Royal Jordanian (RJ, Amman Queen Alia) took delivery of its first A321-200(P2F), JY-RAZ (msn 3926), on March 21, replacing an A310-300(F) which was its sole in-house freighter.
The 14.8-year-old narrowbody was last operated in passenger configuration by British Airways. Leased from UMB Bank NA, it was converted by ST Engineering Aerospace at Singapore Seletar and ferried via Mumbai International and Abu Dhabi International to Amman Queen Alia but has yet to enter revenue service. Royal Jordanian had initially hoped to induct the A321 freighter into service in early February.
The ch-aviation schedules module shows JY-RAZ should enter revenue service imminently, connecting Amman with Dubai World Central, Cairo International, Maastricht, and Karachi International, later growing to a total of nine destinations. However, Royal Jordanian did not respond to a question about a specific induction date.
"Royal Jordanian aims to enhance Jordan's position as the logistics hub in the region and increase its share in the freight market on a regional and international level, supported by the new cargo terminal that is fully automated," it said in a statement.
The aircraft will replace A310 JY-AGQ (msn 445), which was retired at the end of June 2023 and has since been stored at Amman. For the last nine months, Royal Jordanian has not had any in-house dedicated freighter capacity.
Chief Executive and Vice-Chairman Samer Majali told ch-aviation that the airline planned to build experience with the A321 freighter before expanding its cargo fleet.
The ch-aviation fleets module shows that Royal Jordanian also operates four A319-100s, nine A320-200s, two A321-200s, seven B787-8s, two E175s, two E195s, and two E195-E2s. It plans to grow its fleet to 41 aircraft by 2027 by adding six B787-9s, three E190-E2s, and three more E195-E2s. The A320ceo Family is due to be replaced by up to twenty A320neo Family aircraft.
