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Ryanair Expands Maintenance Ops in Amman with Joramco Deal

Under this extended partnership, Ryanair will make use of up to 6 heavy maintenance lines at Joramco’s Amman facility…reports Asian Lite News

Ryanair, Europe’s leading airline, has announced a significant expansion of its maintenance operations in Amman, Jordan, solidifying a crucial 5-year heavy maintenance agreement with Joramco. Joramco, a prominent MRO (Maintenance, Repair, and Overhaul) provider, is the engineering arm of Dubai Aerospace Enterprise (DAE) based in Jordan.

Under this extended partnership, Ryanair will make use of up to 6 heavy maintenance lines at Joramco’s Amman facility, where an impressive 41 checks are scheduled for this upcoming winter season. This arrangement offers Ryanair the much-needed flexibility in choosing maintenance locations as it prepares for the busy maintenance season ahead.

The sprawling 110,000 square-meter facility in Amman will serve as the hub for the rigorous heavy maintenance needs of Ryanair’s expanding fleet. Ryanair’s ambitious growth plans include increasing its fleet to 800 aircraft, including the recent order of 300 Boeing MAX-10s. These new aircraft are known for their fuel efficiency and greener technology, offering 21% more seats, burning 20% less fuel, and producing 50% less noise compared to the B737-NGs.

Ryanair employs a combination of in-house facilities and external suppliers for its heavy maintenance operations. This collaboration with Joramco complements the airline’s internal capabilities, ensuring that its extensive maintenance requirements are met in the years to come.

Ryanair’s Chief Operations Officer, Neal McMahon, expressed enthusiasm for the expansion in Jordan, stating, “We are thrilled to announce our expansion in Amman, confirming our 5-year heavy maintenance agreement with Joramco. Joramco has been providing heavy maintenance for our fleet for the past 4 years; however, this agreement allows Ryanair to utilize up to 6 heavy maintenance lines and conduct 41 checks this Winter season.”

He added, “Joramco is a long-established maintenance provider with state-of-the-art facilities and an excellent reputation for quality service in the industry. We are pleased to announce this new and enhanced deal, which ensures that Ryanair continues to have flexibility in choosing maintenance locations for the winter season.”

Fraser Currie, CEO of Joramco, expressed his excitement about the agreement, saying, “Joramco is delighted to have been supporting Ryanair with base maintenance for the last 4 years. This agreement is a testament to the vision and dedication of the Ryanair heavy maintenance management team and the excellent services delivered by the entire team at Joramco. We look forward to growing and enhancing the relationship in Jordan and delivering amazing opportunities for both the local workforce in Jordan and Ryanair’s customers.”

This expansion not only strengthens Ryanair’s maintenance capabilities but also signifies the growth and cooperation between the airline and its Jordanian partner, Joramco, in the ever-evolving aviation industry.

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-Top News EU News Europe

Ryanair sees sharp drop in loss

The rapid recovery in its traffic boosted the company’s revenue by 83 per cent to 2.15 billion euros…reports Asian Lite News

 Europe’s largest budget airline Ryanair said on Monday that it suffered a loss of 48 million euros ($56 million) in the first half of the fiscal year 2022 (H1 of FY 2022), compared to a 411-million-euro loss in the same period of the previous fiscal year.

The sharp drop in its loss was mainly due to the rapid recovery in its traffic numbers fueled by “the successful rollout of the EU (European Union) Digital Covid-19 Certificates in July”, an arrangement which allows holders of such certificates to travel freely within the EU member states and some other European countries, the airline added in a statement.

In the first half of the current fiscal year, which extends from April 1 to September 30, 2021, Ryanair handled a total of 39.1 million passengers, up 128 per cent from the 17.1 million passengers it handled in 2020, it said.

The traffic growth boosted the company’s revenue by 83 per cent to 2.15 billion euros, it added.

Lower fares also contributed to the increase of its traffic numbers, said the Ireland-headquartered airline, adding that the average fares were only 33 euros, down 30 per cent on the first half of the previous fiscal year, Xinhua news agency reported.

Ryanair said in the statement that its order for 210 new B737-8200 “Gamechanger” aircraft will ensure its position as a leading budget airline in Europe in the next decade.

