Flight International online news 13:00GMT: Royal Jordanian Airlines selected Oneworld as its preferred alliance after being attracted to the group’s overall profitability, coverage and overall interest in the Middle East region.
Its accession to Oneworld will extend the alliance’s network to 609 destinations across 135 territories by adding two countries, Yemen and Iraq, and ten cities to its geographical coverage.
Speaking to ATI at an event in Amman to mark the acceptance of Royal Jordanian into Oneworld, the airline’s chief executive Samer Majali said that the carrier’s business plan complemented the needs of Oneworld in the region.
He says that Oneworld has been attracted by Royal Jordanian’s plans to develop a strong regional network and make heavy investments in such areas as information technology, electronic ticketing, passenger service and frequent-flyer programmes.
“It’s as if the Oneworld and Royal Jordanian strategies have come together,” he says.
Majali highlights the overall profitability of the Oneworld group – the alliance’s eight existing members collectively turned in a $2.9 billion operating profit in their last financial year – and points out that Royal Jordanian is also a commercially-run, profitable business.
“As we are profitable too, we belong to them,” he says. “Oneworld also has excellent global coverage and it takes a genuine interest in the region. We believe Oneworld has a clear edge over its competitors.”
Royal Jordanian is the first Middle East carrier to commit to one of the major airline groups. It will become a full member at the turn of 2006-07.
Only one Oneworld carrier presently serves the Jordanian market. British Airways’ Middle East franchise partner British Mediterranean Airways operates to Amman from its London Heathrow base.
British Airways, which began talks with the Jordanian carrier in February, has sponsored the airline’s entry into the alliance.
Speaking at the Amman event, British Airways chairman Martin Broughton said that the airline would assist Royal Jordanian – which has already passed a pre-membership audit of its services – to align its systems and processes to enable it to offer full Oneworld benefits.
“It’s no simple project, which is why we expect it to take a year or more to complete,” he says. But he is confident that Royal Jordanian will meet the requirements, adding: “We’re a pretty picky bunch – we aren’t going to let just anyone join.”
Spanish Oneworld member Iberia is presently the only one of the alliance’s members to have a bilateral agreement with Royal Jordanian, codesharing on the Madrid-Amman route.
Earlier this year Oneworld achieved full electronic ticket interlining between its members. Royal Jordanian will begin implementing bilateral agreements with other Oneworld members, according to traffic priority, over the next few months.
Source: Flight International
