airlines.
Air Jamaica
Avianca
* 1919 - Begins as SCADTA
* 1940 - Merged with SACO, retains Avianca name
* 1994 - Merged with SAM and Helicol
* 2003 - Acquired ACES Colombia' routes
* 2003 - Acquired OceanAir and VIP Ecuador
* 2008 - Acquired Tampa Cargo
* 2009 - Merged with TACA Airlines
* 2009 - Acquired AeroGal
* 2014 - Acquired AeroUnion, which continues to operate as a separate airline
Aurora
Austrian Airlines
* 1957 - Air Austria and Austrian Airways form Austrian Airlines
* 2002 - Merged Rheintalflug and Tyrolean Airways to Austrian Arrows
* 2013 - Merged with Lauda Air kept name
British Airways and Iberia
Bulgaria Air
Canadian Airlines
* 1987 - Formed by merger of Canadian Pacific Airlines, Eastern Provincial Airways, Nordair, and Pacific Western Airlines
* 1989 - Acquired Wardair
* 2001 - Canadian Airlines acquired by Air Canada
Canadian North
Caribbean Airlines
Cathay Pacific
* 2006 - Acquired full ownership over Dragonair (rebranded to Cathay Dragon in 2016), which continued to operate as a separate airline until 2020, when it was folded into Cathay Pacific
* 2020 - Acquired Hong Kong Express
Cimber Air
Etihad Airways
First Air
KLM Royal Dutch Airlines
Loftleidir-Icelandic
LOT Polish Airlines
LAN Airlines
* 1995 - Purchased Ladeco
* 2012 - Merged with TAM Linhas Aéreas to form LATAM Airlines Group
Lufthansa
* 1955 - Created Deutsche Flugdienst GmbH in conjunction with other companies and subsequently owned 25.81% of it
* 1959 - Increased its shares in Deutsche Flugdienst to 95.5%. In 1961 Deutsche Flugdienst bought "Condor-Luftreederei“ renaming itself then "Condor Flugdienst GmbH"
* 1989 - Created SunExpress Airlines as a joint venture with Turkish Airlines
* 1995 - Transferred SunExpress shares over to Condor
* 1999 - Purchased 26% of Air Dolomiti
* 2003 - upped its stake to 51.9% (April) and then 100% (November) of Air Dolomiti
* 2006 - Lufthansa sold its remaining 50% stake in Condor to KarstadtQuelle AG
* 2007 - In conjunction with the sale of Condor, LH took back its shares of SunExpress
* 2005-2007 - Purchased Swiss Int'l Airlines
* 2008 - Purchased Austrian Airlines
* 2008 - Purchased BMI (Sold in 2011 to IAG (British Airways))
* 2008 - Acquired 45% of Brussels Airlines
* 2008 - Purchased 19% of Jetblue
* 2009 - Acquired 100% of Germanwings
* 2016 - Acquired remaining 55% of Brussels Airlines
* 2017 - Acquired Air Berlin
* 2023 - Agreement to purchase 41% of ITA Airways (successor of Alitalia)
Rossiya Airlines
* 2006 - Increases by merger with Pulkovo Aviation Enterprise
* 2016 - Increases by merger with Donavia and Orenair and re-brands
S7 Airlines (Siberia Airlines)
* 2001 - Acquired Vnukovo Airlines and Baikal Airlines
* 2004 - Acquired Enkor
* 2005 - Re-brands from Siberia Airlines to S7 Airlines and makes Moscow-Domodedovo as the main hub
* 2008 - Acquired Perm Airlines
TAM Linhas Aéreas
* 1996 - Acquired Helisul Linhas Aéreas
* 1996 - Acquired LAPSA
* 1998 - Acquired Itapemirim Transportes Aéreos
* 2012 - Merged with LAN Airlines to form LATAM Airlines Group
Vistara
United States
* AirTran Airways
** 1997 - Bought by the holding company for ValuJet Airlines, the holding company merged their ValuJet airline into AirTran thus keeping the AirTran name
** 2011 - Bought by Southwest Airlines, AirTran fleet transferred to Southwest and thereby AirTran becomes an inactive subsidiary
