Ozark Air Lines

Ozark Air Lines
Founded	September 1, 1943
Commenced operations	September 26, 1950
Ceased operations	October 26, 1986; (integrated into Trans World Airlines)
Hubs	St. Louis Lambert International Airport
Fleet size	50
Destinations	Ozark Mainline cities: 57; Ozark Midwest cities: 21;
Parent company	Trans World Corporation
Headquarters	St. Louis County, Missouri, U.S.
Key people	Laddie Hamilton (president, 1950–1959); Joseph A. Fitzgerald (president, 1959–1963); Floyd Jones (acting president, 1963–1964); Thomas L. Grace (president, 1964–1971); Edward J. Crane (president, 1971–1986); Lester L. Cox (chairman, 1972–1986);

Ozark Air Lines was a local service carrier, a scheduled airline in the United States that operated from 1950 until it was purchased by Trans World Airlines (TWA) in 1986. Ozark got a second chance to be an airline when the carrier that won the routes for which Ozark applied, Parks Air Lines, failed to start them in a timely manner. Parks had its rights revoked, Ozark won not only the routes it previously applied for, but others as well. Parks merged into Ozark and Ozark (then without any airline operations) took over the Parks operation and the single route over which Parks had recently started service, thereby launching Ozark. Ozark over time became a jet carrier with a hub in St. Louis.

In 2001, TWA was merged into American Airlines. A smaller regional airline that used the Ozark name (and whose operating certificate was purchased by Great Plains Airlines) operated in 2000–2001. From 1950 until 1986, Ozark's headquarters was located at St. Louis Lambert International Airport.