Royal Jordanian to launch African routes in December

Royal Jordanian will launch services to Lagos and Nairobi in December as it seeks to expand its African footprint. The carrier said the move would give a boost to Jordan's tourism industry, taking advantage of the potential in some major West and East African countries. RJ president and CEO Hussein Dabbas said that the company will operate flights to Lagos, the economic and financial capital of Nigeria, from December 3, while flights to Nairobi, the capital of Kenya, will launch on December 16. The airline added that it is conducting studies to see whether it is feasible to inaugurate routes to Accra, capital of Ghana, and Addis Ababa, the capital of Ethiopia. Dabbas said the launches were part of the company's effort to find new tourism and travel markets, given the decline in traditional markets of Europe and North America. Dabbas said that connecting Amman with African cities was likely to attract large numbers of tourists to the kingdom, particularly Muslim pilgrims who wish to continue their flights to Makkah and Madinah in Saudi Arabia, and Christians, who come to Jordan to visit the Baptism site and other Christian holy sites. Royal Jordanian will operate two flights a week to Lagos while Nairobi will be served by four flights a week.