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| Founded | 1963 as Alia - Royal Jordanian Airlines | |||
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| Hubs | Queen Alia International Airport | |||
| Focus cities | Aqaba Airport | |||
| Frequent-flyer program | Royal Plus | |||
| Airport lounge | Crown Lounge | |||
| Alliance | Oneworld (2006) | |||
| Subsidiaries |
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| Fleet size | 37 (+13 orders/leases, 4 options) incl. cargo | |||
| Destinations | 59 39 Countries | |||
| Company slogan | "The Art of Flying" | |||
| Headquarters | Housing Bank Commercial Center Amman, Jordan |
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| Key people | Hussein Dabbas (CEO) | |||
| Website | rj.com | |||
Royal Jordanian Airlines (Arabic: الملكية الأردنية; transliterated: al-Malakiyah al-Orduniyah) is the flag carrier of Jordan with its head office in Amman, Jordan,[1] operating scheduled international services over four continents from its main base at Queen Alia International Airport at Amman (AMM) Jordan. Royal Jordanian (RJ) is a member of the Arab Air Carriers Organization and of Oneworld, a global airline alliance. Royal Jordanian won the Centre for Asia Pacific Aviation award for "Airline Turnaround of the Year 2006" on 9 November 2006.[2] The airline operates over 500 flights per week, with at least 110 daily departures. In 2005 the company was able to buy its initialism and IATA code "RJ" as an Internet address, RJ.com. Royal Jordanian was voted "Airline of the Year 2007" by Airfinance Journal
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The airline was established on 9 December 1963 and started operations on 15 December 1963 after a royal decree by the late King Hussein. It was named Alia (or Aalya) after King Hussein's first child, Princess Alia. It is a common misconception that the airline was named after the King's third wife, Queen Alia. The airline was founded with capital from private shareholders but the Jordanian government later took over the company.
Alia (the Royal Jordanian Airline) started operations with two Handley Page Dart Heralds and a Douglas DC-7 aircraft, serving Kuwait City, Beirut and Cairo from Amman. In 1964, another DC-7 was added and service began to Jeddah. In 1965, Alia initiated service to Rome, its first destination in Europe. The progress made by the airline was threatened by an Israeli air raid during the 1967 Arab-Israeli War when the DC-7 aircraft were destroyed. They were replaced by two Fokker F-27 airliners.
In 1968, the airline expanded its route pattern to Nicosia, Benghazi, Dhahran and Doha. 1969 saw the addition of service to Munich, Istanbul and Tehran.
In 1970, Alia joined the jet age when they phased out the F-27s and ordered Boeing 707 aircraft. Frankfurt and Abu Dhabi were added to the network. The 707s were delivered in 1971. In that year, service was initiated to Madrid, Copenhagen and Karachi. During the rest of the decade, Boeing 720/727s and Boeing 747s were added to the fleet. A catering department was established, and duty-free shops were opened at Amman airport. Services were added to destinations including: Bahrain, Dubai, Muscat, Rabat, Geneva, Amsterdam, Baghdad, Bangkok, Vienna, Larnaca replacing Nicosia, Damascus, New York City, Houston, and Ras al-Khaimah. In 1979, Alia became a founding member of the Arab Airlines Technical Consortium (AATC).
In the 1980s, Tunis and Tripoli joined the route map, and Alia's IBM computer center was inaugurated. Lockheed L-1011s, Airbus A310s and Airbus A320s joined the fleet. In 1986, Alia changed its name to Royal Jordanian. The airline's first woman pilot flew one of their aircraft during this decade. Service was added to Belgrade, Chicago, Los Angeles, Miami, Bucharest, Singapore, Riyadh, Kuala Lumpur – in cooperation with MAS, Sana'a, Moscow, Montreal, Delhi, Calcutta and Ankara. This decade also saw the introduction of the Gabriel Automated Ticket System – (GATS).
The 1990s saw further expansion. Royal Jordanian and nine other Arab air carriers signed up for the Galileo CRS. The IMCS maintenance and engineering system was added, a new Amman city air terminal was opened at the 7th Circle of the Jordanian capital, and services to Rafah started, since then halted. The cities of Toronto, Colombo, Jakarta, Berlin, Mumbai, Milan and Tel Aviv were added to the network. In November, 1997 Royal Jordanian became a code-sharing partner with the US carrier TWA and eventually moved operations into the TWA Flight Center (Terminal 5) at the John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York.
