New York: Emirates Group’s air and travel services provider dnata announced Thursday that Royal Jordanian Airlines has awarded it a multi-year contract at John F Kennedy International Airport (JFK) in New York.
Under the agreement, dnata will provide passenger, ramp and baggage services to the Jordanian flag carrier, which operates a daily service between JFK Terminal Eight and Queen Alia International Airport (AMM) in Amman. “dnata’s team will contribute to a quality travel experience for 125,000 passengers on Royal Jordanian’s 360 annual flights,” it explained. dnata has been providing similar services for Royal Jordanian in Detroit since 2019.
David Barker, dnata’s Regional CEO, Airport Operations—Americas, said, “We are proud to expand our relationship with Royal Jordanian Airlines into New York. Our experienced team looks forward to contributing to the airline’s success by providing our best-in-class services.”
The air and travel services provider serves over 30 airlines at JFK International Airport out of terminals One and Four. dnata employs 1,100 aviation professionals who handle over 21,000 flights annually.
It provides a range of ground handling, logistics and cargo services to more than 70 airline customers throughout the USA with 3,300 customer-oriented employees. In the financial year 2023-24, dnata turned around over 60,000 flights in the USA, handling over 18 million passengers and 200,000 tonnes of cargo.
dnata expansion in Europe
Earlier this week, dnata announced it had made further inroads into the European market by winning a multi-year ground handling contract with easyJet at Zurich Airport (ZRH) in Switzerland. dnata provides ramp and baggage services to the low-cost carrier for an estimated 640,000 passengers on easyJet’s 3,800 annual flights. The company has provided all de-icing services for the airline in Zurich since 2022.
Willy Ruf, Managing Director of dnata Switzerland, said, “We will continue to invest in our team, infrastructure, and equipment to deliver the highest value for our customers.”
dnata currently operates at two Swiss airports, ZRH and Geneva Airport (GVA), providing a range of ground handling and cargo services to more than 30 airlines with 1,100 employees. In the financial year 2023-24, dnata’s team assisted eight million passengers and moved over 90,000 tonnes of cargo in Geneva and Zurich.
Decarbonisation journey
At its home base in Dubai International Airport, dnata announced earlier this month that the company’s non-electric airside vehicles and ground support equipment (GSE) are now operating on a biodiesel blend.
In partnership with Dubai Airports and Emirates National Oil Company Group (ENOC), the deal is projected to cut CO₂ equivalent emissions by over 3,500 tonnes annually. This is equivalent to over 21 million kilometres driven by an average diesel-powered car.
The initiative has been gradually rolled out across dnata’s extensive ground handling and cargo operations at the two Dubai airports, Dubai International (DXB) and Al Maktoum—Dubai World Central (DWC). It involves 2,500 vehicles, which support operations of over 220,000 flights annually.
Since last summer, dnata logistics, City Sightseeing Tours, Arabian Adventures, and Alpha Flight Services in the UAE have been using a blend of biodiesel across their landside fleets.
Steve Allen, CEO of dnata Group, said, “Our latest initiative to switch all our non-electric airside vehicles to biodiesel in Dubai is a big step forward in our decarbonisation journey. It demonstrates our dedication to cutting emissions, a core part of our environmental strategy, while maintaining the highest quality and safety across our operations.”
