7 days ago
Oman Air to join Oneworld Alliance on June 30: CEO
Muscat, June 2
Oman Air will officially join the Oneworld Alliance on June 30, after completing a nearly three-year process of integrating loyalty programmes, IT systems, and bookings with partner airlines.
Speaking to the Observer, Con Korfiatis expressed his excitement about the upcoming alliance, stating, "We are pleased to be joining the Oneworld alliance on June 30, which is just four weeks away. This alliance will significantly expand our network reach through partnerships with other airlines, as we cannot fly to every destination ourselves."
"We look forward to offering our customers a broader network through our alliance partners." Korfiatis also mentioned plans to increase flights to London in October, which will improve connectivity to North and South America through alliance partnerships," he added.
The airline is expecting new aircraft to join their fleet, with a Dreamliner B787 arriving next week and additional 737 8 Max planes in the next 12 months. These new aircraft will allow for growth in the fleet and increased operations, with flights to Amsterdam scheduled to begin on July 1.
He said, 'Apart from Amsterdam and double-daily Delhi flights, Moscow will be a year-round destination from seasonal. They're the only ones we've announced at this stage. We're always studying three to four routes at a time.'
While there are no new destinations planned for the summer schedule, there will be increased capacity, including more flights to Salalah.
Korfiatis also mentioned challenges in securing airport slots in India, but expressed interest in exploring opportunities beyond India.
Regarding transformation within the airline, Korfiatis highlighted the goal of achieving fiscal responsibility to support future growth.
The airline is ahead of target in meeting key performance indicators and aims to achieve EBIT breakeven by 2027. 'Our shareholder wants us to be fiscally responsible because they have confidence in backing us to be able to grow and do more things. We want to grow, but we didn't have the foundation for growth. It's a three to four-year journey. We do have KPIs (EBIT breakeven) which are meant to be achieved by 2027, and we are already ahead of target.'
