Oman Air inks pact for India cargo
The pact signifies Oman Air’s latest step in expanding its cargo operations. It follows earlier initiatives, which include the launch of the pan-GCC and pan-European trucking services
Times News Service MUSCAT: Oman Air has signed a Letter of Intent with Cargolux Airlines International S.A. to enable the freight specialist to use Oman Air’s facilities in Muscat, Salalah and Sohar.
The agreement includes the launch of Cargolux’s full freighter services from Luxembourg to India via Oman on April 15. The formal signing of the pact will take place when the first Cargolux flight arrives in Muscat on April 16.
The agreement signifies Oman Air’s latest step in expanding its cargo operations. It follows earlier initiatives by the national carrier of the Sultanate, which includes the launch of the pan-GCC and pan-European trucking services, and a joint cargo service with DHL between Oman and Dubai.
Cargolux intends to increase the number of services it operates to Oman during 2015 to several flights per week, with onward connections to multiple Indian cities, including Chennai, Mumbai and Hyderabad. Additional services to cities in India are being considered and connections to China, Europe, Africa and the United States are also planned.
In addition, Oman Air will provide Cargolux with access to the freight capacity of its passenger fleet, which flies to 11 destinations in India and three in Pakistan, as well as to destinations in Nepal, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. This will give the Luxembourg–based carrier the opportunity to feed consolidated freight to Oman from a number of larger markets.
Announcing the agreement with Cargolux, Oman Air’s Chief Executive Officer Paul Gregorowitsch said, “Oman Air has extensive and long-term experience of operating flights to numerous destinations across the Indian sub-continent and East Africa. Cargolux is a leader in air freight and offers huge capacity. This agreement, therefore, represents an important strategic partnership that will give an important boost to Oman’s standing as a major hub for the movement of freight between Europe, Asia and Africa.”
“In addition, Oman’s natural harbours, positioned at the en- trance of the Indian Ocean and Arabian Gulf, and its proximity to the sub-continent, provide a major advantage over its competitors in the region. Furthermore, under the guidance of His Majesty Sultan Qaboos, Oman has invested in the development of state-of-theart logistics facilities — including ports, freight terminals and airports — not just in Muscat, but also in Salalah, Duqm and Sohar.” he noted.
“Oman, therefore, has an excellent logistics chain for Cargolux to leverage and Oman Air is pleased and proud to be working with them to further expand the country’s cargo sector,” said Gregorowitsch.
“We offer a warm Omani welcome to Cargolux and we look forward to working with them on this exciting enterprise,” he added.