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By CHRIS JONES
GAMING WIRE
Financial problems permanently grounded National Airlines on Wednesday, ending a brief and turbulent run for the Las Vegas-based carrier.
Only 41 months after its inaugural flight left McCarran International Airport on May 27, 1999, National Airlines Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Michael Conway announced late Wednesday afternoon the bankrupt airline would shut down.
"This is a very sad day for the 1,500 employees of National Airlines, the city of Las Vegas and Southern Nevada, as well as the traveling public who now have one less choice to meet their travel needs" Conway said in a statement.
"We exhausted every possible viable alternative in seeking funding to maintain our ability to fly and serve hundreds of thousands of people each month. Unfortunately, we could not obtain the support necessary and were forced to make the very difficult decision to cease operations."
National had operated under bankruptcy protection since December 2000 and recently tried to organize a $112 million debtor-in- possession financing package that was contingent upon the carrier securing three letters of credit as collateral for a $25 million loan from Foothill Capital, a subsidiary of San Francisco-based Wells Fargo & Co.
But last month an unnamed party in the airline's reorganization plan withdrew its pledge to contribute $2 million, a move that effectively doomed the airline.
Conway's statement said National "was unable to complete a previously announced agreement to the satisfaction of its senior management, board of directors, aircraft lessors and other key creditors."
Through September, National had carried 1.85 million passengers through McCarran in 2002, making it the airport's fourth-largest carrier based on passenger volume. The carrier operated an average of 35 daily flights between Las Vegas and 11 other U.S. airports.
Departing at 4:20 p.m., National Flight 354 was the carrier's last to leave the airline's Las Vegas hub. All outgoing flights scheduled to depart from McCarran at 4:30 p.m. or later, about 17, were canceled, airport spokeswoman Hilarie Grey said.
"Anything that wasn't in the air before 4:30 isn't going anywhere," Grey said.
National spokesman Dik Shimizu said he did not know how many passengers were affected by the airline's announcement, but he said Wednesday is typically one...