List of airlines by foundation date

This is a list of airlines by foundation date of the company or its earliest predecessor company. The list includes airlines founded before December 31, 1930.

The date of the first airline service may differ from the foundation date of the company. Bold names and a light-green background indicate that the airline is still in operation as a parent or subsidiary. Each airline still operating is listed once, in place of its earliest corporate ancestor.

Airline	Established	Ceased operations, acquired or merged	Country	Notes
DELAG	Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Template:Flagicon/Template:Flagicon	The world's first airline in revenue service. Operated Zeppelin airships. Merged with Deutsche Zeppelin Reederei (DZR) in 1935, which continued transatlantic flights until the Hindenburg disaster in 1937. Company dissolved in 1940 and re-established in 2001.
Aero Rt.	Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Template:Flagicon	Merged with Magyar Aeroforgalmi Rt (MAEFORT) which in turn, merged with Magyar Legiforgalmi R.T. (MALERT) to form Maszovlet. Later Hungary acquired all the Soviet shares of Maszovlet and renamed it to Malév Hungarian Airlines.
St. Petersburg-Tampa Airboat Line	Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Template:Flagicon	First winged airline. See Thomas Reilly, Jannus: An American Flyer
British Airways	Template:Dts	Still in operation	Template:Flagicon	British Airways' earliest predecessor company is Aircraft Transport and Travel (AT&T), which began service on 25 August 1919 with the world's first scheduled daily commercial aviation service, an international flight from London to Paris. A subsidiary of Airco, its assets were used to create Daimler Airway. Through numerous takeovers and mergers, it became a part of British Airways making BA the operating airline with the oldest predecessor. British Airways merged with Iberia to form International Airlines Group (IAG) on January 21, 2011 and remains in operation as a subsidiary company.
Chalk's Ocean Airways	Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Template:Flagicon	Started scheduled service between Florida and the Bahamas in February 1919; Became Chalk's International Airlines.
Deutsche Luft-Reederei	Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Template:Flagicon/Template:Flagicon	Services started February 5, 1919. Became part of Deutscher Aero Lloyd in 1923, merged into Deutsche Luft Hansa in 1926. Founding member of International Air Traffic Association in 1919.
Det Norske Luftfartsrederi	Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Template:Flagicon	Founding member of IATA
Det Danske Luftfartselskab	Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Template:Flagicon	Services started August 7, 1920. Part of SAS since 1946.
Air France	Template:Dts	Still in operation	Template:Flagicon	Société des lignes Latécoère, later rebranded rebranded as Aéropostale in 1927, was incorporated into Air France on September 19,1933 making Air France the second oldest operating airline through its predecessor companies. Air France merged with KLM in 2004 to form Air France–KLM and remains in operation as a subsidiary company.
Svensk Lufttrafik	Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Template:Flagicon	Services started 7 August 1920
Société Générale des Transports Aériens	Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Template:Flagicon	Initally known as Lignes Aériennes Farman. Merged with four other airlines to form Air France.
Grands Express Aériens	Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Template:Flagicon	Merged with Compagnie des Messageries Aériennes to form Air Union.
SNETA	Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Template:Flagicon	Merged into Sabena.
Compagnie des Messageries Aériennes	Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Template:Flagicon	Merged with Grands Express Aériens to form Air Union.
Daimler Airway	Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Template:Flagicon	Established as Daimler Air Hire in 1919. Combined with the assets of Aircraft Transport and Travel (AT&T) in 1921 to create Daimler Airway. Merged with three other airlines in 1924 to form Imperial Airways.
Compañía Colombiana de Navegación Aérea – CCNA	Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Template:Flagicon	First airline in Colombia with mail contract with Colombian Government.
KLM	Template:Dts	Still in operation	Template:Flagicon	During World War II, KLM stopped operating in Europe, but continued in the West Indies as Dutch Caribbean colonies were not occupied by Nazi Germany. KLM merged with Air France in 2004 to form Air France–KLM and remains in operation as a subsidiary company. It is the third oldest airline when considering predecessor companies.
Avianca	Template:Dts	Still in operation	Template:Flagicon	Founded as SCADTA in 1919 by Germans and Colombians. American concern during World War II over the German shares of the airline forced SCADTA to merge in 1940 with the smaller state-owned SACO to form Avianca,Template:Refn making it fourth oldest airline by foundation date of its predcessor.Template:Refn
Handley Page Transport	Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Template:Flagicon	Merged with three other airlines to form Imperial Airways.
