RJ confident despite third-quarter profit slowdown

Chairman Nasser Lozi said that the profits were achieved despite the challenges that the air transport industry has been facing,   such as an increase e in fuel prices compared to last year.

Lozi said he had confidence in the measures the airline took to increase productivity, control costs and cut the operational expenditures without affecting the level of air and ground services offered passengers. He also expressed optimism that the Jordanian national carrier will end up this year with satisfying results.

Chief executive Hussein Dabbas said   operating revenues went up by 14.6%, to JD516 million, this year, from JD450 million for the comparison period last year.

Dabbas said that the regression in the net profits compared to last year's is attributed to the operational costs which increased from JD377 million in the first nine months of 2009 to JD450 million this year, an increase of 19.5%.

He added that the number of passengers carried on board RJ aircraft grew by 15%, from 2 million passengers in the first nine months of 2009 to 2.3 million this year. Thus, the seat factor rose from 67% to 71%.

Number of flights also increased by 9%, according to Dabbas, to reach 29,063 departures, against 26,770 departures operated in the comparison period last year. This led to a growth in the flying hours of the RJ fleet to 85,000 hours compared to 79,000 flown in the first nine months of 2009, which marks a 7% increase.

The uplifted cargo increased by 33%, as freighters, along with the passengers' aircraft, carried more than 44,000 tons in the first nine months of this year compared to 33,000 tons carried in the same period last year, said Dabbas.