An El Al Boeing 777. Photo: Jason Harris
el al
national airline of israel, 1948
When new Israeli President Chaim Weizmann needed to fly home to Israel from Switzerland, the Israeli government had to send a civilian aircraft — the Swiss wouldn’t allow a military plane to land. The Israeli Air Force converted one of their planes to civilian service, painted it blue and white, named it “Rehovot” (the town where Weizmann lived) and then painted a phrase on the fuselage: El Al, meaning “to the skies.” Thus Israel’s national airline was born. El Al has been involved in some of Israel’s most daring rescue and military missions and is widely considered to be one of the most secure airlines in the world. It’s headquartered at Ben Gurion International Airport outside Tel Aviv.