Oman Air is looking to capitalise on the Gulf state’s appeal as a largely untapped tourism destination as it launches flights from Muscat to Singapore on Thursday and considers an expansion to North Asia over the next year.The new nonstop Singapore service was underpinned by a lower cost base and the airline’s year-old membership in the Oneworld alliance to aid with connections, as serving the city state with a stopover in Kuala Lumpur failed nine years ago, Oman Air CEO Con Korfiatis said in an interview.“Singapore is one of the major global hubs … and Singaporeans are among the most avid travellers in the world,” he said. “Oman has moved from being a transit point … to now also being a tourist destination, and that has created a different market opportunity.”Singaporeans are among the most avid travellers in the worldKorfiatis said the airline was targeting load factors, or the percentage of seats filled, in the mid-to-high 70 per cent range in year one for the Singapore route, and first-month bookings were tracking above that level.The eight-hour flight will be one of the world’s longest on a Boeing 737 Max 8 narrowbody and will run four days a week.The airline is also eyeing a return to North Asia for the first time in years, with Korfiatis expecting to announce at least one new nonstop destination in the region within 12 months.Oman Air CEO Con Korfiatis speaks during an interview on the sidelines of the International Air Transport Association Annual General Meeting in Rio de Janeiro on June 7. Photo: ReutersHe declined to name specific cities but described China, Japan and South Korea as markets of strong interest, citing their travellers’ appetite for nature-based and off-the-beaten-track destinations.
Oman Air targets Singapore with nonstop flight as Gulf carriers ramp up services
Flights to Gulf hub airports, which were closed at the start of the Iran war, returned to around 90 per cent of normal levels by mid-June.
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