Expat families on vacation feel the pinch as airfares get expensive
Published: 04:08 PM,Aug 15,2022 | EDITED : 08:08 PM,Aug 15,2022
As the schools have reopened, expatriate families who went on holidays to their home countries are now caught in a fix as the Muscat-bound airfare has hit the roof requiring them to shell out huge funds for tickets.
A one-way ticket from one of the south Asian sectors to Oman would cost anything around RO 120 to RO 200 starting September and a family of five is fearing a deep hole in their wallet with the tickets.
'Yes, schools are resuming and families have begun to come back to Oman, rates of tickets have gone high according to the demand,' said Sunil D'Souza, CEO, Travel City.
He added: 'It's a hard nut to crack whether they are referring to the cost of tickets being high and school expenditures making them a bit weighed upon.'
Flights have been busy with incoming passengers who had gone for summer holidays and August-September are the months these families return to Oman.
'Rates of airlines are pretty high both ways, it’s due to the fact more demand and less capacity hence higher price one is paying,' adds Sunil.
Experts in Aviation furthered it saying that airlines are not able to operate to their 100 per cent capacity across the globe.
'They are facing staff shortages -- pilots, baggage handlers and ground handling -- as a result, many airlines have cancelled their flights and are operating between 50-70 per cent of their assets on the ground.
It might take a while before full capacity is utilised and more staff are hired onboard.
'A number of reasons contribute to the high traffic to Oman and families returning after vacation is just one among them,' says Venkat, representative of GoFirst Airline, a budget airline that operates to Indian sectors.
'Primary reasons for heightened traffic is because ease of travel restrictions and renewed business opportunities created by the government for corporates have increased the inflow of passengers, as new recruitment are taking place in Oman,' he adds.
The section of passengers which is worst affected by this sudden jump in fares is undoubtedly the working class who, most often, buy tickets from their pockets.
'There are also strong family visits and the tourism sector is also getting a fair share of inflow passengers. We need to note that families are also coming back from holiday as schools are reopening after the school summer break. And this trend would continue for next couple of months too as it has always been the case, a demand-supply equation,' Venkat adds.
@kabeeryousef
A one-way ticket from one of the south Asian sectors to Oman would cost anything around RO 120 to RO 200 starting September and a family of five is fearing a deep hole in their wallet with the tickets.
'Yes, schools are resuming and families have begun to come back to Oman, rates of tickets have gone high according to the demand,' said Sunil D'Souza, CEO, Travel City.
He added: 'It's a hard nut to crack whether they are referring to the cost of tickets being high and school expenditures making them a bit weighed upon.'
Flights have been busy with incoming passengers who had gone for summer holidays and August-September are the months these families return to Oman.
'Rates of airlines are pretty high both ways, it’s due to the fact more demand and less capacity hence higher price one is paying,' adds Sunil.
Experts in Aviation furthered it saying that airlines are not able to operate to their 100 per cent capacity across the globe.
'They are facing staff shortages -- pilots, baggage handlers and ground handling -- as a result, many airlines have cancelled their flights and are operating between 50-70 per cent of their assets on the ground.
It might take a while before full capacity is utilised and more staff are hired onboard.
'A number of reasons contribute to the high traffic to Oman and families returning after vacation is just one among them,' says Venkat, representative of GoFirst Airline, a budget airline that operates to Indian sectors.
'Primary reasons for heightened traffic is because ease of travel restrictions and renewed business opportunities created by the government for corporates have increased the inflow of passengers, as new recruitment are taking place in Oman,' he adds.
The section of passengers which is worst affected by this sudden jump in fares is undoubtedly the working class who, most often, buy tickets from their pockets.
'There are also strong family visits and the tourism sector is also getting a fair share of inflow passengers. We need to note that families are also coming back from holiday as schools are reopening after the school summer break. And this trend would continue for next couple of months too as it has always been the case, a demand-supply equation,' Venkat adds.
@kabeeryousef