Oman Air launched a new service to Taif on Saturday, with the chief commercial officer saying the airline has returned to positive growth and is now scaling up capacity sharply in 2026, backed by fleet additions and more route announcements due mid-year.
In an interview with Oman Observer on the sidelines of the launch, the executive said Oman Air’s network investments over the past 12 months had added “nearly RO 800 million” to the economy of Oman through wider tourism, services, and jobs effects.
He said expanded services into Salalah — beginning with Moscow–Salalah — are expected to add “over RO 320 million” to the economy of Dhofar, describing the programme as “transformational” in supporting employment, and visitor flows in line with Oman Vision 2040.
On Saudi Arabia, he said the airline has long served major cities including Riyadh, Jeddah, and Medina, and that adding Taif will strengthen travel options by allowing passengers to fly into one city and depart from another — a benefit he said should support business travel and, increasingly, religious traffic as access to key gateways for pilgrimage becomes more constrained during peak demand.
The executive said Oman Air increased capacity to Salalah by 19% in 2025 and by a further 20% in the first three months of 2026.
For the full year, he said the airline expects capacity to rise by 30% domestically from Salalah.
Looking ahead, he confirmed Singapore has been announced as a major new destination and said the airline will make three additional “big announcements” mid-year for capacity due to come online in the October–November period, including new Far East destinations.
On fleet, he said another Boeing 737-8 Max is scheduled to arrive from Seattle, supporting the expanded schedule as the airline rebuilds its network.
“Oman Air has been transformed,” he said. “It has returned to positive growth. It is much better financially. It can make Oman proud again.”
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