Handley Page Indo-Burmese transport	Template:Dts	Template:DtsTemplate:Efn	Template:Flagicon	First airline in India (then under British rule).
Instone Air Line	Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Template:Flagicon	Merged with three other airlines to form Imperial Airways.
A/S Aero	Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Template:Flagicon	Merged with Norske Aeroplanfabrik
CFRNA	Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Template:Flagicon/Template:Flagicon	Renamed CIDNA in 1925; the French arm was merged with four other airlines to form Air France; the Romanian arm was renamed LARES.
Qantas	Template:Dts	Still in operation	Template:Flagicon	Qantas was originally established as the Queensland and Northern Territory Aerial Services Limited (QANTAS). Since then, the company has undergone several changes, including nationalisation and privatisation. The current legal entity is Qantas Airways Limited, which was incorporated in 1967. It is the fifth oldest airline by foundation date when considering predecessor companies.
Aeronaut	Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Template:Flagicon	Operated the routes: Tallinn-Helsinki, Tallinn-Stockholm, Tallinn-Riga-Königsberg and Tallinn-Tartu-Viljandi-Pärnu. Stopped operations in 1927 due to financial problems.
Aerotarg	Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Template:Flagicon	Operated only on the route between Poznań–Warsaw and Poznań–Gdańsk, mainly in order to serve participants and visitors of the first Poznań International Fair.
Mexicana de Aviación	Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Template:Flagicon	Suspended operations indefinitely. MRO still operational. Brand was revived during 2023.
Deruluft	Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Template:Flagicon/Template:Flagicon	Joint German-Soviet airline.
West Australian Airways	Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Template:Flagicon	Became part of Australian National Airways.
Aeromarine West Indies Airways	Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Template:Flagicon	Services started 1 November 1920; first U.S. international air service
Junkers Luftverkehr	Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Template:Flagicon	A division of the aircraft manufacturer Junkers; became a separate company in 1924; merged into Deutsche Luft Hansa in 1926; joint-ventures with airlines in Austria, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Hungary, Latvia, Norway, Poland, Sweden, Switzerland
Beijing-Han Airlines	March 29, 1922	March 31, 1922	Template:Flagicon	Founded by warlord Cao Kun with a single Handley Page aircraft, likely a modified HP O/400; fatally crashed in Beijing 3 days later.
Aerolloyd	Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Template:Flagicon	Name changed to Aerolot in 1925; merged with other privately owned airlines in Poland formed LOT Polish Airlines.
Latvijas gaisa satiksme AS	July 31, 1922	1928	Template:Flagicon	Operated in 1923-1926. With hub in Spilve airport, Riga it served Tallinn-Riga-Kaunas (for some time-Klaipėda)-Koenigsberg route in cooperation with Junkers Luftverkehr AG and Aeronaut. Went bankrupt in 1926, liquidated in 1928.
Malert	Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Template:Flagicon	Fore-runner of Malev Hungarian Airlines.
Air Union	Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Template:Flagicon	Merged with four other airlines to form Air France.
Aeroflot	Template:Dts	Still in operation	Template:Flagicon/Template:Flagicon	Founded as Dobrolyot, name changed to Aeroflot in 1932. The sixth oldest airline in the world.
SABENA	Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Template:Flagicon	Succeeded by SN Brussels Airlines, which became Brussels Airlines. MRO still operational.
British Marine Air Navigation Co Ltd	Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Template:Flagicon	Merged with three other airlines to form Imperial Airways.
Czech Airlines	Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Template:Flagicon/Template:Flagicon	Founded as Czechoslovak State Airlines, name changed to Czech Airlines in 1995.
Finnair	Template:Dts	Still in operation	Template:Flagicon	Founded as Aero O/Y, name changed to Finnair in 1968.
Florida Airways	Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Template:Flagicon
Ukrpovitroshliakh	Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Template:Flagicon	Merged with Zakavia and Deruluft to form Dobrolyot, forerunner of Aeroflot.
Zakavia	Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Template:Flagicon	Merged with Ukrvozdukhput and Deruluft to form Dobrolyot, forerunner of Aeroflot.
Condor Syndikat	Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Template:Flagicon/Template:Flagicon	German-based Brazilian airline; absorbed into Deutsche Luft Hansa
AB Aerotransport	Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Template:Flagicon	Formed SAS.
Tajik Air	Template:Dts	Still in operation	Template:Flagicon/Template:Flagicon	Founded as a division of Aeroflot in Tajik ASSR, became independent in 1991.
Imperial Airways	Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Template:Flagicon	Amalgamated to form British Overseas Airways Corporation - itself merged to found British Airways.
