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The following is a list of government-owned airlines. The practice of government ownership of airlines, particularly flag carrier airlines, occurs in many countries. The following is a list of both airlines currently owned by a government, and former government-owned airlines.
This is a list of airlines which were formerly government owned. They have since been privatized or have ceased operations.
 |
| Airline | Country | End of government ownership | Fate |
|---|---|---|---|
| Adria Airways |  Slovenia | 2019 | Bankrupt |
| Aer Lingus |  Ireland | 2015 | Ryanair & Government held shares sold to IAG |
| Albanian Airlines |  Albania | 1995 | |
| Austrian Airlines |  Austria | 2009 | |
| Armenian Airlines |  Armenia | 2003 | |
| Aero Caribbean |  Cuba | 2015 | Merged into Cubana [36] |
| Aeroflot-Cargo |  Russian Federation | 2010 | Merged with Aeroflot |
| Aeroméxico |  Mexico | 2007 | Privatized |
| Aerotaxi | Cuba | 2009 | Ceased operations |
| Air Bissau |  Guinea-Bissau | 1998 | Liquidated [37] |
| Air Burundi |  Burundi | 2009 | Ceased operations [38] |
| Air Gabon |  Gabon | 2006 | Bankrupt |
| Air Guinée |  Guinea | 1992 | Privatized 1992, dissolved 2002 |
| Air India |  India | 2021 | Privatized |
| Air Ivoire |  Ivory Coast | 2011 | Ceased operations |
| Air Jamaica |  Jamaica | 2011 | Sold to Caribbean Airlines 2011, ceased operations 2015 |
| Air Liberia |  Liberia | 1990 | Ceased trading |
| Air Malawi |  Malawi | 2013 | Voluntary liquidation |
| Air Mali (1960-89) |  Mali | 1989 | Shut down [39] |
| Air Niger |  Niger | 1993 | Ceased operations [40] |
| Air Rwanda |  Rwanda | 2002 | Taken over by and rebranded to RwandAir |
| Air Sénégal International |  Senegal | 2009 | Operations suspended [41] |
| Air Vanuatu |  Vanuatu | 2024 | Ceased trading [42] |
| Air Zaïre |  Zaire | 1995 | Bankrupt [43] |
| Alitalia |  Italy | 2021 | Bankrupt and rebranded to ITA Airways [44] |
| Berkut Air |  Kazakhstan | 2011 | Rebranded |
| British Airways |  United Kingdom | 1987 | Privatised [45] |
| Cabo Verde Airlines |  Cabo Verde | 2019 | Privatized [46] |
| Cameroon Airlines |  Cameroon | 2008 | Ceased operations |
| Cyprus Airways (1947–2015) |  Cyprus | 2015 | Bankruptcy |
| Czech Airlines |  Czech Republic | 2024 | Shut down |
| Donavia | Russia | 2016 | Merged with Rossiya Airlines |
| Ecuato Guineana |  Equatorial Guinea | ~ 2007 | Unknown |
| Eurocypria Airlines | Cyprus | 2010 | Bankruptcy [47] |
| Gambia International Airlines |  Gambia | 2007 | Shut down |
| Ghana Airways |  Ghana | 2004 | Ceased operations |
| Guine Bissau Airlines | Guinea Bissau | 2003 | |
| Iberia (airline) |  Spain | 2001 | Privatized |
| Indian Airlines | India | 2011 | Ceased operations |
| Japan Airlines |  Japan | 1987 | Privatized [48] |
| LAN Chile |  Chile | 1994 | Privatized |
| Lina Congo |  Republic of Congo | 2002 | Dissolved |
| Lufthansa |  Germany | 1994 | Privatized [49] |
| Merpati Nusantara Airlines |  Indonesia | 2014 | Ceased operations |
| Norfolk Air |  /  Norfolk Island, Australia | 2011 | Ceased operations [50] |
| NorOntair |  /  Ontario, Canada | 1996 | Ceased operations [51] |
| Olympic Airlines |  Greece | 2009 | Shut down |
| Qantas | Australia | 1992 | Privatized [52] |
| Royal Swazi National Airways |  Eswatini | 1999 | Ceased operations |
| Sierra National Airlines |  Sierra Leone | 2004 | Ceased operations [53] |
| Scandinavian Airlines (SAS) |  Denmark  Sweden  Norway | 2001 | Since 2001, +50% stocks are publicly traded. The Norwegian government confirmed it sold its stake in 2018. [54] In 2024, the Norwegian government once again received a stake, when SAS used stocks to repay part of a 2020 loan. [55] Government stakes remain: 14.24% (Danish government) [56] |
| South Africa Express |  South Africa | 2020 | Liquidated [57] |
| South African Airways | South Africa | 2022 | Privatized[ citation needed ] |
| Kenya Airways |  Kenya | 1996 | Government owns minority stake (48.9%) [58] |
| TAME |  Ecuador | 2020 | Liquidated [59] |
| TANS Perú |  Peru | 2006 | Shut down [60] |
| Toumaï Air Tchad |  Chad | 2012 | Ceased operations [61] |
| Turkish Airlines |  Turkey | 2006 | Privatized [62] |
| Uganda Airlines (1976-2001) |  Uganda | 2001 | Liquidated [63] |
| Ukraine International Airlines |  Ukraine | 2011 | Privatized |
| Ukrainian Cargo Airways | Ukraine | 2009 | Shut down [64] |
| Varig |  Brazil | 1999 | |
| Royal Tongan Airlines |  Tonga | 2004 | |
| Zambia Airways |  Zambia | 1994 | Ceased operations [65] |
Kenya Airways Ltd., more commonly known as Kenya Airways, is the flag carrier airline of Kenya. The company was founded in 1977, after the dissolution of East African Airways. Its head office is located in Embakasi, Nairobi, with its hub at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport.
