Royal Jordanian (RJ) President/CEO Samer Majali said the national carrier slashed its losses by half in 2021, compared to 2020, expecting to reach the equilibrium point next year by implementing a package of measures for growth and expansion in operations.
In his interview with “Petra,” on Saturday, Majali noted the RJ is “still waiting for government support to enable the airline to overcome losses due to the Covid-19 induced repercussions.”
RJ will not have the capability to compete and grow in the future if government support is not available, whose contribution in the company now stands at 85%, according to Majali.
On the airline’s current financial situation, he said the Covid-19 pandemic-related repercussions have caused the RJ JD160 million in losses in 2020, in addition to accumulated losses in 2019 of about JD80 million, bringing the total to JD240 million.
Losses will soon affect the RJ’s capital, which calls for “urgent” government intervention to save the airline that “suffered losses beyond its control” during the Covid-19 pandemic, Majali warned.
“RJ requested government financial support worth JD200 million to increase its capital,” he said, stressing that the government has the responsibility to support RJ as a strategic tool for the Jordanian state to maintain operations worldwide.
RJ did not receive any support for its losses during the Covid-19 pandemic, like international airlines which received government assistance, in recognition of the level of impact of the Covid-19 crisis repercussions on their revenues that collapsed due to the suspension of global travel, according Majali.
SOURCE: JORDAN NEWS AGENCY