A number of major airlines have declared

bankruptcy Bankruptcy is a legal process through which people or other entities who cannot repay debts to creditors may seek relief from some or all of their debts. In most jurisdictions, bankruptcy is imposed by a court order, often initiated by the debto ...

and have either ceased operations, or reorganized under

bankruptcy protection Bankruptcy is a legal process through which people or other entities who cannot repay debts to creditors may seek relief from some or all of their debts. In most jurisdictions, bankruptcy is imposed by a court order, often initiated by the debtor ...

. Airlines, like any business, are susceptible to market fluctuations and economic difficulties. The economic structure of the airline industry may contribute to airline bankruptcies as well. One major element in almost every airline bankruptcy is the rejection by the debtor of its current collective bargaining agreements with employees. After satisfying certain requirements, bankruptcy law permits courts to approve rejection of labor contracts by the debtor-employer. With this tool, airline managers reduce costs. Terms of an employee contract negotiated over years can be eliminated in months through

Chapter 11 Chapter 11 of the United States Bankruptcy Code (Title 11 of the United States Code) permits reorganization under the bankruptcy laws of the United States. Such reorganization, known as Chapter 11 bankruptcy, is available to every business, wheth ...

. Terms of the

Railway Labor Act The Railway Labor Act is a United States federal law on US labor law that governs labor relations in the railroad and airline industries. The Act, enacted in 1926 and amended in 1934 and 1936, seeks to substitute bargaining, arbitration, and media ...

, amended in 1936 to cover airlines, prevent most labor union work actions before, during and after an airline bankruptcy. Continental Airlines declared bankruptcy, Chapter 11, a second time in December 1990.

Timeline

This is a timeline of

airline An airline is a company that provides air transport services for traveling passengers and freight. Airlines use aircraft to supply these services and may form partnerships or alliances with other airlines for codeshare agreements, in wh ...

s who have filed for bankruptcy protection. Also see

list of defunct airlines This is a list of defunct airlines, arranged alphabetically by country within their respective continents. * List of defunct airlines of Africa * List of defunct airlines of the Americas *List of defunct airlines of Asia * List of defunct airlines ...

for a list of airlines which are no longer operating.

U.S. airlines bankruptcy filings

Chapter 7

This is a list of airlines that have filed for bankruptcy protection via Chapter 7 in the United States.

Chapter 11

This is a list of airlines that have filed for bankruptcy protection via

in the United States.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Airline Bankruptcies Timeline

Bankruptcies Bankruptcy is a legal process through which people or other entities who cannot repay debts to creditors may seek relief from some or all of their debts. In most jurisdictions, bankruptcy is imposed by a court order, often initiated by the debtor ...

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...

bankruptcies Bankruptcy is a legal process through which people or other entities who cannot repay debts to creditors may seek relief from some or all of their debts. In most jurisdictions, bankruptcy is imposed by a court order, often initiated by the debtor ...