In 2000, the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) renewed the airline's maintenance and engineering department's license. The duty-free shop was among the services to be privatised. A holding company, RJI, wholly owned by the government, was incorporated as a public limited company in February 2001 to hold all the airline's and associated investments. The airline's name was changed on 5 February 2001 to Alia – The Royal Jordanian Airlines Company, although travellers still use the popular name of Royal Jordanian.
On 10 February 1996, the flag carrier's subsidiary Royal Wings started its first domestic service to Aqaba, the seaport on the Gulf of Aqaba, using a Fokker F-27. Royal Wings now operates an Airbus A320-212 aircraft on both scheduled and charter services to destinations in Egypt, Cyprus and Israel.
On 20 December 2006, Royal Jordanian announced that they would replace two Airbus A321s with two new units, and order four new Airbus A319s to enter service in early 2008.
In April 2007, Royal Jordanian became part of Oneworld, thus becoming the first Arab airline to join such a global alliance system. The following month, the airline announced an order for a total of 10 Boeing 787 Dreamliners, for service entry in 2010. This is the first order Royal Jordanian has placed with Boeing.[3]
Montreal, Canada, rejoined the network on 25 May 2007, after the route was cancelled in 1997. Also during May, Royal Jordanian was the sponsor of the World Economic Forum, which was held at the Dead Sea, Jordan.
On 11 July 2007, Royal Jordanian celebrated thirty years of non-stop service between Amman and New York City, making it the longest serving Arab airline to this gateway to the U.S.. RJ won the "Airline Strategy Award" in the technology category at the sixth annual Airline Strategy Awards on 16 July 2007. On 23 July, RJ saw the introduction of cargo flights, Damascus being the first destination served from Amman, using a Boeing 737.
Royal Jordanian made its first flight to Budapest, on 28 July, using an Embraer 195. In October, RJ announced the switch of two Embraer 195 jets of its original order to two Embraer 175 jets. Royal Jordanian opened a new lounge at King Hussein International Airport in Aqaba.
RJ will be the first Middle East airline to provide its passengers with OnAir’s in-flight Internet and mobile phone services, including e-mail, SMS and voice calls.[4] Royal Jordanian has upgraded its three Airbus A310s at a cost of over 10 million Jordanian dinars (JOD).
Royal Jordanian was privatised at the end of 2007, resulting in 71% of its assets being sold. The market capitalisation of the company stands at 260 million JOD, and share-trading commenced on 17 December 2007.
On 24 December 2007, Royal Jordanian confirmed Baku as one of its new destinations for 2008, using an Embraer 195 twice weekly from Amman. In early 2008, however, RJ officials decided against the new route, citing that high fuel prices and a new market were a risk too large to take at that time. Royal Jordanian plans to operate the Amman-Baku route in late 2009 or early 2010. On 22 January 2008, RJ launched flights to Hong Kong via Bangkok, with three flights/week during winter, and five flights/week during summer, making it the airline's first route to China.[5]
The Airbus A319 entered service on 13 March 2008, making RJ the first Middle East airline to operate three aircraft of the Airbus A320 family.[6] On 17 August 2008, Royal Jordanian opened a new route to Kiev, using Embraer 195 jets for this twice weekly service. On 24 August 2008, Royal Jordanian opened its new lounge at Queen Alia International Airport Amman, replacing the "Petra" and "Jerash" lounges. The new lounge is located on the second floor of the South Terminal and is the second-largest airport lounge in the Middle East, being able to handle over 340 passengers.[7]
The airline recorded an 18% increase in passenger numbers in July 2008. With the airline transporting 278,000 passengers, the seat factor grew by 5% in that month to reach 81%.[8] As part of Royal Jordanian's commitment to its airline alliance Oneworld, an announcement was made at the alliance's 10th birthday celebrations on 3 February 2009 that RJ would paint its new A319 (due for delivery in late March) in a scheme that would be based around the Oneworld name and logo. This is the first special colour scheme Royal Jordanian will have used.[9]
Royal Jordanian resumed service to Brussels on 1 April 2009, six years after the route was discontinued by the airline, flying twice weekly from Amman with the airline planning to add a further two flights per week later in 2009.