* Alaska Airlines
** 1986 - Acquired Jet America Airlines
** 1986 - Acquired Horizon Air, which continues to operate as a separate airline
** 2018 - Acquired Virgin America. The merger made Alaska a dominant U.S. carrier in the West Coast.
** 2024 - Acquired Hawaiian Airlines, both airlines will continue to operate as separate brands
* America West Airlines
** 2005 - Acquired US Airways
* American Airlines
** 1971 - Acquired Trans Caribbean Airways
** 1987 - Acquired Air California
** 1990 - Acquired the Eastern Air Lines' route network from Miami to Latin America and the Caribbean
** 1997 - Acquired Reno Air
** 2001 - Acquires most of Trans World Airlines assets after filing for bankruptcy
** 2013 - Acquired by US Airways, keeping the American Airlines name. Currently the world's largest carrier.
** 2019 - Purchased a 3% stake in China Southern Airlines
* Braniff International Airways
** 1982 - South American routes was purchased by Eastern Air Lines
* Continental Airlines
** 1934 - Begins as Varney Speed Lines
** 1982 - Acquired Texas International Airlines
** 1987 - Acquired People Express, Frontier, and New York Air
** 1987 - Acquired PBA and Britt Airways from People Express merger / created Continental Express
** 2010 - Merged into United Airlines, under the United name and the Continental brand
* Delta Air Lines
** 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 until the summer of 1955
** 1972 - Purchased Northeast Airlines after Northeast was experiencing financial problems
** 1984 - Established the Delta Connection (ASA, Comair, Skywest, ...)
** 1987 - Merged with Western Airlines, at the time the oldest continuously operating airline in the United States
** 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 - Merged with Northwest Airlines, was world's largest carrier at time of merger, keeping the Delta Air Lines brand and name.
** 2017 - Bought 10% of Air France–KLM
** 2017 - Bought 32% of Aeromexico to total a stake of 49% ownership
** 2020 - Bought 20% of LATAM Airlines Group
* Eastern Air Lines
** 1956 - Merged with Colonial Airlines
** 1967 - Merged with Mackey Airlines
** 1986 - Purchased by Texas International, but continues to operate separately as Eastern Airlines
** 1990 - American Airlines purchased Eastern's routes from Miami to Latin America and the Caribbean
* Florida Airlines
** 1975 - Air South and Shawnee Airlines are purchased by Florida Airlines
* Frontier Airlines
** 2007 - Entered service agreement with Republic Airways
** 2008 - Declared bankruptcy, then purchased by Republic
** 2009 - Still under the Frontier name, Republic mandates a merger between Frontier and Midwest Airlines
** 2013 - Enter a contract with Indigo, beginning a transition into an ULCC
* Hawaiian Airlines
** 2024 - Acquired by Alaska Air Group
* Hughes Airwest
** 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
** 1980 - Merged into Republic Airlines
* JetBlue and Spirit Airlines
** 2022 to 2024 - JetBlue's attempted acquisition of Spirit blocked by a federal court
* National Airlines
** 1979 - Merged with Pan Am
* Northeast Airlines
** 1972 - Merged into Delta Air Lines
* Northwest Airlines
** 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
** 1993 - Began transatlantic partnership with KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, dubbed as "Wings Alliance"