Slov-Air	Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Template:Flagicon/Template:Flagicon	Founded as a department of Bata Shoes; name changed to Svitlet in 1948, to Agrolet in 1950 (became part of CSA, became independent in 1955), and to Slov-Air in 1969.
Aero	Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Template:Flagicon	Merged with Aerolot formed LOT Polish Airlines.
Ryan Airline Company	Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Template:Flagicon	Name changed to B. F. Mahoney Aircraft Corporation.
Delta Air Lines	Template:Dts	Still in operation	Template:Flagicon	Founded as Huff Daland Dusters for crop dusting, renamed 'Delta Air Service' in 1928, operated scheduled services from 1928 to 1930 and since 1934.
National Air Transport	Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Template:Flagicon	Became part of United Airlines following Air Mail Act of 1934.
Lloyd Aéreo Boliviano	Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Template:Flagicon	Former flag carrier of Bolivia; replaced by Boliviana de Aviación.
Unión Aérea Española	Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Template:Flagicon	Merged with Concesionaria de Líneas Aéreas Subvencionadas following Wall Street Crash of 1929.
Ford Air Transport Service	Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Template:Flagicon	The world's first regularly-scheduled commercial cargo airline.
Società Anonima Navigazione Aerea	Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Template:Flagicon	Merged with three other airlines to form Ala Littoria.
Western Airlines	Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Template:Flagicon	Founded as Western Air Express; merged with Transcontinental Air Transport to form Transcontinental & Western Air in 1930; severed from T & WA again in 1934; named changed to General Air Lines and back to Western Air Express in 1934, and to Western Airlines in 1941; merged with Delta Air Lines in 1987. Los Angeles-San Diego Air Line started service in 1925 with Ryan modified Davis-Douglas Cloudster.
Pacific Air Transport	Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Template:Flagicon	Merged into Boeing Air Transport, but continued to operate as a separate division until 1934.
Deutsche Luft Hansa	Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Template:Flagicon/Template:Flagicon	Name styles as Deutsche Lufthansa from 1933. Operations suspended following the German defeat in World War II. There is no legal connection to Lufthansa, which was founded in 1953.
Western Canadian Airways	Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Template:Flagicon	Amalgamated with several Eastern Canadian carriers forming Canadian Airways.
Varney Air Lines	Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Template:Flagicon	Merged with three other airlines to form United Airlines following the Air Mail scandal in 1933 and the Air Mail Act of 1934. In 1934 Varney Speed Lines was established becoming Continental Airlines in 1936 when Robert Six took over control.
American Airlines	Template:Dts	Still in operation	Template:Flagicon
Eastern Air Lines	Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Template:Flagicon	Started Operations in 1926 as Pitcairn Aviation. Until 1930 changed to "Eastern Air Transport" then Eastern Air Lines until 1991. Re-established in 2015 until 2017. Brand relaunched again in 2018.
Northwest Airlines	Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Template:Flagicon	Merged with Delta Air Lines.
Colonial Air Transport	Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Template:Flagicon	Formed American Airlines.
Pan American World Airways	Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Template:Flagicon	Founded by Juan T. Trippe and began operations in 1927 as Pan American Airways (PAA). Former de facto flag carrier of United States. Bankrupted in 1991 due to: high fuel prices because of the first Gulf War and 1973 oil crisis; a series of hijackings; no US network until the 1980s; the Lockerbie bombing of flight 103.
Varig	Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Template:Flagicon	New airline formed with the same name in 2006 and eventually sold to Gol Transportes Aéreos.
Air Serbia	Template:Dts	Still in operation	Template:Flagicon/Template:Flagicon/ Template:Flagicon/Template:Flagicon	Formed as Aeroput in 1927, then re-formed as JAT - Jugoslovenski aerotransport in 1947, rebranded as Jat Airways in 2003, and then as Air Serbia in 2013.
Iberia	Template:Dts	Still in operation	Template:Flagicon	Merged with British Airways to form International Airlines Group (IAG) in January 2011 and remains in operation as a subsidiary company.
Maddux Air Lines	Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Template:Flagicon	Merged with TAT to form TAT-Maddux Air Lines, itself merged to form T & WA.
Grand Canyon Airlines	Template:Dts	Still in operation	Template:Flagicon	Founded as Scenic Airways; name changed to Grand Canyon Airlines in 1930.
Bunavad	Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Template:Flagicon	First national airline of Bulgaria.
