El Al subsidiary plans Vegas flights

Thursday, June 5, 2003 | 10:59 a.m.

A charter subsidiary of El Al Israel Airlines has filed for a foreign air carrier permit before the U.S. Department of Transportation to operate charter flights between Tel Aviv and Las Vegas.

The flights would be the first nonstop service linking Las Vegas with the Middle East.

Sun D'or International Airlines Ltd., a subsidiary of the flag carrier of Israel owned by the Israeli government, submitted its application last month and, if approved, would begin service late this month or in early July.

According to the application, Sun D'or plans to operate a round-trip nonstop charter flight every other week to McCarran International Airport from Tel Aviv. Specifically, the application says the airline would alternate flights weekly to Las Vegas and Orlando, Fla., from Israel, beginning June 27.

Harry Kassap, manager of air service development at McCarran, said the airport has been working with Sun D' or to develop special security arrangements for the airline. El Al traditionally operates with strict security constraints.

Sun D' or began operating as charter subsidiary to El Al in 1978 and has grown to offer flights to vacation destinations in Europe, Asia and the Mediterranean. In 1992, it began flying to Russia and expanded to Kenya in 2000 and Thailand in 2001.