** 2008 - Merged into Delta Air Lines. Became world's largest airline by passenger traffic in 2008 under the Delta name.
* Ozark Airlines
** 1943 - Ozark Air Lines is founded, then ceases operations in late 1940s
** 1944 - Parks Air Transport (Parks Air Lines) is founded
** 1950 - Ozark Air Lines resumes operations
** 1950 - Purchased Parks Air Transport (Parks Air Lines)
** 1986 - Merged into Trans World Airlines
* Pan Am
** 1928 - Merged with Aviation Corporation of the Americas/American International Airways
** 1928 - Founded and formed by the merger of Atlantic, Gulf, and Caribbean Airways
** 1929 - Acquired majority of Mexicana de Aviación
** 1950 - Merged with American Overseas Airlines
** 1979 - Merged with National Airlines
** 1985 - United Airlines purchased Pan Am's entire Pacific Division
** 1990 - United Airlines purchased Pan Am routes to London Heathrow Airport
** 1991 - United Airlines purchased Pan Am's entire Latin American Division
** 1991 - Delta Air Lines purchased Pan Am's European routes, and acquired Pan Am's Shuttle
** 1991 to present - Following 1991 bankruptcy, trademarks sold to unaffiliated companies; Pan Am Flight Academy acquired by All Nippon Airways in 2014
* Republic Airlines (Republic Airlines 1979-1986)
** 1979 - Founded and formed by the merger of North Central Airlines and Southern Airways
** 1944 - Southern Airways is founded
** 1944 - Wisconsin Central Airlines is founded
** 1952 - Wisconsin Central Airlines changes name to North Central Airlines
** 1980 - Acquired Hughes Airwest
** 1986 - Merged into Northwest Orient to form Northwest Airlines
* Republic Airways Holdings
** 2005 - Acquired Shuttle America
** 2009 - Acquired Midwest Airlines
** 2009 - Acquired Frontier Airlines
* Southwest Airlines
** 1985 - Acquired Muse Air
** 1993 - Acquired Morris Air
** 2008 - Acquired certain assets of bankrupt ATA Airlines
** 2011 - Acquired AirTran Airways
* Trans World Airlines
** 1925 - First incorporated as Western Air Express
** 1927 - Maddux Air Lines is founded
** 1927 - Standard Air Lines is founded
** 1928 - Transcontinental Air Transport is founded
** 1929 - Maddux Air Lines merges with Transcontinental Air Transport
** 1930 - Standard Air Lines merges with Western Air Express
** 1930 - Western Air Express merges with Transcontinental Air Transport, rebranded itself as Transcontinental & Western Air, T&WA, later changed name to Trans World Airlines, TWA
** 1934 - Western Air Express broke off from Transcontinental & Western Air, T&WA and briefly changed its name to General Air Lines, returning to the name Western Air Express after several months
** 1986 - Purchased Ozark Air Lines
** 2001 - Merged into American Airlines
* United Airlines
** 1926 - Founded as Varney Air Lines
** 1931 - Purchased National Air Transport and Pacific Air Transport
** 1961 - Merged with Capital Airlines
** 1985 - Purchased Pan Am's entire Pacific Division
** 1990 - Purchased Pan Am routes to London Heathrow Airport
** 1991 - Purchased Pan Am's entire Latin American Division
** 2010 - Merged with Continental Airlines. Was the world's largest carrier at the time of merger, acquired the Continental brand kept the United name.
** 2014 - Four years taking over Continental, United closed the hub at Cleveland Hopkins International Airport for the second time
* US Airways
** 1938 - Started as All American Aviation Company, renamed All American Airlines and then Allegheny Airlines
** 1957 - Changed name to Allegheny Airlines
** 1968 - Purchased Lake Central Airlines
** 1972 - Purchased Mohawk Airlines
** 1979 - Changed name to USAir
** 1988 - Purchased Pacific Southwest Airlines
** 1989 - Purchased Piedmont Airlines
** 1992 - Operates former Trump Shuttle for banks, renamed by banks as Shuttle, Inc, dba USAir Shuttle
** 1997 - Changed name to US Airways
** 1997 - Purchased former Trump Shuttle, now Shuttle, Inc from Banks, dba US Airways Shuttle
** 1998 - Launches low-fare carrier MetroJet
** 2000 - Merges US Airways Shuttle into US Airways
** 2001 - Dissolves low-fare carrier MetroJet
** 2005 - Acquired by America West Airlines, keeping the US Airways name
** 2013 - Merged into American Airlines
* Virgin America
** 2016 - Merged into Alaska Airlines. The merger made Alaska a dominant U.S. carrier in the West Coast.
* Western Airlines
** 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 T-A-T to form Transcontinental & Western Air T&WA.
** 1934 - Western Air Express broke off from Transcontinental & Western Air T&WA 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 - Merged into Delta Air Lines