11 JULY, 2023
Sushim Mukul
The Serbian flag carrier started as Aeroput and was rebranded as Air Serbia in 2013. With a small fleet of 22, the airline connects Serbia to Europe and a few destinations in Asia and the US.
Photo: Air Serbia on Twitter
Photo: American Airlines on Twitter
Formed by coming together of a few early airlines in the US, American now is one of the world's largest carriers with over 92 overseas destinations.
Photo: Travel with Soumit
Huff Daland Dusters transformed into Delta Air Service, operating scheduled flights since 1934, is now serving 240+ destinations as a legacy carrier.
Photo: instagram.com/telsek
Initially operating as a subsidiary of Aeroflot, Tajik Air became an independent airline in 1991, after the disintegration of the USSR. Now it is struggling to survive.
Photo: Finn Air
Finnair, formerly Aero O/Y, started in 1923 with mail and cargo flights. It expanded globally and became the first European airline to offer direct flights to China.
Photo: CzechAirlines on Twitter
Founded in 1923 by the Czechoslovak government, Czech Airlines became the third airline to operate jets. It currently operates with a greatly reduced fleet due to financial difficulties.
Photo: Aeroflot_World on Twitter
Founded in 1923 as Dobrolet, it grew to become the world's largest airline post-World War II. After USSR's collapse, it currently operates a small fleet, on international routes from Moscow.
Photo: Qantas on YouTube
Qantas in the 1920s started with biplanes and expanded to become a nationalised airline. Post-Covid, Qantas's Project Sunrise aims to capitalise on ultra-long-haul routes.
Photo: Unsplash
Avianca, founded in 1919 as SCADTA, emerged as a Colombian-German airline. Despite its historical significance, the airline's future is uncertain due to financial difficulties.
Photo: KLM on Twitter
KLM, founded in 1919, holds the title of the oldest operating airline under its original name. It was a pioneer in using Douglas and Boeing aircrafts. It is now part of the Air France-KLM group.