Swissair

Swissair (stylised in all lowercase) was the flag carrier of Switzerland between its founding in 1931 and bankruptcy in 2002. Swissair was formed from a merger between Belair and Ad Astra Aero. For most of its 71 years, it was one of the major international airlines and known as the "Flying Bank" due to its financial stability, causing it to be regarded as a Swiss national symbol and icon. It was headquartered at Zurich Airport in Kloten. In 1997, the Swissair Group was renamed SAirGroup (although it was again renamed Swissair Group in 2001), with four subdivisions: SAirLines (to which Swissair, regional subsidiary Crossair, leisure subsidiary Balair, and leasing subsidiary FlightLease belonged), SAirServices, SAirLogistics, and SAirRelations. Due to its so-called "Hunter Strategy" of expanding its market by acquiring smaller airlines, Swissair was suffering from over-expansion by the late 1990s. The crash of Swissair Flight 111 in September 1998 killed all 229 people on board and generated a costly lawsuit and negative publicity for the airline. After the economic downturn following the September 11 attacks, Swissair's assets dramatically lost value, grounding the already-troubled airline in October 2001. The Swiss federal government later revived and sustained the airline until 31 March 2002. The final Swissair flight landed in Zurich from São Paulo on 1 April 2002. On 1 April 2002, a former regional subsidiary, Crossair, renamed itself Swiss International Air Lines and took over most of Swissair's routes, planes, and staff. Swiss International Air Lines was taken over by the German airline Lufthansa in 2005. Swissair's holding company SAirGroup AG, completed its liquidation proceedings, which lasted over two decades, in 2024.