They transported millions of people every year: airlines that no longer exist. Air Berlin planes and their crews are just one example of many in Germany. In 2017, the “second largest German airline”, as it always called itself in its press releases, went bankrupt after months of financial and operational difficulties, and to this day former customers are waiting for money from the bankruptcy proceedings.
Aviation journalist Andreas Spaeth deals with this in his book “Unforgettable – legendary German airlines” , published by Motorbuch Verlag, not only with those bankrupt companies that we still remember, but also with those that are hardly known today, such as Südflug, Calair, Hamburg Airlines or Paninternational.
Nine West German airlines are presented in detail in the book with many historical photographs that reflect the zeitgeist of flying decades ago very well. The author has used interviews with former employees of the companies and tells some stories from the former boom industry.
But the tough competition with the top dog runs like a red thread through almost all company histories, including the smaller companies presented in Chapter 10.
“We didn’t perish on the market, we were shot down by Lufthansa,” summarizes Tilman Uhlig, co-founder of the “Atlantis Aktiengesellschaft” aviation company, looking back in 2021. In the photo series, we show the airline, which only existed from 1968 to 1972 and even used four-engine Douglas DC-8-33 jets.
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Liquidation of an aviation legend: The last flight of Interflug
Also look at the following series of photos:
– Holiday plane Condor: Jet off into the sun – since 1956
– Retro journey into the world of paper tickets – Only flying was nicer
– Flight into bankruptcy: These are the biggest airline bankruptcies in recent years
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