as the airline deregulation act of 1978 led to a wave of airline failures, start-ups, and takeovers in the united states, twa was spun off from its holding company in 1984. carl icahn acquired control of twa and took the company private in a leveraged buyout in 1988. twa became saddled with debt, sold its london routes, underwent chapter 11 restructuring in 1992 and 1995, and was further stressed by the explosion of twa flight 800 in 1996.