On 28 March 2010, Royal Jordanian inaugurated regular direct flights to Madinah Munawwarah, Saudi Arabia, with four weekly flights. On the 23 March, Royal Jordanian confirmed that it had ordered two A330-200s and one Embraer 175. Royal Jordanian recommenced operations to Malaysia's capital Kuala Lumpur on June 2, 2010 after it had suspended this route in 2004. Aircraft used on this route is the new Airbus A330-200.
In May 2011, Royal Jordanian announced that they will retire the Airbus A310 aircraft in December 2011, and January 2012.
In November 2011, Royal Jordanian signed a lease agreement for four (4) Boeing 777-200ER aircraft from Egypt Air. The aircraft are expected to join the fleet in March 2012. The lease is expected to be until 2017, making it a five year dry lease.
Source: Royal Jordanian[10]
| Slogan | Year commenced | Year finished |
|---|---|---|
| "From Jordan to the world" | 1963 | 1968 |
| "Excellence in air" | 1968 | 1974 |
| "Journey in Royalty" and "The way you want to fly" | 1974 | 2005 |
| "Change is in the air" | 2006 | 2008 |
| "You're There." | 2008 | 2009 |
| "Reaching Destinations with More Comfort." | 2009 | 2010 |
| "The Art of Flying" | Late 2010 | Present |
During 2011, Royal Jordanian has used a few different slogans, such as "Change the way you fly."
The following information can be found in the 2009 Royal Jordanian Annual Report.[11]
| Year | Aircraft kilometers | Departures | Flying hours | Passengers | Seat factor | Employees | Profit/loss |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2002 | 37,767,709 | 17,096 | 55,970 | 1,339,779 | 66% | 3,008 | Loss 3,044,000 JOD |
| 2003 | 36,933,462 | 16,202 | 54,972 | 1,404,588 | 68% | 3,162 | Loss 9,753,000 JOD |
| 2004 | 44,557,377 | 19,148 | 66,004 | 1,736,637 | 71% | 3,313 | Profit 15,327,000 JOD |
| 2005 | 45,557,377 | 20,777 | 68,883 | 1,821,329 | 69% | 3,557 | Profit 20,516,000 JOD |
| 2006 | 52,274,917 | 25,661 | 77,374 | 2,004,559 | 66% | 3,799 | Profit 6,135,000 JOD |
| 2007 | 56,055,803 | 30,244 | 88,378 | 2,288,000 | 71% | 4,275 | Profit 24,111,000 JOD |
| 2008 | 64,379,058 | 34,285 | 101,381 | 2,701,000 | 72% | 4,507 | Loss 23,400,000 JOD |
| 2009 | 66,017,391 | 35,715 | 105,579 | 2,668,590 | 68% | 4,399 | Profit 28,614,000 JOD |
| 2010 | TBA | 39,000 | 112,969 | 3,000,000[12] | 71% | TBA | Profit 9,600,000 JOD |
| Year | Passengers | Cargo | Excess baggage | Airmail |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2005 | 285,913 | 45,944 | 4,413 | 2,364 |
| 2006 | 294,237 | 43,326 | 4,891 | 2,851 |
Royal Jordanian has codeshare agreements with the following airlines, some of which are also Oneworld partners (as of 19 December 2011[update]):
* Also members of Oneworld
The Royal Jordanian fleet consists of the following aircraft (as of 11 November 2011[update]):[14][15]
| Aircraft | Total | Orders | Options | Passengers | Notes | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| C | Y | Total | |||||
| Airbus A319-100 | 4 | — | — | 14 | 96 | 110 | New seats with AVOD Fitted with on-air mobile services JY-AYP painted in Oneworld livery |
| Airbus A320-200 | 5 | 5[16] | — | 16 | 120 | 136 | New seats with AVOD To be fitted with on-air mobile services 5 new A320s to replace current A320s |
| Airbus A321-200 | 4 | 2[16] | — | 20 | 148 | 168 | New seats with AVOD To be fitted with on-air mobile services Two will be replaced with two new A321s in 2012 |
| Airbus A330-200 | 3 | — | 24 | 259 | 283 | New seats with AVOD. | |
| Airbus A340-200 | 4 | — | — | 24 | 229 | 253 | New colour scheme New seats with AVOD Replacement aircraft: Boeing 787-8 (2015) |
| Boeing 787–8 | — | 11[17] | 4 | TBA | Entry into service: Summer 2015 Order includes 4 leases |
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| Embraer 175 | 3 | — | — | 12 | 60 | 72 | Regional Services |
| Embraer 195 | 5 | — | — | 12 | 88 | 100 | First Middle-Eastern airline to operate aircraft |
| Total | 27 | 13 | 4 | ||||
As of May 2011[update], the average age of the Royal Jordanian fleet was 4.5 years.[18]
In early 2009, Royal Jordanian returned both Fokker F28 Mk4000s to AirQuarius Aviation as it decided to use more efficient aircraft to Iraq, due to the high fuel prices. Since that decision was made RJ has been using its Embraer fleet to operate Iraqi routes.