The B737-8200 aircraft offer 4 per cent more seats, but consume 16 per cent less fuel and emits 40 per cent less noise, said the airline, adding that it will take the delivery of the 210 aircraft over the next five years with the first batch of over 65 aircraft to be received by the summer of 2022.

The airline said that it aims to increase its annual traffic to 225 million passengers in the fiscal year 2026, which will represent a 50-per cent growth from 149 million passengers it handled in the pre-pandemic year.

Over the next five years, Ryanair will also create 5,000 new jobs for pilots, cabin crew and engineers, said the statement, adding that it also plans to invest over 100 million euros in setting up two more training centres possibly in Spain and Poland during this period.

Ryanair currently has a workforce of 16,000 people. Prior to the pandemic, the company had an estimated 19,000 employees, according to the figures released by the airline on its website.

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-Top News EU News

Belarusian airlines banned from flying over EU

A sign with a portrait of the arrested Belarusian journalist Protasevich and the words "Free Roman Protasevich" is pasted on the ground outside the General Post (IANS)

The 27 countries are obliged “to deny permission to land in, take off from or overfly their territories to any aircraft operated by Belarusian air carriers”, the bloc announced, reports Asian Lite News

Starting from Saturday, Belarusian air carriers’ will be banned from flying over the European Union (EU) airspace and also using runways in response to the forced diversion of a Ryanair flight and detention of a dissident journalist and his girlfriend last month.

The 27 countries are obliged “to deny permission to land in, take off from or overfly their territories to any aircraft operated by Belarusian air carriers”, the bloc announced on Friday after member states envoys in Brussels formally signed off the move.

Belarusian
Demonstrators display Belarusian flags during a rally in Ukraine calling for the release of Raman Protasevich (Photo Ukrinform/dpa/IANS)

Belarusian journalist Roman Protasevich and Sofia Sapega were on board a commercial flight between EU countries Greece and Lithuania that was rerouted on May 23 to Minsk shortly before it reached Vilnius due to an alleged bomb threat, reports dpa news agency.

No bomb was found, but both were detained.

The bloc slammed the act as an affront to both air safety and freedom of the press.

The EU has also called on all bloc-based carriers to avoid flying over Belarusian territory.

The International Air Transport Association (IATA) condemned Minsk’s behaviour but also criticized the EU.

“Two wrongs do not make a right. Politics should never interfere with the safe operation of aircraft and politicians should never use aviation safety as a cover to pursue political or diplomatic agendas,” Willie Walsh, IATA’s director general, said in a statement.

The bloc is also preparing a package of economic sanctions on individuals involved in the incident, but this could still take some time to finalize, according to dpa’s diplomatic sources.

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-Top News UK News

Another Ryanair plane diverted to Berlin over potential threat

The plane was met by a group of police vehicles with lights flashing as it parked in a spot away from the main terminal…reports Asian Lite News.

In yet another flight diversion incident involving Ryanair, the Irish airline on Monday announced that a Poland-bound plane made an unscheduled landing in Berlin due to information received about a possible security threat on board.

The flight from the Irish capital Dublin to Krakow in Poland was diverted to the German capital at around 8 p.m. on Sunday because that was the closest airport, dpa news agency quoted the airline as saying.

The plane was met by a group of police vehicles with lights flashing as it parked in a spot away from the main terminal.

The 160 passengers and their luggage were taken off the plane and examined with the help of sniffer dogs, in an operation that lasted until 4 a.m. on Monday.

The passengers then continued on with their journey using a replacement aircraft.

German federal police said on Monday morning they had determined there was no danger to the aircraft but have yet to release details on the purported threat, saying only that it was a telephone call that had raised alarm.

German tabloids Bild and BZ said that there had been a bomb threat, but neither the police nor Ryanair confirmed those reports.

Sunday’s incident in Berlin comes exactly after a week after Belarusian authorities dispatched a fighter jet to force another Ryanair flight to divert to Minsk, where a dissident journalist who was on board was then arrested along with his girlfriend.

Roman Protasevich, a 26-year-old dissident journalist, and his partner were taken into custody after the landing on May 23, prompting a raft of measures by the EU, including restricted access to the bloc’s airspace for Belarusian carriers.

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