British Airways
British Airways plc (BA) is the carrier of the United Kingdom. It is headquartered in London, England at Waterside, near its main hub at Heathrow Airport
The airline is the second largest UK-based carrier, based on fleet size and passengers carried, behind easyJet. In January 2011, BA merged with Iberia, creating the Intl Airlines Group (IAG), a holding company registered in Madrid, Spain. British Airways was the first passenger airline to generate more than US$1 billion on a single air route in a year.
In 1972 a British Airways Board was established by the Gove of the UK to manage the two nationalised airline corporations, British Overseas Airways Corp and British European Airways, and two regional airlines, Cambrian Airways and Northeast Airlines. On 31 March 1974, all four companies were merged to form British Airways. BA was privatised in February 1987 as part of a wider privatisation plan by the Thatcher government. The carrier expanded with the acquisition of British Caledonian in 1987, Dan-Air in 1992, TAT European Airlines in 1993 and British Midland Intl in 2012.
The company has received public support,[3] including a bailout equivalent to £300 million during the COVID-19 crisis.[4][5] After the bailout, the company was a recipient of funding through the UK’s furlough scheme, as well as receiving an additional £2 billion in a state backed loan in 2021.