Royal Jordanian intends to have a fleet of 38 aircraft by the year 2017. With 11 Boeing 787s, 4 Airbus A319s, 8 Airbus A320s, 6 Airbus A321s and 9 Embraer E-Jets.[15]
Royal Jordanian Cargo (Royal Jordanian Airlines Cargo) is the company's freight division operating to Africa, Europe, North America and Middle East. The airline also offers worldwide cargo charter services. Royal Jordanian Cargo flies to over 50 destinations including Baghdad, Tel Aviv, London, Vienna, New York, Cairo, Saudi Arabia, Chicago, Delhi, Brussels, Maastricht and Bangkok.
| Aircraft | In Fleet | Capacity | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Airbus A310-300F[19] | 2 | 35.5 tonnes | |
| Boeing 737-200F[20] | 1 | 14.5 tonnes | Operated by Transworld Aviation |
Royal Jordanian has also operated the following aircraft:[21]
| Aircraft | Total | Retired |
|---|---|---|
| Airbus A300 | 1 | 2001 |
| Airbus A310 | 2 | Beginning to retire Q2 2012 |
| Boeing 707 | 4 | 1998 |
| Boeing 727 | 4 | 1986–1990 |
| Boeing 747 | 4 | 1990 |
| Fokker F-28 | 2 | 2009 |
| Fokker F-27 | 3 | 1970 |
| Lockheed L-1011 | 9 | 1988–2000 |
| Total | 29 |
The airline has named its new aircraft after Jordanian cities. The older aircraft such as the Airbus A340 and Airbus A310 are named after members of the Hashemite Royal Family.
Source: Skyscraper City forum post[22]
| Aircraft | Names |
|---|---|
| Airbus A320-232 | Amman, Aqaba, Irbid, Madaba |
| Airbus A310-300 | Mount Nebo |
| Airbus A319-100 | Ma'an, Al-Mafraq, Al Shobak, Ajloun |
| Airbus A321-100 | Al-Karak, As-Salt, Al-Ramtha, Tafileh |
| Embraer 175 | Zay, Dana, Azraq |
| Embraer 195 | Petra, Wadi Rum, Maeen, Wadi Musa, Jerash |
| Airbus A340-200 | Prince Hussein Bin Abdullah, Princess Iman Bint Abdullah, Princess Salma Bint Abdullah, Queen Rania Al-abdullah |
| Airbus A330-200 | His Royal Highness Prince Ali bin Al-Hussein (JY-AIF), Jordan River (JY-AIE) and His Royal Highness Prince Faisal bin AL-Hussein (JY-AIG) |
Royal Jordanians's livery is a dark grey fuselage with the titles in gold both in English and Arabic. Red tips are located on the fins, winglets and engines of the aircraft as well as two strips, one gold and one red, down the fuselage. The fin contains a crown. This livery has been in use since 2006; before then the livery was similar, however the engines were not painted, and the fin did not have a curved stripe atop.
Until 2009 Royal Jordanian had never had an aircraft painted in a special colour scheme. It announced at the 10th birthday celebrations in February 2009 of the airline alliance Oneworld that it would paint its new A319 due for delivery in late March in a special scheme, which would be based around the Oneworld name and logo.
The aircraft, registration JY-AYP, has its fuselage painted white, with the tailfin and engines in normal Royal Jordanian colours. "A member of Oneworld" in prominent lettering is located at the front of the aircraft, with the usual title "Royal Jordanian" further back.[23]
Royal Plus is Royal Jordanian's frequent flyer program. Passengers are awarded points based on the type, class of flight and destination. Royal Plus members can also get points by traveling on other Oneworld airlines.
The four tiers in the Royal Plus Program are:
Card holders of Royal Jordanian's Royal Plus with either Silver, Gold or Platinum can use Oneworld airport services across the world while Gold and Platinum also have lounge access.
