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EDITOR IN CHIEF- ABDULLAH BIN SALIM AL SHUEILI

Oman Air to link new routes with tourism strategy

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Muscat: Profitability will be the main criteria for the national airline, Oman Air, when it announces new routes in 2020, which was revealed by a top executive on Monday.


Speaking to the Observer, Mustafa al Hinai, CEO, Oman Aviation Group, said fleet expansion for Oman Air is currently on hold, with the company trying to analyse the regional capacity.


“I always believed that the regional capacity is overstretched, and the new routes to be launched by Oman Air will focus on linking cities with Oman as part of the national tourism strategy. We are working with the Ministry of Tourism and organising workshops to identify and explore new destinations,” he added.


Based on profitability, in 2020, the company will decide on having additional aircraft.


The airline will launch daily flight to Athens from June and the seasonal operations to Alexandria in late May.


The decision to ground Boeing 737 Max aircraft is not the company’s, but a decision taken by many countries around the world.


“There are regulatory bodies like FAA and EASA that certify the airworthiness of an aircraft. As we believe in the product that has been very efficient in nature, we will continue to have it as long as it is safe to do so,” Hinai added.


At the same time, he added: “We are concerned about the safety of our passengers and we will not allow disruption to Oman’s clean safety record in the field of aviation.”


https://www.facebook.com/omanobserver/videos/2482352388510353/


He added that OAG is hoping that the Public Authority for Civil Aviation (PACA) will sign bilateral agreements with countries in Africa, Asia, apart from negotiations with the EU for open skies.


He said Oman has ‘fourth freedom of air’ with over 100 countries which allows direct flights between two destinations and “we are hoping on more freedoms.”


Cargo hub


The company is also focusing on developing the right infrastructure for a cargo hub, including a master hub for leading brands.


Around 223,000 tonnes of air freight was handled in 2018, and the OAG has been working with strategic advisers guiding the company on global freight.


The savings on non-fuel expenses and procurement in 2018 stood at RO 34 million, while Oman airports budget saw savings of RO 18 million.


Overall, there has been an increase of 17.6 per cent in revenues and savings of RO 100 million due to factors like cost-cutting and marketing campaigns, among others.


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