Winding through the Skies Trivia Quiz

Answer: Aeroflot

Aeroflot is the flag carrier for Russia and has its main hub at Moscow's Sheremetyevo International Airport. The airline was founded in 1923 and was state-run till the shareholding was partly divested and it was listed on the stock exchange in the 1990s.

The hammer and sickle was adopted as a symbol of the people of Russia during the Russian Revolution. It is therefore not a surprise that the logo of Aeroflot is a stylized winged hammer and sickle. This was designed when the airline was founded and is still in use.

Answer: EgyptAir

In Egyptian mythology, Horus is the god of the skies. He is depicted as falcon or with a man's body and a falcon's head. This association of Horus as a 'winged god of the sun' led to it being adopted as the logo of EgyptAir.

EgyptAir is the flag carrier of Egypt and has its main hub at Cairo International Airport. It was founded in 1933.

Answer: China Airlines

China Airlines belongs to Taiwan, which is officially known as the Republic of China. This is not to be confused with the country of China, officially known as the People's Republic of China. China Airlines is the flag carrier of Taiwan. The original logo consisted of the country's flag.

However, due to ongoing disputes with China, which refuses to recognize Taiwan as an independent country, and the resultant pressure which caused other countries to refuse flying rights to China Airlines to maintain ties with China, China Airlines changed its logo to that of a pink plum blossom in 1995.

The plum blossom is Taiwan's national flower.

Answer: El Al

The Star of David has been used as a symbol of the Jews for centuries and was adopted as a national symbol by Israel when the country was formed. It is found on the flag of Israel between two blue bands. A similar imagery is used for the El Al airline which is Israel's flag carrier. However, here the two blue bands appear to be rising giving the appearance of flight.

Answer: Korean Air

Established in 1962, Korean Air is the flag carrier of South Korea. The Taegeuk was adopted as the airline's logo in 1984. Taegeuk is the Korean form of the Chinese Taichi which means the supreme ultimate. It is a national symbol of Korea and also found on the country's flag. It consists of two interlocking semi-circles - the top half is red and the bottom is blue.

Answer: Air Canada

The maple leaf is one of the official symbols of Canada and is also found on the national flag. Founded in 1937, Air Canada is the flag carrier and largest airline of Canada. The maple leaf is found on the tail of all Air Canada planes.

Answer: Royal Jordanian

The country of Jordan is officially known as the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan after the Hashemites who have ruled over the region for many, many years. Royal Jordanian is the country's flag carrier and was founded in 1963. As the national airline, its logo consists of the Royal Hashemite Crown of the ruling dynasty.

Answer: Air India

Air India is the flag carrier of India and is wholly owned by the government. It began as a private airline when it was established in 1932 as Tata Airlines by JRD Tata, a businessman who is considered the pioneer of Indian commercial aviation. The airline has a red and white colour scheme and the mascot is a diminutive maharaja, albeit unlike real Indian kings, this one aims to serve and please.

The original logo was a centaur shooting an arrow into the wheel of Konark and had been selected by JRD Tata himself.

This was changed in 2007 to a flying swan with the wheel of Konark contained within it. The wheel of Konark is adopted from the Konark sun temple in Odisha in India which is carved out of stone in the form of a chariot with wheels and horses.

It is dedicated to the Hindu sun god, Surya.

Answer: Aer Lingus

Aer Lingus is the flag carrier of the Republic of Ireland. It was formed in 1936 and owned by the government till it was privatized in 2006. In 1965, the airline adopted the shamrock as part of its livery and the plane fins were painted with large green shamrocks.

While the stylization of the shamrock has changed over the years, it is still the logo of the airline and SHAMROCK is the callsign of Aer Lingus.

Answer: Qantas

Qantas is Australia's flag carrier and was founded in 1930 making it the third oldest airline in the world, among those that are still operational. Given that the kangaroo is one of Australia's symbols and is also found on its coat of arms, it is not surprising that it was chosen as the mascot by Qantas. This has also earned Qantas the nickname of "The Flying Kangaroo".