World's oldest airline?

[PK246]

Was it Lufthansa or KLM? Or was it some other airline?

Thanks for replies.

[FlyingTexan]

I believe KLM is the oldest airline continuously operating under one name. BTW – does anyone know what KLM stands for and what was the ‘Flying Dutchman’? Just a slogan or what?

[Jorge]

KLM began in 1919, Lufthansa was formed in 1926, called Deutsche Luft Hansa. Delta Airlines began Operation in 1928, making it the oldest in the United States. Air France began in 1933.

<FONT COLOR="black" SIZE="1">[ December 04, 2002 05:20 PM: Message edited 1 time, lastly by Jorge ]</font>

[Avianca 757]

KLM = Koninklijke Luchtvaart Maatschappij

BTW, I thought the first US Airline was PanAm

The Colombian Airline before KLM was CCNA which means Compañía Colombiana de Navegación Aérea (Colombian Company for Aereal Navigation)


I don't really know the Flying Dutchman, but I guess it's something from the Pirates age

<FONT COLOR="black" SIZE="1">[ December 04, 2002 02:56 PM: Message edited 1 time, lastly by Avianca 757 ]</font>

[Jorge]

Pan Am started in 1927, one year before Delta, but Delta is still around, and the current Pan Am has nothing to do with the original Pan Am.

<FONT COLOR="black" SIZE="1">[ December 04, 2002 05:00 PM: Message edited 1 time, lastly by Jorge ]</font>

[tommyalf]

Greetings:

As for U.S airlines I beleive TWA was the oldest U.S airline. They turned 75 back in 2000. Although they were known first as Western Air Express back in 1925 then after a merger with Transcontinental Air Transport they became TWA, Trancontinental Western Airlines "TWA". It was under Howard Huges TWA became Trans World Airlines. I think I went alittle offtopic1.gif

[Avianca 757]

First was KLM

Then was SCADTA (Sociedad Colombo-Alemana de Transporte Aereo) which would split into actual Avianca and Lufthansa.

There were several other airlines before KLM, but no one survived, so KLM is the oldest now, it was funded few days before SCADTA.

There was some airline here in Colombia before KLM, which have Goliath planes, but there was later discovered that the Salmson engines which the plane had were a hoax and very very dangerous, that and come other circumstances made that airline disappear.

So I know there were some in Europe, but don't know their history.

[Air_Nuno]

KLM no douts. My dad told me that( I think) images/smiles/icon_rolleyes.gif
Regards

[MerchantVenturer]

KLM is the oldest continually operating airline in the world.

In World War II it operated from the old Whitchurch Airport, Bristol, England, and was responsible for keeping the wartime airlink going between Britain and neutral Portugal.

It operated DC 3s and brought the great and the good from and to England/Portugal. Although obviously kept secret at the time people such as Winston Churchill, President Roosevelt's wife and General Eisenhower used the Bristol-Lisbon-Bristol shuttle. There is no doubt that it was used to transport agents/spies into Portugal from where they could also access neutral but pro-Axis Spain.

The Germans seemed to tolerate this air shuttle (perhaps it seved their purposes as well). The only exception was when they shot down a returning DC 3 over the Bay of Biscay, and amongst the passengers killed was the British film star, Leslie Howard, who appeared in the classic film 'Gone With The Wind' (he also starred in an earlier film as RJ Mitchell, the designer of the Spitfire).

Various reasons have been put forward for this particular 'plane being attacked, from the Germans believing Churchill was on board to the fact that Leslie Howard may have been acting for the British Government in the Iberian Peninsula.

<FONT COLOR="black" SIZE="1">[ December 05, 2002 11:34 AM: Message edited 1 time, lastly by MerchantVenturer ]</font>

[Aeronautics]

KLM was founded on 7 Oktober 1919 under the name it is still flying (Koninklijke luchtvaart maatschappy = royal airline).

About the flying dutchman I don't know exactly where it comes from. KLM has this nickname from almost the beginning.
There is also a fairy-tale, about a Dutch ship that was flying. Exactly I don't know the story, but that ship was also called flying dutchman (de vliegende hollander)

[AlaskaJet]

In america Panam was the first and World wide KLM
by the way interesting topic.

[FlyingTexan]

Thank you, Aeronautics!

[PK246]

Thanks very much Aeronautics for the info on 'Flying Dutchman' name for KLM.

What was the nature of these early KLM flights? I mean were these flights scheduled with proper fares? To which airports KLM operated these flights? This also means that these airports were world's first used for scheduled airline flights!! Did these first flights also have in-flight service? Was Swissair world's first airline to introduce female flight attendants on its flights?

[olh]

Wideroe's Airline in Norway ( WIF / http://www.wideroe.no ) ), is a good contender for being "old". Borne in 1934, in continues operation under the same name for 68 years and going stronger every day. Just over 300 departures per 21 hours now, and a uniform fleet of Dash-8's. And its main base in the Arctic! clap.gif heart.gif

[MerchantVenturer]

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by Aeronautics:
KLM was founded on 7 Oktober 1919 under the name it is still flying (Koninklijke luchtvaart maatschappy = royal airline).

About the flying dutchman I don't know exactly where it comes from. KLM has this nickname from almost the beginning.
There is also a fairy-tale, about a Dutch ship that was flying. Exactly I don't know the story, but that ship was also called flying dutchman (de vliegende hollander)<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

The legend of The Flying Dutchman is said to have started in 1641 when a Dutch ship sank off the coast of the Cape of Good Hope.

