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National Airlines was a short lived
United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
low-fare airline that operated from 1999 to 2002. Headquartered in
Las Vegas, Nevada Las Vegas, colloquially referred to as Vegas, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and the county seat of Clark County. The Las Vegas Valley metropolitan area is the largest within the greater Mojave Desert, and second-l ...
, it was the third US carrier to use the name. The airline was created to bring tourists to Las Vegas. National offered service to a limited number of cities with high traffic to Las Vegas. The airline operated a fleet of 19
Boeing 757-200 The Boeing 757 is an American narrow-body airliner designed and built by Boeing Commercial Airplanes. The then-named 7N7, a twinjet successor for the trijet 727, received its first orders in August 1978. The prototype completed its maiden ...
jets in a two-class first class and coach seating configuration.


History

Hoping to attract more visitors from the East Coast,
Harrah's Entertainment Harrah's Entertainment (later named Caesars Entertainment Corporation, previously The Promus Companies) was an American casino and hotel company founded in Reno, Nevada, and based in Paradise, Nevada, that operated over 50 properties and seven go ...
and the former Rio Hotel & Casino, Inc., each contributed $15 million toward the start-up costs of National Airlines in July 1998. Wexford Capital, owners of
Republic Airways Holdings Republic Airways Holdings, Inc. is an American airline holding corporation based in Indianapolis, Indiana, that owns Republic Airways, an American regional airline operating in the United States, and LIFT Academy. Republic Airways operates a ...
also contributed several million to this create the airline. Taking a page from
Southwest Airlines Southwest Airlines Co., or simply Southwest, is a Major airlines of the United States, major airline in the United States that formerly operated on a low-cost carrier model. It is headquartered in the Love Field, Dallas, Love Field neighborhood ...
' book, National kept things simple by operating a single aircraft type—in National's case, the
Boeing 757 The Boeing 757 is an American Narrow-body aircraft, narrow-body airliner designed and built by Boeing Commercial Airplanes. The then-named 7N7, a twinjet successor for the trijet Boeing 727, 727, received its first orders in August 1978. The ...
. Service began on May 27, 1999. This was the third airline in the United States to use the ''National Airlines'' name. Michael Conway became
President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...
and
CEO A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a chief executive or managing director, is the top-ranking corporate officer charged with the management of an organization, usually a company or a nonprofit organization. CEOs find roles in variou ...
of the company. From its inception, the company fought an uphill battle against rising fuel costs and an economic recession. National Airlines filed for
Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection Chapter 11 of the United States Bankruptcy Code (Title 11 of the United States Code) permits reorganization under the bankruptcy laws of the United States. Such reorganization, known as Chapter 11 bankruptcy, is available to every business, wh ...
on December 6, 2000. Like many other airlines, National had serious financial problems after the
September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks, also known as 9/11, were four coordinated Islamist terrorist suicide attacks by al-Qaeda against the United States in 2001. Nineteen terrorists hijacked four commercial airliners, crashing the first two into ...
in 2001, and only 41 months after their inaugural flight left Las Vegas'
McCarran International Airport Harry Reid International Airport , formerly known as McCarran International Airport, is the primary international airport serving the Las Vegas Valley, a metropolitan area in the U.S. state of Nevada. It is located south of downtown Las Vega ...
, the airline ceased all operations on November 6, 2002, after being in Chapter 11 bankruptcy for 23 months. As of the day of National's grounding on November 6, 2002, the airline had carried 1.85 million passengers through McCarran (January–November 2002), and National was the airport's fourth-largest carrier based upon passenger volume. Departing
McCarran International Airport Harry Reid International Airport , formerly known as McCarran International Airport, is the primary international airport serving the Las Vegas Valley, a metropolitan area in the U.S. state of Nevada. It is located south of downtown Las Vega ...
at 4:20 p.m., National Airlines Flight 354 to Dallas/Fort Worth was the carrier's last to leave the Las Vegas hub.


Attempted hijacking

On July 27, 2000, National Airlines flight 19 operating from John F. Kennedy International to
McCarran International Airport Harry Reid International Airport , formerly known as McCarran International Airport, is the primary international airport serving the Las Vegas Valley, a metropolitan area in the U.S. state of Nevada. It is located south of downtown Las Vega ...
was boarded by a man with a gun and knife, who immediately stormed the cockpit and took the two pilots as hostage. The hijacker demanded the flight attendant to close the cabin door, however startled passengers shoved the flight attendant aside and reopened the door to escape. All 143 passengers exited without injuries. By 12:50 AM both pilots were released. The hijacker remained on the plane alone for another two and a half hours before being apprehended. The FBI identified the suspect as Aaron Amartei Commey of Milwaukee. His motive was to be flown to Argentina or Antarctica. He was charged with attempting to hijack an aircraft.


In popular culture

In the science entertainment television program
MythBusters ''MythBusters'' is a science entertainment television series created by Peter Rees (producer), Peter Rees and produced by Beyond International in Australia. The series premiered on the Discovery Channel on January 23, 2003. It was broadcast in ...
, a stored National Airlines 757 following their collapse is shown on camera taxing away. They were going to use it to test a myth about the effects of jet wash on vehicles behind a taking off airplane. The TV program was unable to use the jet because of a dispute with their insurance company.


