2016 has been an eventful but tough year for the travel and aviation industry in the sultanate. 

As the nation continues to reel from low oil prices companies and industries across board have significantly cut down travel budgets. This has impacted the travel companies, agents and airlines who have been growing in double digit over the years. Travel management companies have said that they have seen a dip in growth for the industry and overall market the market has been affected, however they see this is as a temporary phenomenon.

The aviation industry has seen some interesting developments this year with the launch of Oman’s first low cost carrier and the announcement of new direct flights to the country by many airlines.

Oman's first LCC

Earlier this year in a landmark move Oman unveiled the brand identity of its first ever low cost airline SalamAir and its CEO François Bouteiller said during the launch that airline will take Oman’s burgeoning airline sector to new heights and proudly contribute to the progress, development, and prosperity of the country by facilitating travel for business, leisure, and tourism.

H E Dr Mohammed bin Nasser al Zaabi, CEO of the Public Authority for Civil Aviation (PACA) said, “With the high demand for a low cost airline services in Oman and with the quantum leap development and expansion of Omani Airports, there are tremendous opportunities for SalamAir to make a significant impact. By allowing more than one air operators in Oman we look forward to providing better services to the public and the full utilisation of Omani airports.”

SalamAir which was awarded its air service operator licence by PACA in early 2016, and its fleet of three Airbus A320s is scheduled to take to the skies at the end of the year. With its first flight destined from Salalah to Muscat, the low cost carrier plans to extend its operations to include the whole of Middle East. 

The brainchild of Muscat National Development and Investment Company (ASAAS), a national investment and development company, SalamAir was formed to meet Oman’s rapidly increasing demand for air traffic, which is expected to grow by 40 per cent by 2019. ASAAS has made a substantial initial investment in SalamAir, its anchor

venture, with the ambition to advance the airline as a catalyst for Oman’s development and diversification agenda, and as a key component of the broader efforts to promote tourism and hospitality across the sector’s value chain.

New airlines

The aviation sector has also got a boost with the entry of new airlines as well as the launch of direct  flights by existing players.

British Airways has launched a direct flight from London to Muscat, which will operate five times a week (except Wednesdays and Fridays). The UK, in addition to having a significant number of their nationals living in Oman, is also one of the most important inbound tourism market for Oman. Additionally, the UK is attracting a large number of business person, investors, and

Omanis students, all of whom frequently travel between Muscat and London.

Indian carriers too have been adding more flights and connecting more Indian cities to Muscat.  Jet Airways earlier this year started its direct flight from Muscat to New Delhi. With the launch of the new flight, Jet Airways will operate a total of four daily flights between Muscat and India. This includes flights to Mumbai, Kochi and Thiruvananthapuram. The total number of Jet Airways flights from the Gulf now is 35.

Close on the heels of Jet Airways, low-cost Indian carrier

IndiGo, started direct daily flights from Muscat to Kochi in June.  Currently, IndiGo operates seven flights a week to Mumbai from Muscat. Sri Lankan Airways has restarted direct flights to Muscat after the gap of a year.

The addition of new direct flights to the sultanate is a significant step towards Oman Airport Management Company’s (OAMC) strategic goal of placing the country’s airports amongst the top 20 in the world by 2020. The number of international airlines operating at Muscat International Airport now totals 33 carriers.

US-Bangla Airlines, which was voted the best domestic airline in Bangladesh in 2015, started its operations in the sultanate in November. It will fly four times a week from Muscat to Dhaka, Chittagong and Sylhet. The airline plans to increase its flight to daily from December.

Private charters

Salalah Air, the sultanate’s first charter air service provider is expected to begin flights early next year with plans to operate from Salalah, Duqm, Sohar and Muscat. The company which is headquartered in Salalah, also has plans to introduce the concept of Oman’s first Flying Club and Adventure Sports Centre as part of its development strategy.

Sam Owen, CEO of Salalah Air, said that it is entirely an Omani-owned company and their vision is to become the No 1 charter air service provider in the sultanate while remaining true to the traditions and culture of Oman.

Earlier in July in a step towards opening up the aviation market to private players, PACA had granted preliminary approval to two operators to start private jet operations in the country. PACA has issued a No Objection Certificate (NOC) for a Class B licence to Salalah and Al Sharqiyah aviation companies under which they can operate jets with a capacity of 19 seats or less and a maximum take-off weight of less than ten tonnes.

The new Muscat International Airport is expected to be completed in 2017 and will have the capacity to cater to 12mn passengers in the first year and it will rise to 48mn in Phase 4.

The new airport building is spread over 580,000sq m and will have 96 standard check-in counters and 20 self-service kiosks including provision for about eight lounges. The luggage handling system will have the capacity to handle 5,200 bags per hour. The building has 12,000sq m for duty free which will also comprise retail and food and beverage outlets. In addition, there will be a hotel with 90 rooms.

Travel companies hope this will increase the frequencies of leading airlines to various destinations and commencement of new routes will enhance passenger traffic into Oman. They believe this along with other investments like the Oman Convention Centre will give the much required fillip to the travel and aviation industry going forward. They see the current challenges as a temporary phenomenon and once the global situation changes and the oil prices go up they expect business to be back to normal. 

© businesstoday 2016