Food and drinks served on flights leaving Amman are provided by Alpha Group. Hot meals will be served on a flight of at least one hour length. If the flight is shorter than one hour the cabin crew will provide snacks and drinks throughout the flight. These flights include those to Tel Aviv, Beirut and Aqaba from Amman.
Royal Jordanian, remains the only international airline in the world to offer its Economy Class passengers three meal options to choose from beef, fish or poultry on any flight of over two hours duration.[24]
Royal Jordanian's onboard entertainment system is called "Sky Cinema".
Interactive games are available in all classes on all flights, as well as news provided by CNN on all flights.
On very short flights, from Amman to Tel Aviv, Amman to Beirut and Amman to Damascus, the AVOD system is turned on but there is only the selection of games, CNN News the "Flight Show" and the comedy channel. This is due to the flights being less than 45 minutes hence movies/shows would not be complete upon arrival.
Newspapers and magazines are available to all Crown Class passengers. Free newspapers are also provided to all Economy class passengers. The in-flight magazine, Royal Wings Magazine, is provided to all passengers.
Crown Class seats on the A340 are fully flat beds. On the A310, the Recaro manufactured seats are 6-foot (1.8 m)-long flat bed seats, with a 175 degree slope.
Seat pitch is 83 inches on the A340, 51 inches on the A310 and 46 inches on the short and medium haul aircraft.
In Economy Class Royal Jordanian offers 32-inch seat pitch on board its Embraer aircraft, whilst it offers 34-inch seat pitch on board its Airbus aircraft. All Royal Jordanian Economy class seats also offer a foot-rest.
On the new Airbus 330-200, Royal Jordanian offers lie-flat seats in Crown Class with a 62-inch seat pitch, as well as a 34-inch seat pitch in the economy class cabin
Crown Class passengers can use lounges across the world including all Oneworld member airline lounges. As of August 2008[update] Royal Jordanian operates two lounges: one in Amman, at Queen Alia International Airport, and one at Aqaba, at King Hussein International Airport. In August 2008 Royal Jordanian opened its new lounge, which can handle over 340 passengers. It is located in the South Terminal on the second floor and replaces the previous Jerash and Petra lounges in the airport. The new lounge is the second largest in the Middle East and provides facilities which include:
Since this is the only lounge at Queen Alia International Airport, it is also used by any passenger traveling business or first class in or out of Amman. Royal Jordanian announced that it was going to open three new lounges in Dubai, New York and London with the lounges set to open in late 2009 or early 2010.
Royal Jordanian's "Royal Vacations Program" sells vacations. Points from staying at Royal Jordanian partner hotels will give points towards the Royal Plus program.
Royal Jordanian has invested heavily in its crew training facility at its headquarters in Amman. As of 2008[update], Royal Jordanian employed 4,507 people.[28]
Royal Jordanian is the second-largest carrier in the Levant and the only major Arab carrier serving Israel. It began to put into place a new strategy at the end of 2002 which saw the airline concentrate on its neighboring nations, with increased frequencies. In a plan to establish itself as the Middle East's "regional airline" it began to add smaller routes such as Alexandria in Egypt to Aleppo in Syria which the bigger airlines, such as Emirates Airline, would not undertake with the larger aircraft compared to Royal Jordanian's regional jets. As of the end of 2008, the plan had proven successful for the airline, with its main rivals being Middle East Airlines and Egypt Air.[28]
Since 2008 Royal Jordanian has faced some competition within the Middle East. The arrival of many new low cost airlines such as Air Arabia, Jazeera Airways and flydubai have caused problems for the Jordanian airline. With the arrival of these new airlines Royal Jordanian has once dramatically improved its onboard and ground services.
The operation of private charter flights using aircraft from the Royal Jordanian fleet is uncommon, but may be arranged if aircraft of Royal Wings, the subsidiary company of Royal Jordanian, cannot meet customer requirements.
As of 2009[update] Haddadinco Engineering Company for Contracting is building the new Royal Jordanian head office in Amman.[29] The building was designed by Niels Torp.[30]
In the 1960s Alia's head office was in the Mango Building in Amman.[31]
Since the name of the carrier was changed to Royal Jordanian Airlines, the only fatal incident was when a hijacker, seeking political asylum, was killed on 5 July 2000, on board a Royal Jordanian Airbus A320 flying from Amman to Damascus.[32]
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