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by Shirajiv Sirimane

In response to the growing demand from both local and expatriate passengers the Royal Jordanian Airlines (RJA) will add its third frequency to Colombo from July.

According to the area manager for Sri Lanka and Maldives RJA, Jihad Mehyar, a new airbus A-310 aircraft will be utilised on all three days of operation. "This is in addition to our usual Thursday and Saturday flights. The new flight will arrive every Monday 7.45 a.m. and depart at 9 a.m."

Mehyar who will be in Sri Lanka for two years said, that soon after signing the peace accord there was a steady demand for seats. "A lot of European tourists and Jordanians were travelling to Colombo while Sri Lankan expatriates seeking employment in Jordan too increased."

He said that from June the airline will expand its frequency to Moscow operating two weekly flights between Amman and Moscow on every Monday and Friday. "Passengers bound for Moscow will be offered one night's full board complementary accommodation at a star class hotel and passengers returning will have only a one-hour transit time to Colombo." Mehyar said that the reason for their interest in Moscow is to attract Sri Lanka's student market which is also growing.

He said that the airline also operates a Freighter flight every Monday. He said that the RJA is introducing this flight at a time when the globe airline industry is under going a recession period. "The problems for the industry started with the September 11 attack in US and the Iraq war and the SARS epidemic aggravated the situation."

He said that most of the European and other nationals living outside Asia think that SARS has affected the whole of Asia. He commended the Ceylon Tourist Board for doing healthy promotions to clear this misconception and this was the main reason for Sri Lanka to still attract tourists. "The 'Destination Sri Lanka' exhibition which will be held in Colombo too would be a major tourist attraction."

He said that the RJA operates to 49 destinations and the only risky destination with regard to SARS is to Thailand. "We have taken special precautions and the airline conducts their own screening in Bangkok in addition to the airport procedures. We have given special training to our cabin crew in this regard as well."

He said that their rates are very competitive and the airline is also offering two class of services, Crown Class and Economy. "The Crown Class which is equivalent to First Class service is offered at business class prices. This class was introduced two years ago and is very popular."

Mehyar who was in the industry for 27 years said that the airline offers two unique packages for their passengers. "We offer the facility for passengers to request for their seat at the time of purchase of the ticket and if a passenger is in transit, the airline will give the next boarding card at the first destination." The national carrier of Jordan which was founded in 1963 today owns 15 aircraft and the airline commenced their Colombo operations in 1991. According to Mehyar the management headed by their President Samer Majali is looking out for a strategic partner to expand.

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