Oman Air CEO Briefing Paul Gregorowitsch visits Kuala Lumpur @Shangri-La Hotel KL, Kelantan Room 2PM [20/7/2017]

Commemorative event marks Oman Air’s seventh anniversary in Malaysia

Kuala Lumpur 20 July 2017 - Oman Air, the national flag carrier for the Sultanate of Oman, is celebrating its seventh year of flying to Malaysia this month with a special anniversary event in the country’s capital, Kuala Lumpur.

Oman Air CEO, Paul Gregorowitsch, will be in attendance at the event which will take place on 20 July. A media briefing that saw the Oman Air CEO address the Malaysian media present for the event was followed by an appreciation dinner for agents to recognise their support and contribution to the airline.

Mr Gregorowitsch makes an official visit to the Far East each year to demonstrate the region’s importance to Oman Air the airline currently operates services to and from Malaysia, Bangkok, Jakarta and Manila.

Since Oman Air launched its direct flight from Muscat to Kuala Lumpur, demand has grown among guests, resulting in an increase in flight frequency and passenger numbers. Today, the airline operates 14 weekly flights an increase from seven weekly flights on this time last year to the Malaysian capital. Passenger numbers have also grown dramatically from almost 90,000 in 2015 to over 132,000 in 2016.

Mr Gregorowitsch said:

“Oman Air is delighted to be hosting this special event to mark the seventh year since we launched our direct flight from Muscat to Kuala Lumpur and to recognise the hard work of the travel agents who have been instrumental in making the route such a huge success.

“Malaysia is a key destination for Oman Air and is extremely popular with customers both in Oman and further afield. The demand for this route has always been high and the increased frequencies offer yet more choice and convenience to our guests. This service has proven particularly popular with our business guests as Malaysia is a global centre for trade and finance. This is a route which is of special significance to Oman Air, as it is both commercially successful and stands as a vital symbol of the close relationship between the Sultanate of Oman and Malaysia. We look forward to building on our strong relationship for many more years to come and to boosting the economic and tourism prospects between our two nations.”

Oman Air and Malaysia Airlines recently entered a codeshare partnership, furthering the relationship between the two countries and offering Oman Air guests the opportunity to explore more destinations and Malaysia Airlines customers the option to visit Oman.

Oman Air is currently engaged in an exciting expansion programme which will see the carrier operate 70 aircraft to around 75 destinations by 2023. In recent months, the airline has increased the size of its fleet, launched new services to Guangzhou, Nairobi and Manchester and increased frequency on a number of its established routes. It was also named the ‘Best Airline Staff Service in the Middle East’ at the prestigious Skytrax World Airline Awards.

ENDS

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About Oman Air:

Oman Air is the flagship carrier of the Sultanate of Oman and an Official 4 Star Airline (Skytrax 2011). Founded in 1993, the airline has since witnessed massive growth and has played a major role in making Muscat an important traffic hub in the Middle East, supporting the commercial, industrial and tourism sectors.

The airline currently operates direct international flights from Muscat to Abu Dhabi, Bahrain, Doha, Dubai, Jeddah, Riyadh, Dammam, Madina, Tehran, Mashhad, Najaf, and Kuwait, in the Gulf region, as well as Cairo, and Amman within the wider Middle East/Africa region.

In addition, Oman Air flies to eleven destinations in India (Goa, Mumbai, Chennai, Kochi, Thiruvananthapuram, Hyderabad, Delhi, Lucknow, Bangalore, Kozhikode and Jaipur); Chittagong and Dhaka in Bangladesh; Karachi, Islamabad and Lahore in Pakistan; Kathmandu in Nepal; and Colombo in Sri Lanka. The airline also flies to Bangkok, Kuala Lumpur, Manila, Jakarta, Zanzibar, Dar Es Salaam and launched Guangzhou in China in December 2016. Its European destinations are London, Milan, Munich, Frankfurt, Paris and Zurich. The most recent destinations of Oman Air are Nairobi in Kenya and Manchester in the UK.

Oman Air’s domestic destinations are Salalah, Khasab and Duqum. It also serves 5 additional domestic points for The Duqm Special Economic Zone Authority (SEZAD), Petroleum Development Oman (PDO) and Occidental, which are JNJ (Duqm), OMM (Marmul), RNM (Qarn AlAlam), UKH (Mukhaizinah) and FAU (Fahud).

Oman Air has codeshare agreements with a number of airline partners. These are: Lufthansa, Qatar Airways, Ethiopian Airlines, Royal Jordanian, Turkish Airlines, Sri Lankan Airlines, KLM, Garuda Airlines, Thai Airways as well as Saudia offering travellers better connectivity and increased choice.

