Guess these airlines from their logos
Do you know your logos?
Are you a frequent flyer? Or maybe you fancy yourself a bit of an aviation expert? Take our quiz to find out how many airlines you can name just by looking at their logos and discover interesting facts about each one along the way.
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The Inuit face first featured as this airline's logo in 1972 and while it's often speculated who he is, it's not a real person and is meant to represent Inuit and Yupik people living in the area the airline is named after.
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Alaska Airlines
The instantly recognisable logo adorns all the tail fins of Alaska Airlines planes. The airline is the fifth largest in the US by fleet size and it operates out of five hubs, including its primary hub at the Seattle–Tacoma International Airport.
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A major American airline, it's the third largest in the world by fleet size and the number of routes operated. Its largest hub is Chicago–O'Hare.
United Airlines
A founding member of Star Alliance, the world's largest global airline alliance, United was established in the late 1920s as several airlines were merged. It was the first US carrier to fly to all 50 states and employed the first-ever female flight attendant to take to the skies, Ellen Church, in 1930.
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An unmistakable logo, this red maple leaf can be found on the tails of the flag carrier of the second-largest country in the world.
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Air Canada
The largest airline in Canada, Air Canada connects 207 passenger and cargo destinations in the world. Its largest hub is the Toronto Pearson International Airport, but it's one of the few airlines with several major hubs, including airports in Montréal, Vancouver and Calgary. Notably, it was the first scheduled airline in the world to offer exclusively smoke-free flights between North America and Europe in 1988.
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An ultra low-cost carrier based at Denver International Airport, this airline is known for assigning a name and an animal to each plane. Here, in the picture you can see Powder the Polarbear, Chocolate the Moose and Junior the Lynx.
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Frontier Airlines
Flying to over 100 destinations in the US and 31 international destinations, Frontier Airlines is known for offering some of the lowest airfares in the country. The animals featured on the tail fins of the planes are also part of the airline's wider marketing, including commercials. The latest additions include Penguins Jim, Joe, Jay and Gary, a barbershop quartet, and Polly the Parrot, who won the last new animal audition in 2012. Pictured on this plane is Betty the Bluebird.
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The ribbon of this airline's logo represents the Speedbird symbol first used by Imperial Airways in 1932 while its tail fin colouring is reminiscent of a section of the country's flag where the airline is based.
British Airways
Operating one of the largest and most modern fleets in the world, British Airways has a long and illustrious history. Formed in 1974 by merging British Overseas Airways Corporation (BOAC) and British European Airways with two regional airlines, BA was the first passenger airline to generate more than $1 billion (£706m) on a single air route in a year, between London Heathrow and New York–JFK in 2017/2018.
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Recognised as the world's largest airline, its logo depicts an eagle's head with one red and one blue wing, representing freedom and striving for success.
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American Airlines
Handling more than 200 million passengers annually, it's impossible not to be impressed by American Airlines. Operating an extensive network of almost 6,800 daily international and domestic flights to nearly 350 destinations, the airline is hard to compete with. It's also a huge employer creating over 900,000 jobs since it was founded in 1926.
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Although this airline's logo has been a red ribbon since 2009, it's more recognisable by the striped colouring of the tail that was also part of the logo from 1976 to 2009. The airline's global hub is at Charles de Gaulle Airport while the domestic hub is based at Orly Airport.
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Featuring the same striped colouring in its heart-shaped logo and on the tail fins of its planes, this airline carries the most domestic passengers in the US.
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Southwest Airlines
Established in 1967, Southwest began as an intrastate airline, servicing the state of Texas and only connecting Dallas, Houston and San Antonio. Today, the airline operates as many as 4,000 flights a day during peak travel season and flies to 109 destinations in the US, as well as 10 additional countries, including destinations in Central America and the Caribbean. In 1995, it was one of the first airlines to have a website, which was called Southwest Airlines Home Gate and offered a digital route map, information on flights and fares as well as tickets online.
