Seven of the world’s oldest airlines you can still fly today

With news that Emirates Airline pipped out international competition to take the top spot in TripAdvisor’s Travelers’ Choice Awards, it is fitting to remember that the airline is relatively new, having been launched in 1985.
Some of the world’s oldest still-in-use airlines could surprise you, including one airline which has partnered with Emirates in recent years.
The world’s oldest airlines, according to The Telegraph, all took off before WWII and have been through almost a century of turbulent times.
From the most recent to the oldest, read on for the top seven oldest in-use airlines in the world.
7. Delta Airlines, founded on May 20, 1924
The US airline’s slogan is: “Building a better airline, not just a bigger one.”
6. Tajik Air, founded in 1923
This airline only serves Russia and Turkey and still uses a pair of Antonov An-28s and two Tupolev 154s, both named among the world’s least safe aircraft.
5. Finnair, founded on November 1, 1923
Finnair has been named among the world’s safest airlines and has not been involved in a fatal accident since 1963.
4. Czech Airlines, founded on October 6, 1923
This airline’s catchphrase is “a home in the skies.” It was the target of a triple hijacking in 1950, wherein three aircraft were taken to Munich instead of the planned destination of Prague. Some passengers fled to the West but many returned home as heroes, The Telegraph reported.
3. Aeroflot, founded on February 9, 1923
In 2016, Aeroflot was named one of the safest airlines in the world which was a triumph for the airline which was considered unsafe during the Cold War years.
2. Qantas, founded on Novemeber 16, 1920
Qantas has a partnership with Dubai-based Emirates Airline and together they fly 13 times a day from Australia to Dubai and provide one-stop access for Australia-based travelers to destinations across Europe, the Middle East and North Africa.
1. KLM, founded on October 7, 1919
With the slogan “Journeys of Inspiration,” the first KLM flight took off from Croydon Airport, just outside of London, and was flown by a British pilot.