an airline that is locally registered in a particular country
Swiss International Airlines is to become part of German flag carrier Lufthansa.
Examples of 'flag carrier' in a sentence
flag carrier
The logic of the national flag carrier is fading from view.
Times, Sunday Times (2006)
They are largely protected from takeover by the 70-year-old system that governs international aviation and all but forbids foreign ownership and control of national flag carriers.
Times, Sunday Times (2008)
Those governments decided how many airlines flew - usually one flag carrier from each - and the number of flights.