Pan American World Airways, Inc., also called (from 1927 to 1950) Pan American Airways, byname Pan Am, was a former airline that was founded in 1927 in the United States and, up until the final two decades of the 20th century, had service to cities in many countries in North and South America, the Caribbean Islands, Europe, Asia, Africa, and the Middle East. From 1984 it was governed by the holding company Pan Am Corporation. From 1986, in financial distress, its routes and services came to be drastically reduced. The company ceased operations on Dec. 4, 1991.

Source: Britannica