‘Indian Routes Will Determine Our Fleet Acquisition Plans’

Oman Air isn't merely content with access to Hyderabad and Bangalore and has a longer destination list, it wants to submit to the DGCA, reveals Abdulrahman Al Busaidy, CEO, Oman Air to Bhisham Mansukhani

How is the Indian aviation scene looking for Oman Air?

The year 2004 was a great year for Oman Air in general with load factors ranging in the high 74 per cent. The load factors on Indian routes were in the high 80's. We have recently been granted access to Hyderabad and New Delhi and all our initial flights on the Hyderabad route have so far been full.

What is the traffic mix generated out of India?

The traffic mix out of India is constantly evolving, driven by the rapid strides that the nation is making in the field of IT in particular and the industry in general. Employment traffic is irreversibly growing while consultants from India are flying frequently to and from Oman for projects.

Are there any more cities within India that you are currently negotiating bilaterals for with the government?

It is part of our strategy to operate to more points in the country rather than add more frequencies to existing ones. We have a long shopping list -- Ahmedabad, Bangalore and Calicut included. There is immense business traffic to service from these cities and it is imperative that we get access to operate daily flights from the cities.

Are you tapping the growth of medical tourism inbound to India?

Medical tourism inbound to India is far and away the biggest, emerging segment from our point of view. We carry on an average more than 100 medical tourists to India, mostly into Chennai. India has a strong position internationally as far as medical tourism goes. We have tie-ups with Apollo Hospital and some other hospitals for integrated packages as well.

Will you be revisiting your positioning in lieu of the low cost aviation explosion on the Middle East routes?

While the low cost carriers are increasing the very base of the market by adding a new profile of passengers, our focus is on servicing an established niche -- business travellers. The number of business class passengers has increased to eight from a mere one not too long ago and we now have forty flights. We also plan to increase the number of business class seats from an existing 12 to 20.