"FAHUD” joins Oman Air Fleet
Date: 11 Dec 2007
A new B737-800NG has joined Oman Air’s fleet. The aircraft named "FAHUD” originating from Seattle, USA landed at Seeb International Airport on 9th December, 2007. This latest addition increases Oman Air’s B737 NG fleet to 10.
On this occasion, Mr. Ziad Bin Karim Al Haremi, Chief Executive Officer of Oman Air said that this comes in line with our plans to prop up and upgrade the company's fleet for short and medium haul flights which will enhance and activate Oman Air’s presence on the map of regional aviation industry. It also retains the prestigious position given to the airline as the National Carrier of the Sultanate of Oman in view of the fast growing economy that has been driving the Sultanate’s aviation sector, a fact which was evident throughout 2007. Oman’s growing global prominence in terms of economic growth and immense potential in areas such as tourism has ensured scope for higher passenger traffic and being the National Carrier, it is with a firm commitment that the airline pledges to connect the world with Oman.
Al Haremi added that since NG 737s joined the company back in 2001, this type of aircraft facilitated in achieving a high level of efficiency in operations, great on-time reliability, and enabled us to provide the best services. These attributes helped in our choice of increasing the number of NG-737s, as it also facilitated capacity and flexibility to plan convenient flight timings.
Al Haremi stated that in 2007, we achieved many accomplishments. With “Fahud” joining our fleet, this makes it the second entirely new aircraft B737-800 to be received from the manufacturers this year, in view of the fact that we have increased our network by adding 9 more international destinations which include the recently launched London and Bangkok. In compliance with international standards to further improve our services, we signed a contract with Airbus to acquire 5 new aircraft A330-300 & A330-200, and signed a Memorandum of Understanding to acquire six (6) Boeing B787 Dreamliner aircraft. Oman Air is poised for big growth in the coming years, he noted.
Commenting on the occasion, Corporate Communications and Media department said, Oman Air, the national Carrier of The Sultanate of Oman was the first commercial operator in the Gulf to acquire Boeing's new version of the 737. The all-new Next-Generation 737 is the best selling airplane in commercial aviation history. This new aircraft is equipped with highly advanced technology winglets allowing the carrier to save on fuel, extend its range, carry more payload and reduce engine maintenance. Overall, the 737 is the most-produced large commercial jet airplane in aviation history. Guinness World Records acknowledged the 737 as the most-produced large commercial jet airplane in aviation history.
It should be noted that, Oman Air is currently operating direct international flights from Muscat to Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Bahrain, Doha, Jeddah, Riyadh, Kuwait, Cairo, Amman, Beirut, in the Middle East. Also, direct flights to destinations in India such as Mumbai, New Delhi, Kochi, Hyderabad, Trivandrum, Chennai, Lucknow, Jaipur in additional to Chittagong in Bangladesh and Karachi in Pakistan. It also commenced operations recently to London and Bangkok. Oman Air also operates domestic flights linking Muscat with Khasab and Salalah.