Zantop International Airlines

♦ Zantop International Airlines traces its origins to 1946 when brothers Duane, Lloyd, Howard and Elroy Zantop set up Zantop Flying Service. In 1952 it was granted a license for commercial flying. In 1962 Zantop took over Coastal Airlines and, through the purchase, acquired a license to carry passengers as well as freight. The name was changed to Zantop Air Transport and the company operated as a freight airline for the auto industry. In 1967 the Zantop family sold the airline and it became Universal Airlines. Universal Airlines went bankrupt in May1972 and its assets were received by Saturn Airways. The Zantop family restarted operations as Zantop International Airlines, based at Willow Run Airport near Detroit, Michigan. Zantop International Airlines was incorporated and started operations in May1972. In 1978 Zantop also purchased the freight division of Hawaiian Airlines. The airline lost business momentum in the early 2000s and its operating certificate and FAR 121 Air Carrier Certificate, once deemed highly valuable, was given back to the FAA in the beginning years of the new millennium, as was the FAR 125 Certificate. Zantop International Airlines ceased operations on 11Nov2005 ♦