1st direct KLM flight from Amsterdam arrives in Las Vegas

Officials in Las Vegas are marking the start of direct KLM Royal Dutch Airlines service from Amsterdam following the arrival of the first scheduled flight.

A water arch ceremony greeted the Boeing 787-9 from Amsterdam Airport Schiphol after it landed a little before 2 p.m. Thursday at McCarran International Airport.

The flight took 10 hours and 20 minutes.

KLM President and CEO Pieter Elbers says Las Vegas is KLM's 18th North Atlantic destination.

Airport executive Rosemary Vassiliadis (vas-ill-ee-AH'-des) says that beginning July 2, flights seating 294 passengers will operate Tuesdays, Thursdays and Sundays.

McCarran airport is a short distance from the Las Vegas Strip.

It handled almost 50 million passengers in calendar 2018, making it one of the 10 busiest airports in the U.S. based on passenger count.

___

This story has been corrected to show the flight landed Thursday.