Cruzeiro do Sul	Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Template:Flagicon	Founded as Syndicato Condor; name changed to Cruzeiro do Sul in 1943; merged with Varig in 1993.
Standard Air Lines	Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Template:Flagicon	Sold off to Western Air Express, itself merged to form T & WA.
National Parks Airways	Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Template:Flagicon	Bought out by Western Air Express.
Wien Air Alaska	Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Template:Flagicon	First airline in Alaska.
MacRobertson Miller Airlines	Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Template:Flagicon	Absorbed into Ansett.
Paul R. Braniff, Inc.	Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Template:Flagicon	First Braniff brothers airline entity that operated scheduled service between Oklahoma City and Tulsa, Oklahoma. Forerunner of Braniff Airways and then became Braniff Air Lines, Inc., and later Braniff Airways, Inc. in November 1930.
KNILM	Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Template:Flagicon/Template:Flagicon	First operated as KNILM. KNILM dissolved and transferred to KLM Interinsulair Bedrijf (today Garuda Indonesia)
Universal Air Lines	Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Template:Flagicon	Merged with other companies to form American Airlines.
ETA	Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Template:Flagicon	Ceased operations due to administrative difficulties.
British Columbia Airways	Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Template:Flagicon	Had a single Ford 4-AT Trimotor which crashed.
Faucett Perú	Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Template:Flagicon
Japan Air Transport	Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Template:Flagicon	Merged into Imperial Japanese Airways.
Mid-Continent Airlines	Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Template:Flagicon	Founded as Hanford's Tri-State Airlines; name changed to Mid-Continent Airlines in 1938; merged into Braniff International Airways in 1952.
Transcontinental Air Transport	Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Template:Flagicon	Merged with Western Air Express to form Transcontinental & Western Air (T & WA) in 1930; renamed Trans World Airlines (TWA) in 1950; merged into American Airlines in 2001.
LOT Polish Airlines	Template:Dts	Still in operation	Template:Flagicon	Polskie Linie Lotnicze LOT created by the Polish government; they have since absorbed airlines Aerolot (1922) and Aero (1925).
Hawaiian Airlines	Template:Dts	Still in operation	Template:Flagicon	Incorporated January 30, 1929 as Inter-Island Airways. Began service October 6, 1929. Name changed to Hawaiian Airlines October 1, 1941. Since September 18, 2024, Hawaiian Airlines still operates as a subsidiary of Alaska Air Group.
LATAM Chile	Template:Dts	Still in operation	Template:Flagicon	Began as Línea Aeropostal Santiago-Arica. It took the name Línea Aérea Nacional de Chile (LAN Chile) in 1932. In September 1989, the Chilean government privatized the carrier. LAN Chile became LAN Airlines in 2004 but in 2010, LAN merged with TAM Airlines and became LATAM Airlines. LAN Airlines still operates under the name LATAM Chile as a subsidiary of LATAM Airlines Group.
CLASSA – Concesionaria de Líneas Aéreas Subvencionadas	Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Template:Flagicon	Ceased operations due to the Spanish Civil War.
Aeropostal	Template:Dts	Still in operation	Template:Flagicon	Founded as Linea Aeropostal Venezolana LAV, name changed to Aeropostal Alas de Venezuela in 1997 after privatization.
Pan American-Grace Airways	Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Template:Flagicon	Joint venture between Pan American Airways and W.R. GraceTemplate:Efn; merged into Braniff in 1969.
Cubana de Aviación	Template:Dts	Still in operation	Template:Flagicon
Panair do Brasil	Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Template:Flagicon	Founded as Nyrba do Brasil. Name changed to Panair do Brasil in 1930. Bankruptcy forced by the Brazilian Militar Dictatorship Government.
Wiggins Airways	Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Template:Flagicon	Purchased by Ameriflight in 2014, it was formally made a division of Ameriflight on June 1st 2024.
Union Airways	Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Template:Flagicon	First South African airline; taken over by the government and renamed South African Airways.
Australian National Airways	Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Template:Flagicon
Trans World Airlines	Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Template:Flagicon	Acquired by American Airlines.
China National Aviation Corporation	Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Template:Flagicon/Template:Flagicon	Merged with CATC to form CAAC Airlines.
Aviaarktika	Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Template:Flagicon	Absorbed into Aeroflot.
Braniff International Airways	Template:Dts	Template:Dts/Template:Dts	Template:Flagicon
New England & Western Air Transportation Co.	Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Template:Flagicon
South West African Airways	Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Template:Flagicon	First commercial air service in South West Africa (Namibia)

For airlines founded after 1930 see Category: Airlines by year of establishment