It seems like
public opinion concerning Royal Jordanian’s (RJ) quality of service is waning. I fly RJ about 12-16 times each year simply for the convenience of being able to check-in early at the 7th Circle City Terminal and the frequent flyer miles. (I use the term "convenience" loosely, as there are times when the unmanaged crowding and massive chaos makes early check-in a real chore.)
I’ve generally been a pretty decent supporter of RJ as they attempt to transform their airline from really bad to really mediocre. I hope that one day, RJ may rise through the ranks and become a really great airline, but that day has not yet arrived. Currently, quality of service on RJ is hit or miss.
My most recent experience with RJ was on a flight to and from the United States. The trip to the States was horrendous, while the return trip was much better.
Every trip out of Jordan starts in Queen Alia International Airport (QAIA), which is in pretty sad shape. The airport was built in 1983 but it was decorated in 1977 (or something like that). There are times when I wonder if the airport has been updated since its completion, aside from adding unnecessary obstacles to impede customer thoroughfare (such as the x-ray machines put in place to scan your luggage on the way
out of the airport).
I generally try not to use the bathrooms in the airport (for obvious reasons), but as I was waiting for my flight this last time, it couldn’t be helped; I felt the urge. And as I stepped foot in the bathroom, I remembered why it was such a bad idea. From the water pooling on the floor around the open drains to the filthy toilets; from the lack of toilet paper to the bathroom door that wouldn’t close (allowing all those passing by to peek in at those trying to do their “business”), the bathroom screamed dysfunction. Considering that the airport services around 8,000 travelers a day, you would think that taking care of people’s bathroom needs would be a higher priority.
But I digress. I don’t believe that Royal Jordanian airline has any control over the state of QAIA. It does, however, have control of their own airline schedules and services which, I’ve discovered, generally are lacking when departing from QAIA. My most recent trip to the States boarded over an hour late and left the tarmac an hour-and-a-half late! This is my second trip in a row to the States where the plane left over an hour late.
One would expect that RJ would be utilizing their best planes when it comes to their long-haul bread-and-butter flights. But as
Qwaider has documented, the dilapidated planes leave much to be desired. I’m especially disappointed in the entertainment options for a 12-hour flight: a couple 30-minute American television shows, a single trimmed-for-time movie and an hour-long. This dearth of content is available on a handful of fuzzy, badly colored screens or monitors positioned throughout the interior of the plane. I always hope against hope for the individual entertainment screens which are set into the back of each seat, but I’ve only managed to experience those on 1 or 2 of my trips throughout the year.
Due to our late departure from QAIA, we landed over an hour-and-a-half late in New York. Then it’s the typical wait in line for customs control and another 45-minute wait for luggage, which caused me to miss my connecting flight to Washington. I ended up having to stay overnight in a hotel and catch the next flight the following morning. RJ never offered any reparation for my inconvenience. (To be fair, the customs control and luggage wait were not the fault of RJ but, had we arrived on time, I would have never missed my flight.)
My return flight from Chicago, however, was much better. The flight boarded and left the airport exactly on time, which is most likely due to the strict penalties imposed by US airports for late departure. The plane was the same dumpy model, but the flight was pretty empty, so I was able to stretch out across several seats and get some rest. I guess the quality of the in-flight entertainment doesn’t matter as much when one is able to sleep through most of the trip. The flight staff (who were Japanese) were hospitable and the flight arrived 30-minutes early.
Here’s to hoping that the executives at RJ will listen to their valued customers and start to make some improvements. The goal should be consistent quality rather than the current hit-or-miss service that most have come to expect.
