Royal Jordanian (RJ) announced that a new Airbus A320 aircraft joined its fleet on Wednesday. The aircraft was named after the northern city of Irbid, according to an RJ statement that was e-mailed to The Jordan Times yesterday. With the new aircraft joining its fleet, the airline said it has completed its plan of renewing medium-range aircraft that was launched at the beginning of 2011. Early this year, RJ launched its fleet modernisation programme for its medium- and short-haul fleet of A320 family, a deal that was sealed with the Dublin-based lessor, AWAS. The programme included replacing five operating A320s and A321s with five new ones of the same models, and introduced two additional A320s to further increase seat capacity to be able to accommodate the growing demand on travel year on year, the statement said. The airline’s medium-range fleet now consists of 15 aircraft of the A320 family: four A321s, seven A320s and four A319s, RJ statement explained. “By replacing the five- and six-year-old aircraft with newly manufactured ones, RJ aims to upgrade the level of cabin service offered to passengers,” the statement added, noting that operating a young fleet ensures a better service and saves the airline time and the cost of maintenance. The new A320 is configured with two cabins and seats for 136 passengers, 16 in the crown-class cabin. All seats are equipped with the touch screen Thales I5000 in-flight entertainment system. Moreover, the V2500 engines are designed to significantly reduce fuel consumption. RJ is now preparing to introduce Boeing 787s (Dreamliners) that will operate on the long-haul network. The first batch is expected to join RJ as of 2014. The planes will gradually join the fleet in the course of four years, to replace the currently operating A340s and A330s. The airline gave its aircraft names of famous Jordanian cities and tourist sites as part of RJ’s efforts to promote tourism to Jordan. Today, the fleet consists of 33 aircraft and serves almost 60 direct destinations spanning four continents, and more than 850 other cities through the RJ partners in the oneworld alliance.