RJ resumes direct route to Damascus, offering 4 weekly flights

AMMAN — Royal Jordanian Airlines (RJ) on Friday relaunched direct flights to Damascus, offering four weekly flights to the Syrian capital after years of service suspension.

The route reconnects Damascus to RJ’s global network, which spans over 45 destinations across Europe, the Americas, the Middle East, and the Arabian Gulf, according to the Jordan News Agency, Petra.

Vice Chairman and CEO of RJ Samer Majali and Executive Director of Corporate Communications Razan Jabarat accompanied the inaugural flight that arrived at Damascus International Airport on Friday morning.

On January 7, a RJ plane carried a delegation of technicians from the Civil Aviation Regulatory Commission (CARC) to evaluate the airport's technical and logistical conditions in preparation for the possible resumption of Jordanian flights to Syria's capital.

Chairman of CARC Haitham Misto said at the time that the flight was part of an effort to assess the feasibility of reopening the Amman-Damascus route, describing the mission as both a technical assessment and a gesture of support for the reactivation of Syrian air traffic.

Misto, who was aboard the flight with a team of CARC technical experts and representatives from RJ, also said that the visit aimed to evaluate the airport’s infrastructure and operational readiness.

International flights resumed at Syria's main airport in Damascus on January 7 for the first time since rebels toppled president Bashar Al Assad last month.

Qatar Airways also resumed flights to Damascus after a nearly 13-year hiatus, with three weekly flights scheduled.