Destinations

At the time National Airlines was grounded, the airline provided service to 14 destinations throughout the
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:


United States


California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

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Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...
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Los Angeles International Airport Los Angeles International Airport is the primary international airport serving Los Angeles and its Greater Los Angeles, surrounding metropolitan area, in the U.S. state of California. LAX is located in the Westchester, Los Angeles, Westcheste ...
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San Francisco San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...
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San Francisco International Airport San Francisco International Airport is the primary international airport for the San Francisco Bay Area in the U.S. state of California. Owned and operated by the City and County of San Francisco, the airport has a San Francisco mailing ...
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District of Columbia Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and Federal district of the United States, federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from ...

''See Virginia for
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service''


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Miami Miami is a East Coast of the United States, coastal city in the U.S. state of Florida and the county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade County in South Florida. It is the core of the Miami metropolitan area, which, with a populat ...
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Miami International Airport Miami International Airport , also known as MIA and historically as Wilcox Field, is the primary international airport serving Miami and its Miami metropolitan area, surrounding metropolitan area, in the U.S. state of Florida. It hosts over 1, ...
)


Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. It borders on Lake Michigan to its northeast, the Mississippi River to its west, and the Wabash River, Wabash and Ohio River, Ohio rivers to its ...

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Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...
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Chicago Midway International Airport Chicago Midway International Airport is a major commercial airport on the southwest side of Chicago, Illinois, located approximately 12 miles (19 km) from the city's Loop business district, and divided between the city's Clearing and ...
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Chicago O'Hare International Airport Chicago O'Hare International Airport is the primary international airport serving Chicago, Illinois, United States, located on the city's Northwest Side, approximately northwest of the Loop business district. The airport is operated by the ...
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Newark Liberty International Airport Newark Liberty International Airport is a major international airport serving the New York metropolitan area. The airport straddles the boundary between the cities of Newark, New Jersey, Newark in Essex County, New Jersey, Essex County and E ...
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New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

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John F. Kennedy International Airport John F. Kennedy International Airport is a major international airport serving New York City and its metropolitan area. JFK Airport is located on the southwestern shore of Long Island, in Queens, New York City, bordering Jamaica Bay. It is ...
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Nevada Nevada ( ; ) is a landlocked state in the Western United States. It borders Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. Nevada is the seventh-most extensive, th ...

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Las Vegas Las Vegas, colloquially referred to as Vegas, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and the county seat of Clark County. The Las Vegas Valley metropolitan area is the largest within the greater Mojave Desert, and second-l ...
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McCarran International Airport Harry Reid International Airport , formerly known as McCarran International Airport, is the primary international airport serving the Las Vegas Valley, a metropolitan area in the U.S. state of Nevada. It is located south of downtown Las Vega ...
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Reno Reno ( ) is a city in the northwest section of the U.S. state of Nevada, along the Nevada–California border. It is the county seat and most populous city of Washoe County, Nevada, Washoe County. Sitting in the High Eastern Sierra foothills, ...
( Reno-Tahoe International Airport)


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Philadelphia International Airport Philadelphia International Airport is the primary international airport serving Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. It served 30.8 million passengers annually in 2024, making it the busiest airport in Pennsylvania and the 21st-busies ...
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Dallas Dallas () is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of Texas metropolitan areas, most populous metropolitan area in Texas and the Metropolitan statistical area, fourth-most ...
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Fort Worth Fort Worth is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the county seat of Tarrant County, Texas, Tarrant County, covering nearly into Denton County, Texas, Denton, Johnson County, Texas, Johnson, Parker County, Texas, Parker, and Wise County, Te ...
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Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport Dallas Fort Worth International Airport is the primary international airport serving the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex and the North Texas region, in the U.S. state of Texas. It is the largest hub for American Airlines, which is headquartere ...
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Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport is a public airport in Arlington County, Virginia, United States, from Washington, D.C. The closest airport to the nation's capital, it is one of two airports owned by the federal government and ope ...
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Seattle Seattle ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Washington and in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. With a population of 780,995 in 2024, it is the 18th-most populous city in the United States. The city is the cou ...
( Seattle-Tacoma International Airport)


Fleet

At the time the airline was grounded, National had 19 aircraft in its fleet consisting of: The 757s were sold, eight of them under a new registration number.


See also

*
List of defunct airlines of the United States The following is a list of defunct airlines of the United States. However, some of these airlines have ceased operations completely, changed identities and/or FAA certificates and are still operating under a different name (e.g. America West Ai ...


References


External links


National Airlines Home page(5/10/00)

Site after shut down
{{DEFAULTSORT:National Airlines (1999-2002) Defunct low-cost airlines of the United States Airlines established in 1999 Airlines disestablished in 2002 Companies that filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2000 Companies based in the Las Vegas Valley Defunct companies based in Nevada 1999 establishments in Nevada Airlines based in Nevada