Scandinavian Airlines, stylized as SAS, is the national airline of Denmark, Norway, and Sweden. Short for Scandinavian Airlines System and legally referred to as Scandinavian Airlines System Denmark-Norway-Sweden, SAS is part of SAS Group and is headquartered in Solna, Sweden.
Air Baltic, legally incorporated as AS Air Baltic Corporation, is the flag carrier of Latvia, with its head office on the grounds of Riga International Airport in Mārupe municipality near Riga. Its main hub is Riga, and it operates bases in Tallinn, Vilnius, Tampere and a seasonal base in Las Palmas launched in 2023. It is 80% owned by the government of Latvia. It operates flights only on Airbus Models. It operates a frequent-flyer program and a free meal menu offering food and drinks for purchase.
Venice Marco Polo Airport is the international airport of Venice, Italy. It is located on the mainland near the village of Tessera, a frazione of the comune of Venice located about 4.1 nautical miles east of Mestre and around the same distance north of Venice proper. Due to the importance of Venice as a leisure destination, it features flights to many European metropolitan areas as well as some partly seasonal long-haul routes to the United States, Canada, South Korea and the Middle East. The airport handled 11,184,608 passengers in 2018, making it the fourth-busiest airport in Italy. The airport is named after Marco Polo and serves as a base for Volotea, Ryanair, Wizz Air and easyJet.
Star Alliance is an airline alliance headquartered in Frankfurt, Germany. Founded on 14 May 1997, it was the world's first global airline alliance. As of April 2024, it is also the world's largest airline alliance by market share, holding 17.4%, compared to 13.7% for SkyTeam and 11.9% for Oneworld.
Thai Airways International plc is the flag carrier airline of Thailand. Formed in 1961 as a joint venture between SAS and Thai Airways Company, the airline has its corporate headquarters in Vibhavadi Rangsit Road, Chatuchak district, Bangkok, and primarily operates from Suvarnabhumi Airport. THAI is a founding member of the Star Alliance. The airline is the second-largest shareholder of the low-cost carrier Nok Air with a 8.91 per cent stake (2021), and it launched a regional carrier under the name Thai Smile in the middle of 2012 using new Airbus A320 aircraft. In 2023, it was announced that Thai Smile would be merged back into Thai Airways.
SkyTeam is one of the world's three major airline alliances. Founded in June 2000, SkyTeam was the last of the three alliances to be formed, after Star Alliance and Oneworld. Its annual passenger count is 624 million customers (2024), the second largest of the three major alliances. As of October 2024, SkyTeam consists of 19 active carriers; it also operates a cargo alliance named SkyTeam Cargo, which partners with ten carriers, all SkyTeam members. Its centralised management team, SkyTeam Central, is based in Amstelveen, Netherlands.
Air France–KLM S.A., also known as Air France–KLM Group, is a French-Dutch multinational airline holding company with its headquarters in the rue du Cirque, Paris, France. The group’s three major brands are Air France, KLM and Transavia. Air France-KLM is the result of the merger in 2004 between Air France and KLM. Both Air France and KLM are members of the SkyTeam airline alliance. The group's main hubs are Paris–Charles de Gaulle Airport, Paris Orly Airport and Amsterdam Airport Schiphol. Air France-KLM Airlines transported 83 million passengers in 2022.