Currently Oman Air’s fleet consists of six Boeing 787 Dreamliners, six Airbus 330-3005, four Airbus 330-2005, five Boeing 737-9005, 22 Boeing 737-800, and four Embraer 1755. More Dreamliners will join the fleet in the following years. By 2023, Oman Air’s total fleet size is expected to be around 68.

Oman Air’s outstanding aircraft interiors include its First Class Mini Suite, which provides each of the six First Class passengers with direct aisle access and converts to the longest lie-flat seat in the skies. The A330’s outstanding Business Class seats each provide direct aisle access, ample storage Space and the latest technological amenities. Economy Class seats offer adjustable head and leg rests, together with generous leg and elbow room. State of the art in-flight entertainment systems feature individual seatback screens, audio and video on demand and live satellite TV. In addition, Oman Air has pioneered both mobile telephony and Internet connectivity on board its flights and this is available in all three classes.

Superb new First and Business Class lounges have been opened at Muscat International Airport, featuring elegant and tranquil relaxation areas, complimentary spa treatments and a la carte dining. In addition, premium check-in facilities and a First Class lounge-toaircraft limousine service are offered to passengers at Muscat.

Oman Air’s commitment to quality, comfort and a seamless passenger experience has resulted in acclaim at the Skytrax World Airline Awards, including: Best Business Class Seat in the World (2011, 2012); Service Excellence, Middle East (2011); and Best Airline Staff Service, Middle East (2014 and 2015). The World Travel Awards have also honoured Oman Air with World’s Leading Airline Economy Class for the last three years, most recently in 2016, then 2015 and 2014 and, World’s Leading Airport Lounge Business Class 2015, World’s Leading Business Class Airline Middle East 2013, 2014, 2015 and 2016, and Best Economy Class Airline Middle East 2013, 2014, 2015 and 2016.

Further awards include Best Business Class Airline, Middle East (Business Destinations Awards 2011, 2012, 2013, 2015 and 2016); Best In-flight Connectivity & Communications award at The 2011 Passenger Choice Awards; as well as recognition in the TravelPlus Amenity Bag Awards 2010 (three Gold, one Silver), 2011 (two Gold, one bronze), 2012 (one Gold) and 2013 (one Gold); the Business Traveller Cellars in the Sky Awards 2010 (Silver) and 2012 (two Gold).

Oman Air has also won two awards at the Arab Tourism Media Awards 2015, three categories of the Oman Web Awards 2015, four categories of the Oman Tech Awards 2016, and has received the Readers’ Choice Award at the Saveur Culinary Travel Awards, in recognition of the extraordinarily high standards of inflight cuisine. In addition, the airline was ranked highly in the American Express Executive Travel magazine’s list of the world’s best airlines in 2014, and in Business Insider’s World’s Best Airlines 2014.

Oman Air scooped four awards at the Oman Airports Management Company Second Annual Awards ceremony in 2015. The national carrier of the Sultanate of Oman was recognized as one of the top five airlines by number of passengers carried at Muscat International Airport. It also received an award as one of the top three airlines at Salalah International Airport, as well as receiving accolades in the Non-Aeronautical and Stakeholder of the Year 2014 categories.

Oman Air also won the Best International Airline Award 2015 at the North India Travel Awards held in India. Oman Air’s inflight magazine, Wings of Oman received ‘Best In-flight Magazine’ award at the prestigious World Marketing Congress’s Global Marketing Excellence awards (2015) held in Mumbai, India. Oman Air was awarded the Best International Airline 2016 at the South India Travel Awards held in Hyderabad, in India.

Oman Air has been voted Foreign Airline of the Year by Sector to Middle East at the annual KLIA Awards, introduced in 2006 to recognize the best in Malaysian aviation industry. The airline has also been awarded the coveted Signum Virtutis, the seal of excellence, from the Seven Stars Luxury Hospitality and Lifestyle Awards 2016. The airline was voted winner for the best airline in the Middle East, Africa and Europe.

Oman Air Cargo has also been awarded “Best Cargo Airline for Valuable Goods North and East” at the India Cargo Awards 2016 held in Delhi to add to a long list of awards recognizing Oman Air’s outstanding contribution to the aviation industry.

Oman Air was awarded recently the ‘Best Arab Air Carrier supporting Arab Tourism’ award at the Arab Tourism Media Awards ceremony organised by the Arab Centre for Tourism Media held on the sidelines of ATM 2017 in Dubai.

www.omanair.com