Royal Jordanian is well-known for its tongue-in-cheek promotional material. Jordan's flag carrier airline raised eyebrows in October with this cheeky innuendo-filled newspaper ad:
Ladies and gentlemen, @RoyalJordanian ad. No comment. Causing a stir on social media. I wonder why! pic.twitter.com/7yBI8WhiXz
— Natasha Tynes (@NatashaTynes) October 30, 2016
The advertisement stirred angry reactions on social media, with many suggesting such smut was beneath a “royal” company.
The airline was on more stable ground, however, when it launched a promotional campaign targeting the US President we all love to hate.
On election day in November, RJ shared the following advert mocking what, at the time, we all thought was little more than Donald Trump’s empty threat to ban Muslims from entering America. How wrong we were.
Now, following Trump’s unexpected election and his infamous executive order on immigration, signed within days of entering office, Royal Jordanian have yet again seized an opportunity to troll the American leader.
In a new ad, tweeted on Sunday, the company plays on the so-called “Muslim ban”, which initially suspended visas to visitors from seven Muslim-majority countries, including Jordan’s Syrian and Iraqi neighbors.
#DonaldTrump #MuslimBan pic.twitter.com/rptY3dS3Xh
— Royal Jordanian (@RoyalJordanian) February 5, 2017
With “bon voyage” written over the word “ban” in pen, the poster reads “fly to the US with RJ now that you’re allowed to”, referring to the court ruling which put a hold on Trump’s order on Friday.
Many on Twitter were amused by the well-time promotional push:
@RoyalJordanian Well played!
— T. A. (@zanesfather) February 6, 2017
Royal Jordanian Airlines is the best when it comes to trolling Donald Trump.
— Jamilla (@JamillaTweets) February 6, 2017
Before he won vs the latest troll pic.twitter.com/CTb08k1sud
Royal Jordanian had previously suggested it would comply with the new regulations, which prohibited passport-holders from the seven targeted countries from boarding flights to the US.
However, after a federal judge in Seattle placed a restraining order on the so-called “Muslim ban” over the weekend, they tweeted the following:
New instructions from the US Customs & Border Protection. #RJ #RoyalJordanian pic.twitter.com/LzeTtRvnQk
— Royal Jordanian (@RoyalJordanian) February 4, 2017
The US had canceled the visas of up to 60,000 travellers from Iraq, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Syria, Sudan and Yemen following the executive order. Many of those visitors have since been able to enter America, as the White House desperately attempts to overrule the court decision and reinstate the ban.
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