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The second-largest airline in the world, it's one of the major carriers in the US. A stylisation of its logo is seen here on the tail fin.
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Delta Air Lines
Headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, Delta operates a whooping 5,400 flights daily, serving 325 destinations in 52 countries on six continents. Apart from its hubs in North America, that include Atlanta, Boston and Mexico City, it also has a significant number of hubs in Europe and Asia, like London–Heathrow, Paris–Charles de Gaulle and Seoul–Incheon. It's also the world's most-awarded airline, achieving excellence in everything from consistently being the best US airline, to recognition as one of the best companies to work for.
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This airline is the flag carrier of the Netherlands and its full name is Koninklijke Luchtvaart Maatschappij, meaning Royal Aviation Company.
KLM
Founded in 1919, KLM is the oldest airline in the world that's still operating under its original name. The airline services 145 passenger and cargo destinations in the world. Its first scheduled flight was from Amsterdam to London in 1920, a route still in operation today, and its first flight outside of Europe to Batavia (now Jakarta) in 1924 took nearly two weeks to complete due to stopovers – a journey that now takes just 15 hours.
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This airline is most easily recognised by the specific colouring of its tail fin. Its main base is Abu Dhabi International Airport and there's a football stadium in England named after the airline.
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Etihad
Etihad is the second flag carrier of the UAE and the second-largest airline in the country after Emirates. The airline is well-known for its luxurious touch so it's hardly surprising the world's most expensive flight is also operated by Etihad. A one-way ticket on Etihad Airways Residence (which is basically a three-room apartment on a plane) from New York to Abu Dhabi will set you back an eye-watering £45,300 ($64,000).
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The largest German airline and the second largest in Europe, in terms of passengers carried, this airline's slogan is 'Say yes to the world'.
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Lufthansa
With the primary hub at Frankfurt Airport, Lufthansa is among the biggest airlines in the world. Flying to more than 250 destinations in 77 countries, Lufthansa might not be the most luxurious airline in the world, but it certainly takes care of its First Class passengers very well. It's one of the few airlines to serve caviar on board and in 2013 its CEO Carsten Spohr claimed that every year Lufthansa's highest-paying passengers consume 5% of the global caviar supply.
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Consistently ranked among the world's best airlines, it shares its name with the island-city state where it's based. The bird depicted in the logo is inspired by a silver kris, a dagger from the regional folklore.
Singapore Airlines
The flag carrier of Singapore, Singapore Airlines flies to 137 destinations in 32 countries, focusing on impeccable service. It's notable for having one of the best Economy Classes in the world, that offers more seat width, legroom and a better onboard service than other airlines deliver in their premium cabins. The airline is also famous for Singapore Girls, a name given to the airline's flight attendants. Their uniform, a sarong kebaya, was designed by French couturier Pierre Balmain in 1968 and comes in four colour palettes, each representing a different role.
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This airline was the first Asia-Pacific airline to serve London–Heathrow Airport and is still one of the largest Asia-Pacific carriers with destinations in Europe. The logo, seen here on the tail fin, represents a traditional greeting gesture, while the colours symbolise temples, magnolia blossom and an orchid.
Thai Airways
The flag carrier of Thailand, Thai primarily operates from Suvarnabhumi Airport in Bangkok and, along with Lufthansa, Air Canada, SAS and United, was a founding member of Star Alliance. Its longest route connects Bangkok and London – it stretches nearly 6,000 miles (9,548km) and takes around 12 hours to complete.
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This airline is nicknamed The Flying Kangaroo thanks to the creature adorning the wing tips and the tail fin of this airline's planes.
Qantas
The third-oldest airline in the world, Qantas is the flag carrier of Australia and its name is actually an acronym of the airline's original name, Queensland and Northern Territory Aerial Services. Interestingly, Qantas also claims to have invented the world's first Business Class in 1979, although similar concepts, like Club World aboard British Airways and Clipper Class on Pan Am, were introduced a year earlier.
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