As 2018 draws to a close we wanted to take a moment and remember the airlines we said “buh-bye” to over the past 12 months.
More than 40 airlines vanished from flight radars around the globe in 2018. Every month of the year saw at least one airline grounded. Some were merged to create stronger airlines, a few were suspended for restructuring, but the majority had their wings clipped forever.
The emerging air market of Myanmar had one of the biggest losses of the year, with four airlines closing their doors.
The most famous airline brand to disappear was Virgin America. The hip American carrier merged with, and took the identity of, Alaska Airlines.
The low-cost, long haul airline model seemed to be the biggest loser of 2018. The sudden collapse of Danish airline, Primera Air, sparked the first sign of trouble for the popular airline model which had seen a boom during the previous years of low oil prices. While Primera’s Scandinavian counterparts, WOW Air and Norwegian, managed to end 2018 still in flight, both airlines spent a good part of the year scrambling to find ways to balance their books and survive into 2019.
Here’s a month by month look at the airlines that said their final “Buh-Bye” to passengers in 2018
January
Airline: FlyViking
From: Norway
Year Established: 1989 (as Lofotfly)
Fleet Size: 3
Status: Ceased operations
Airline: BackBone Aviation
From: Denmark
Year Established: 2011
Fleet Size: 3
Status: Ceased operations
February
Airline: PAWA Dominicana
From: Dominican Republic
Year Established: 2003
Fleet Size: 7
Status: Ceased operations
Airline: ASL Airlines Switzerland
From: Switzerland
Year Established: 1984
Fleet Size: 13
Status: Ceased operations
Airline: Meridiana
From: Italy
Year Established: 1963 (as Alisarda)
Fleet Size: 11
Status: Reorganized into a new Air Italy
Airline: Air Italy
From: Italy
Year Established: 2005
Fleet Size: 12
Status: Reorganized into a new Air Italy
March
Airline: Great Lakes Airlines
From: USA
Year Established: 1977
Fleet Size: 28
Status: Ceased operations
Airline: Latin American Wings
From: Chile
Year Established: 2015
Fleet Size: 5
Status: Suspended
Airline: Zagrosjet
From: Iraq
Year Established: 2005
Fleet Size: 1
Status: Ceased operations
April
Airline: Virgin America
From: USA
Year Established: 2004
Fleet Size: 67
Status: Merged with Alaska Airlines
Airline: Air Arabia Jordan
From: Jordan
Year Established: 2014
Fleet Size: 2
Status: Ceased operations
Airline: SBA Airlines
From: Venezuela
Year Established: 1995
Fleet Size: 5
Status: Ceased operations
Airline: DART Ukrainian Airlines
From: Ukraine
Year Established: 1997
Fleet Size: 3
Status: Ceased operations
May
Airline: Air Costa Rica
From: Costa Rica
Year Established: 2015
Fleet Size: 1
Status: Ceased operations
Airline: Aserca Airlines
From: Venezuela
Year Established: 1968
Fleet Size: 11
Status: Ceased operations
Airline: Nextjet
From: Sweden
Year Established: 2002
Fleet Size: 15
Status: Rebranded as Air Scandic
Airline: Saratov Airlines
From: Russia
Year Established: 1931 (as Saratov Air Enterprise of Aeroflot)
Fleet Size: 8
Status: Ceased operations
June
Airline: JETGO Australia
From: Australia
Year Established: 2011
Fleet Size: 5
Status: Ceased operations
Airline: Sparrow Aviation
From: Sweden
Year Established: 2010
Fleet Size: 1
Status: Ceased operations
Airline: LTA – Linea Turistica Aereotuy
From: Venezuela
Year Established: 2010
Fleet Size: 1
Status: Ceased operations
July
Airline: Palau Pacific Airways
From: Palau
Year Established: 2014
Fleet Size: 1
Status: Ceased operations
Airline: Orient Thai Airlines
From: Thailand
Year Established: 1995
Fleet Size: 13
Status: Suspended
August
Airline: Air Bagan
From: Myanmar
Year Established: 2004
Fleet Size: 4
Status: Ceased operations
Airline: APEX Airlines
From: Myanmar
Year Established: 2012
Fleet Size: 1
Status: Ceased operations
Airline: FMI Air
From: Myanmar
Year Established: 2012
Fleet Size: 4
Status: Ceased operations
Airline: SkyWork Airlines
From: Switzerland
Year Established: 1983
Fleet Size: 6
Status: Ceased Operations
Airline: OneJet
From: USA
Year Established: 2015
Fleet Size: 10
Status: Ceased Operations
September
Airline: Air Mandalay
From: Myanmar
Year Established: 1994
Fleet Size: 2
Status: Ceased operations
Airline: Azur Air (Germany)
From: Germany
Year Established: 2016
Fleet Size: 2
Status: Ceased operations
Airline: OpenSkies
From: France
Year Established: 2008
Fleet Size: 2
Status: Operations transferred to Level
Airline: VLM Airlines
From: Belgium
Year Established: 1992
Fleet Size: 4
Status: Ceased operations
Airline: Wataniya Airways
From: Kuwait
Year Established: 2005
Fleet Size: 1
Status: Ceased operations
October
Airline: Cobalt Air
From: Cyprus
Year Established: 2015
Fleet Size: 6
Status: Ceased operations
Airline: Primera Air / Primera Air Nordic
From: Denmark / Latvia
Year Established: 2003 (as JetX)/2014
Fleet Size: 7/7
Status: Ceased operations
Airline: Cello Aviation
From: UK
Year Established: 2009 (as Altavia Jet Services)
Fleet Size: 2
Status: Ceased operations
Airline: UP
From: Israel
Year Established: 2013
Fleet Size: 4
Status: Remerged into El Al
Airline: Air Leisure
From: Egypt
Year Established: 2014
Fleet Size: 3
Status: Suspended 
Airline: Shaheen Air
From: Pakistan
Year Established: 1993
Fleet Size: 0 (All aircraft leased and returned to lessor)
Status: Suspended
November
Airline: Small Planet Airlines
From: Lithuania/Poland/Germany/Cambodia
Year Established: 2007 (as FlyLAL Charters)
Fleet Size: 17 (Including all smaller sister airlines)
Status: Ceased operations
Airline: Xtra Airways
From: USA
Year Established: 1987
Fleet Size: 10
Status: Absorbed by Swift Air
December
Airline: LASA Líneas Aéreas
From: Argentina
Year Established: 2017
Fleet Size: 2
Status: Ceased operations
Airline: PrivatAir
From: Switzerland/Germany
Year Established: 1977
Fleet Size: 5
Status: Ceased operations
Airline: Fastjet Tanzania
From: Tanzania
Year Established: 2011 as Fly540 Tanzania
Fleet Size: 4
Status: Suspended
Surprisingly air travel is the most successful navigational transport, and pruning is but a result of tight competition. Getting bigger is not usually the best in business, but biggest is the trend like in the sea the big fish sucks in the fries. It would require astute planning and into the fliers psychology to attract them.