oneworld

Royal Jordanian reported a 2016 net loss of JD24.6m ($34.5m), a sharp reversal from 2015’s net profit of JD16m. The carrier cited hefty provisions for foreign exchange losses for the negative results. Royal Jordanian also was affected by reduced yields over the year, as competition led to lower ticket prices. Full-year revenues declined 9% year-over-year to JD598.3m as a result of increased competition from both full-service airlines and LCCs. The company’s fare levels dropped 11%. Chairman Said Darwazeh said the main reason for the loss was the need to make provision of JD19.5m for the devaluation of the Sudanese pound and Egyptian pound. A further provision of JD3.5m had been required to cover the cost of voluntary staff release, he said. <br/>

American Airlines is planning to decrease the front-to-back space between some of its economy class seats by another 2 inches. The airline says it plans to add more seats on its coming Boeing 737 Max jetliners. To do that, it will shrink the distance between seats from 31 inches to 29 inches on 3 rows of the airplane, and down to 30-inches in the rest of its main economy cabin. American isn't the only big airline heading in this direction. United Airlines is considering a similar move, according to a person briefed on its evaluations. The move signals a new step in the shrinking of US airline cabins, and comes even as carriers are promising to improve overall customer service. With the change, American will become the first large US carrier to offer legroom with a pitch that's nearly on par with ULCCs Spirit Airlines and Frontier Airlines. <br/>