Valujet

Black text with a red and white stripped background featuring Valujet's mascot, Critter

Founded in 1992, ValuJet Airlines was a low-cost carrier that operated in America and scheduled domestic and international flights in the Eastern United States and in Canada. The airline developed a reputation for its lack of safety measures in comparsion to other airlines. The collapse of the airline came in May, 1996 when ValuJet Flight 592, which was carrying 110 people crashed into the Everglades only 11 minutes after taking off from Miami. Every person on the flight was killed. The cause of the crash was later determined to have been the result of a fire which was caused by the activation of chemical oxygen generators that were illegally on the plane. The incident grounded all ValuJet planes until September of that year. The company's reputation and finances suffered major losses due to the crash. In 1997, ValuJet merged with AirTran Airways, taking the AirTran name in the process. The merged airline continued to operate as AirTran until 2011, when it was purchased by Southwest Airlines.