Captain van der Decken was pleased. The trip to the Far East had been highly successful and at last, they were on their way home to Holland. As the ship approached the tip of Africa, the captain thought that he should make a suggestion to the Dutch East India Company (his employers) to start a settlement at the Cape on the tip of Africa, thereby providing a welcome respite to ships at sea.

He was so deep in thought that he failed to notice the dark clouds looming and only when he heard the lookout scream out in terror, did he realise that they had sailed straight into a fierce storm. The captain and his crew battled for hours to get out of the storm and at one stage it looked like they would make it. Then they heard a sickening crunch - the ship had hit treacherous rocks and began to sink. As the ship plunged downwards, Captain van der Decken knew that death was approaching. He was not ready to die and screamed out a curse: "I WILL round this Cape even if I have to keep sailing until doomsday!"

So, even today whenever a storm brews off the Cape of Good Hope, if you look into the eye of the storm, you will be able to see the ship and it's captain - The Flying Dutchman. Don't look too carefully, for the old folk claim that whoever sights the ship will die a terrible death.

Many people have claimed to have seen The Flying Dutchman, including the crew of a German submarine boat during World War II and holidaymakers.

On 11 July 1881, the Royal Navy ship, the Bacchante was rounding the tip of Africa, when they were confronted with the sight of The Flying Dutchman. The midshipman, a prince who later became King George V, recorded that the lookout man and the officer of the watch had seen the Flying Dutchman and he used these words to describe the ship:

"A strange red light as of a phantom ship all aglow, in the midst of which light the mast, spars and sails of a brig 200 yards distant stood out in strong relief."

It's pity that the lookout saw the Flying Dutchman, for soon after on the same trip, he accidentally fell from a mast and died. Fortunately for the English royal family, the young midshipman survived the curse.

[danica_d]

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by PK246:
Was Swissair world's first airline to introduce female flight attendants on its flights?<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

No, but they were the first in Europe (in 1933). Boeing Air Transport, United's predecessor introduced first stewardesses in 1930.

[PIAA310]

How about PIA(Pakistan International Airline)???

[chrisburns]

KLM began in 1919, Lufthansa was formed in 1926, called Deutsche Luft Hansa. Delta Airlines began Operation in 1928, making it the oldest in the United States. Air France began in 1933.

<FONT COLOR="black" SIZE="1">[ December 04, 2002 05:20 PM: Message edited 1 time, lastly by Jorge ]</font>

Northwest started in 1926 and is currently the oldest US airline operating under the same name

[MauwieAir]

chris burns wrote: Jorge wrote:
KLM began in 1919, Lufthansa was formed in 1926, called Deutsche Luft Hansa. Delta Airlines began Operation in 1928, making it the oldest in the United States. Air France began in 1933.

[ December 04, 2002 05:20 PM: Message edited 1 time, lastly by Jorge ]


Northwest started in 1926 and is currently the oldest US airline operating under the same name




man this forum isnt only about youre favourit airline, 95% of youre reply's goes about NW...

[Airigami]

The oldest continuously operating airlines:
1. KLM
2. Qantas
3. *I'm blanking - can someone else remember?*
4. Mexicana (I think)

I quickly skim read the previous threads, so excuse me if it's already been mentioned, but KLM's WWII ops were also continued by a network in the Netherlands Antilles.

[Airigami]

My bad... OK, here are the years:

1. KLM founded 1919
2. Avianca founded 1919
3. Qantas founded 1920
4. Mexicana founded 1921

[chrisburns]

chris burns wrote: Jorge wrote:
KLM began in 1919, Lufthansa was formed in 1926, called Deutsche Luft Hansa. Delta Airlines began Operation in 1928, making it the oldest in the United States. Air France began in 1933.

[ December 04, 2002 05:20 PM: Message edited 1 time, lastly by Jorge ]


Northwest started in 1926 and is currently the oldest US airline operating under the same name




man this forum isnt only about youre favourit airline, 95% of youre reply's goes about NW...

Man I am just correcting his error on the Oldest US Airline :roll:

[DAL767-400ER]

Delta started ops in 1929, not 1928. they were founded in 1924, two years ahead of NW :twisted: .

[SWA733Captain]

Damn is this topic old! I didn't know whese were kept archived this long.

[Flying Dutchman]

What was the nature of these early KLM flights? I mean were these flights scheduled with proper fares? To which airports KLM operated these flights?

KLM's first scheduled flight, was on May 17, 1920, connected Amsterdam and London. after that, KLM operated its first intercontinental flight to Indonesia, Batavia, then still the Dutch East Indies, in October 1924.
And KLM was the first continental European airline to open transatlantic services to the USA.

[DAL767-400ER]

Damn is this topic old! I didn't know whese were kept archived this long.
Judging from the ever growing number of pages, all topics will probably stay around forever. Hard to believe: 113 pages with over 3900 opics, of which probably 100 are double posts ad a further 200 (or more) are about the same topic (NW DC9s for example :roll: ). Maybe the moderators should start deleting threads that are over 9 months or so old. Would definitely free up space.

[SWA733Captain]

Maybe the moderators should start deleting threads that are over 9 months or so old. Would definitely free up space.

Mabye people should just search before posting, that would clear up quite a bit of space as well :roll: :lol:

[ojjunior]

VARIG

Since May 1927

:love:

[uy707]

My bad... OK, here are the years:

1. KLM founded 1919
2. Avianca founded 1919
3. Qantas founded 1920
4. Mexicana founded 1921

Except for Avianca, everybody up there has been trading with the same name since day 1. :) KLM is the oldest by a few months.
This can conclude the topic. :smilewin:
Regards
Alain