AMMAN (Petra) –– Royal Jordanian’s (RJ) exclusive rights to operate regular flights between the Kingdom and other countries expired as of Friday after an eight-year-operational privileges provided to the national carrier came to an end. According to Suleiman Obeidat, the chief commissioner of the Civil Aviation Regulatory Commission (CARC), the exclusivity deal given by the government to RJ in 2002 aimed at boosting RJ financial and operational performance and increasing its competitiveness to attract more investments. He added that ending the exclusivity rights is to keep in pace with the world’s open skies policy. Airline companies licensed to operate scheduled flights can carry out flights to any routes but have to meet CARC operational regulations, he added, stating that the annulment of RJ exclusive rights will offer more options for passengers in addition to encouraging airliners to improve their services. There are only two firms licensed to operate regular flights, the Royal Wings and the Royal Falcon, while the Jordan Aviation company is in the process of licensing, Obeidat noted.