Jordan needs to support its airline like other nations, CEO says

Jordan risks the collapse of state airline Royal Jordanian unless it offers financial assistance as other countries have done for carriers, its chief executive said on Wednesday. "Every single airline got assistance from their governments except us," CEO Samer Majali said. "The government has been reluctant to provide the assistance because of the huge burden on the budget," said Majali, who returned to his role in April after a 12-year hiatus to steer the carrier through the pandemic, having weathered regional upheavals for more than 50 years. The only financial aid Royal Jordanian had received was a 50m dinar ($71m) cash injection last year, approved long before the pandemic, Majali said. "Half-baked and temporary, patchwork solutions will not work. Either there is a serious investment in RJ or the airline has no chance of survival," he added. Services to most of its destinations have resumed, setting the airline - which contributes indirectly more than $1 billion to the economy - on course to slash its losses by 55% this year and break-even in 2023, Majali said. But investment was needed. "What is required now is an investment in the airline ... But a decision has to be taken soon," Majali said.He said some 70% of the company's 250m dinars ($350m) of accumulated debt stemmed from having to ground its fleet last year. Profitable before the pandemic, it was the first Arab airline to be privatised in 2007, though the government later regained a majority stake via a series of capital raisings.<br/>