SalamAir to operate with three leased aircraft
Salalah operations in December New CEO comes with LCC experience
Jan. 1: The second national airline, SalamAir, has announced that it will commence operations to Salalah from the third week of December this year.
The airline added that it already received its first of the three aircraft, planned to lease, which is undergoing routine procedures with regards to maintenance, refurbishment and painting to be consistent with the brand identity of the new airline.
According to details revealed by Khalid al Yahmadi, CEO, ASAAS, “The low cost carrier (LCC) will operate under the IATA code OV and the company will unveil details about the new CEO in the next two weeks.” It added that the CEO designate comes with an experience of working for a successful LCC in the region.
Earlier speaking to the Observer, Yahmadi had said “Prioritising affordability, we will target inbound and outbound destinations with a four-hour travel time, focusing in the first instance on domestic routes such as Salalah, before expanding to regional destinations, including Pakistan and Iran that are underserved.”
On possible relationship with the existing national airline, Yahmadi said, “The Oman Air is a national asset and will be our honour to work together with the luxury-focused long-haul specialist airline for the good of the nation. Serving different markets and different routes, the two airlines will offer complementary services and our joint activities will stimulate the growth of the sector, by meeting tourism targets and acting as a catalyst for business and investment in Oman. SalamAir will allow Oman Air to focus on expanding its fleet and better serve both its international and intercontinental network.”
He said, “The increased capacity from the expansion of Muscat and Salalah airports and the addition of new regional hubs, makes this an optimum time to launch the new LCC. The Middle East is one of the fastest growing aviation markets in the world, and Oman’s aviation sector has been one of its stronger performers in recent years, particularly among the smaller regional centres.”