Air Australia is one airline that failed. Source: News Limited
The Flying Kangaroo tops the list for safety in 2014
THEY are the hugely powerful and glamorous airlines that soared into the hearts of the public only to be plunged into despair and grounded forever.
So what went so horribly wrong?
We take a look at five of the most famous cases of carriers that suffered devastating demises and find that financial woes and horrifying plane crashes were among the factors that had a hand in their undoing.
1. Ansett
Founded in 1935, Ansett was Australia's second-largest airline and ran for more than 65 years. It carried more than 14 million passengers a year and had an annual turnover of more than $3 billion by the time it was placed into administration in 2001.
Unfortunately, Ansett became the nation's most high-profile aviation failure, and one of the largest corporate collapses ever.
Miss World 1967 Madeleine Hartog-Bel walks out of an Ansett plane. Picture: Bob Nicol Source: News Limited
In fact, it was bleeding a massive $1.3 million a day, according to its parent company Air New Zealand. The airline's collapse left about 15,000 people out of work and out of pocket to the tune of $758 million in lost entitlements. Most were eventually paid back, but there were many dark days.
"The Ansett collapse produced enormous pain and hardship to thousands of Australian families," Mark Korda from administrators KordaMentha told the Herald Sun.
Elizabeth, the Queen Mother, arrives on an Ansett aeroplane circa 1958. Source: News Limited
KordaMentha stated that: "After a decade of commitment, we effectively completed the administration on 2 September, 2011 ... The final dividend paid to former Ansett employees achieved an overall average return of 96 cents in the dollar — a result that surpassed initial stakeholder expectations during the time of the collapse."
Ansett planes at Sydney Airport. Source: News Limited
It was such a desperate time that, in an effort to reimburse the workers, the Federal Government imposed a $10 "Ansett levy" on all plane tickets to raise money.
Tragically, at least 40 Ansett employees committed suicide following its demise, The Australian reported.
2. Air Australia
Unfortunately, Ansett isn't the only Australian airline to fold in a dramatic fashion. About 4000 passengers were left stranded in 2012 when Air Australia went bust seemingly out of the blue, suddenly grounding flights around its network.
It had pushed itself to the financial brink, literally running out of money to buy fuel.
Stranded Air Australia passengers slept with their luggage at Phuket airport. Source: AFP
The Brisbane-based carrier failed with debts of up to $90 million and was liquidated. Up until a few hours before administrators KordaMentha were appointed, tickets were still being sold online. The airline ended up making $36 million from about 100,000 tickets for future travel, which became worthless.
An Air Australia plane. Source: News Limited
Formerly known as Strategic Airlines, the carrier started domestic flights in 2009 before expanding to overseas destinations such as Bali.
3. Pan American World Airways (Pan Am)
One of the world's most famous airlines, Pan Am was the largest international air carrier in the US for nearly 70 years (1927-91). It was also one of the most innovative, and was a founding member of the global aviation authority, the International Air Transport Association (IATA).
It was a hugely popular airline, bringing glamour to the skies during the good old days of aviation. However, by the 1970s it struggled with major increases in worldwide fuel prices, declining travel, deregulation and an increasing number of competitors.
Then, there was a devastating plane crash that shook the world.
A Pan Am air hostess serves champagne in the first-class cabin. Source: Getty Images
According to the The Pan Am Historical Foundation: "The magic era ended with the passing on of Juan Trippe in 1981, and a succession of managements were unable to regain profitability. The rapid rise of world terrorism, culminating in the tragedy of Lockerbie, was the final deathblow."
A deep gash is seen in the ground next to destroyed houses caused by the crash of Pan Am Flight 103. Source: News Corp Australia
Pan Am flight 103 from London to New York was destroyed by a bomb in its hold on December 21, 1988, while flying over the Scottish town of Lockerbie. All 243 passengers and 16 crew were killed, as well as 11 people on the ground, making it the deadliest act of terrorism in the UK.
Local residents look at one of the four engines of Pan Am 103. Source: News Corp Australia
Three years after the tragedy, it was all over for the airline.
A police officer walks past nose of the flight. Source: News Corp Australia
The Pan Am Historical Foundation states: "All the treasures had been sold, many at bargain-basement prices, yet the deficits remained. The end came on 4 December, 1991. The airline of many firsts, a world leader in technology and innovations, was gone, mourned by many across a world that will not see its like again."
The story of the airline was turned into a TV show, called Pan Am. Source: AP
4. Swissair
For years, the national airline of Switzerland seemed unbreakable. Founded in 1931, it flew from profit to profit, becoming known as the "Flying Bank" because it was so financially stable and had a reputation for great service.
Throughout the 1980s the airline continued to thrive, and was one of the major carriers in western Europe. But it didn't last.
A fancy Swissair Convair plane in 1975. Picture: Kecko Source: Flickr
A disastrous overexpansion program and an unstable economic environment hit the airline hard. By 2001, it was in dire straits. With its entire fleet grounded it was only kept alive by the government. After months of chaos and injections of millions of dollars, it was closed down the following year in a move that shocked the country.
Most of its planes and routes were taken over by a new airline, Swiss International Air Lines (SWISS).
Swissair. Picture: Aero Icarus Source: Flickr
5. Trans World Airways (TWA)
One of Pan Am's main rivals, the US airline TWA also has a long — and mostly glamorous — history spanning 71 years.
In its early days, it flourished under billionaire Howard Hughes and was always on the cutting-edge of aviation technology, USA Today reports. However, poor management in the 1980s hurt the airline, which eventually suffered huge losses.
The situation was worsened by the fact that nobody would lend the airline money with Hughes at the helm.
"We were subject to very stiff interest penalties as a result of Hughes' involvement," Jerry Cosley, who held several executive and staff positions with TWA from 1960 to 1985, told the St. Louis Magazine. "He was a genius in many aspects of aviation, but he maintained a very spotty record of financial achievement."
It faced bankruptcy in 1960, and Hughes gave up control. Things seemed to be OK for a while, until deregulation hit the industry and in the years following, some of its most prized routes were sold off. By 1992 it declared bankruptcy — and again in 1995.
The partially reconstructed shell of the remains of TWA Flight 800 seen in 2013. Source: AFP
Then, disaster struck. In 1996, flight TWA 800 exploded and crashed just minutes after taking off from John F Kennedy Airport, killing all 230 people aboard.
The crash shook the world, and despite it being years ago, there's still a hunt for answers as to what really happened, with investigators believing it may have been caused by a missile strike.
Five years after the crash, the airline had been sold to American Airlines.
One of the galleys from TWA flight 800. Source: News Limited
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