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| Founded | 16 July 1930 (as Transcontinental & Western Air) | ||||||
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| Ceased operations | 1 December 2001 (merged with American Airlines)[1] | ||||||
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| Frequent-flyer program | Aviators | ||||||
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| Website | twa.com at the Wayback Machine (archived 2001-10-25)) | ||||||
Trans World Airlines (TWA) was a major airline in the United States that operated from 1930 until it was acquired by American Airlines in 2001. It was formed as Transcontinental & Western Air to operate a route from New York City to Los Angeles via St. Louis, Kansas City, and other stops, with Ford Trimotors. With American, United, and Eastern, it was one of the "Big Four" domestic airlines in the United States formed by the Spoils Conference of 1930.[2]
Howard Hughes acquired control of TWA in 1939, and after World War II led the expansion of the airline to serve Europe, the Middle East, and Asia, making TWA a second unofficial flag carrier of the United States after Pan Am.[3][4] Hughes gave up control in the 1960s, and the new management of TWA acquired Hilton International and Century 21 in an attempt to diversify the company's business.
As the Airline Deregulation Act of 1978 led to a wave of airline failures, start-ups, and takeovers in the United States, TWA was spun off from its holding company in 1984. Carl Icahn acquired control of TWA and took the company private in a leveraged buyout in 1988. TWA became saddled with debt, sold its London routes, underwent Chapter 11 restructuring in 1992 and 1995, and was further stressed by the crash of TWA Flight 800 in 1996, which would become the third deadliest aviation accident in U.S. history.
TWA was headquartered at one time in Kansas City, Missouri, and planned to make Kansas City International Airport its main domestic and international hub, but abandoned this plan in the 1970s.[5] The airline later developed its largest hub at St. Louis Lambert International Airport. Its main transatlantic hub was the TWA Flight Center at John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York City, an architectural icon designed by Eero Saarinen, and completed in 1962.[6]
In January 2001, TWA filed for a third and final bankruptcy and was acquired by American Airlines. American laid off many former TWA employees in the wake of the September 11, 2001, attacks. TWA continued to exist as an LLC under American Airlines until July 1, 2003.[7] American Airlines closed the St. Louis hub in 2009.[8]
- ^ Acquisition article from ABC News retrieved 10-30-15
- ^ "The Rise of Airlines". Century of Flight. Archived from the original on 23 November 2018. Retrieved 25 April 2014.
- ^ Rigas Doganis (2006). The Airline Business. Psychology Press. ISBN 9780415346153. Retrieved 2013-08-18.
- ^ Barry Meier, "Ailing T.W.A. Still a Symbol, and So Perhaps a Target, Abroad", New York Times, August 25, 1996.
- ^ Hendricks, Mike (8 March 2014). "The why of KCI: A broken plan that many travelers still love". Kansas City Star. Retrieved 25 April 2014.
- ^ "JFK's Most Famous Terminal May Soon Be Transformed Into a Flashy Hotel". The Atlantic Cities. 20 September 2013. Archived from the original on 25 April 2014. Retrieved 25 April 2014.
- ^ "TWA Timeline". TWA Museum. 4 January 2018. Retrieved August 12, 2020.
- ^ Grant, Elaine (October 2005). "TWA – Death Of A Legend". St. Louis Magazine. Retrieved 25 April 2014.