A flag carrier is a transport company, such as an airline or shipping company, that, being locally registered in a given sovereign state, enjoys preferential rights or privileges accorded by that government for international operations.
Air Europa Líneas Aéreas, S.A.U., branded as Air Europa, is the third-largest Spanish airline after Iberia and Vueling. The airline is headquartered in Llucmajor, Mallorca, Spain; it has its main hub at Adolfo Suárez Madrid–Barajas Airport with focus city operations at Palma de Mallorca Airport and Tenerife North Airport. Air Europa flies to over 44 destinations in Spain, the rest of Europe, South America, North America, the Caribbean, Morocco and Tunisia. Since September 2007, Air Europa has been member of the SkyTeam alliance.
Etihad Airways is the national airline of the United Arab Emirates. Its head office is in Khalifa City, Abu Dhabi, near Zayed International Airport. The airline commenced operations in November 2003, and is the second-largest airline in the UAE after Emirates.
Estonian Air was the flag carrier airline of Estonia between 1991 and 2015. Headquartered in Tallinn it operated scheduled services from Tallinn Airport. Prior to its closure, the airline flew from Tallinn to 11 destinations in Europe.
Soekarno–Hatta International Airport, abbreviated SHIA or Soetta, formerly legally called Jakarta Cengkareng Airport, is the primary airport serving the Jakarta metropolitan area on the island of Java in Indonesia. Named after the first president and vice-president of Indonesia, Sukarno (1901–1970) and Mohammad Hatta (1902–1980), the airport is located at Benda, Tangerang and Cengkareng, West Jakarta, which is about 20 km northwest of Central Jakarta. Together with Halim Perdanakusuma International Airport, they served over 80 million passengers in 2019.
SAS AB, trading as SAS Group, is a Swedish airline holding company headquartered in Solna Municipality, Sweden. It is the owner of the airlines Scandinavian Airlines, SAS Link, and SAS Connect.
Airlink is a regional airline based in Johannesburg, South Africa. Its main business is to provide services between smaller, under-served towns and larger hub airports. It has since expanded to offer flights on larger, mainline routes. The airline has a network of more than 60 routes to over 45 destinations in Southern Africa. In January 2021, it became the second-largest carrier within Africa by number of flights, and third-largest by number of seats.
Bordeaux–Mérignac Airport is an international airport of Bordeaux, in southwestern France. It is situated in the commune of Mérignac, 12 km (7.5 mi) west of Bordeaux, within the département of the Gironde. It mainly features flights to metropolitan and leisure destinations in Europe, Northern Africa, and Canada, and serves as a base for easyJet and Volotea.
Air France, stylised as AIRFRANCE, is the flag carrier of France headquartered in Tremblay-en-France. It is a subsidiary of the Air France-KLM Group and a founding member of the SkyTeam airline alliance. As of 2013, Air France served 29 destinations in France and operates worldwide scheduled passenger and cargo services to 201 destinations in 78 countries and also carried 46,803,000 passengers in 2019. The airline's global hub is at Charles de Gaulle Airport, with Orly Airport as the primary domestic hub. Air France's corporate headquarters, previously in Montparnasse, Paris, are located at the Roissypôle complex on the grounds of Charles de Gaulle Airport, north of Paris.
Alitalia - Società Aerea Italiana S.p.A., operating as Alitalia, was an Italian airline which was once the flag carrier and largest airline of Italy. The company had its head office in Fiumicino, in the Metropolitan City of Rome Capital. The airline was owned by the Government of Italy as a nationalized business from its founding in 1946 until it was privatized in 2009. However, it struggled with profitability whilst operating as a private company, including failed negotiations to sell to other private parties. The airline entered extraordinary administration in 2017 following many years of financial losses. The Italian government eventually took back ownership of the airline in March 2020.
Nordic Regional Airlines Oy is a Finnish regional airline based on the grounds of Helsinki Airport. Norra is owned as a joint venture by Finnair, Finland's flag carrier, and Danish Air Transport.
Italia Trasporto Aereo S.p.A., doing business as ITA Airways, is the flag carrier airline of Italy. It is owned by the government of Italy via the Ministry of Economy and Finance and was founded in 2020 as bankrupt Alitalia's successor. The airline flies to over 70 scheduled domestic, European, and intercontinental destinations. ITA is a member of the SkyTeam airline alliance. Its main hub is Rome Fiumicino Airport near Rome and a focus city is Linate Airport near Milan. ITA Airways will leave SkyTeam and join Star Alliance as part of the process of its acquisition by Lufthansa Group.
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