Oman Air reports uplift in travellers last year

• Passengers up 8%
• Airline launched new routes
• No financial details were given

Oman Air has reported higher passenger volumes for 2025 due to new routes, increased frequencies and codeshare partnerships.

The state-backed carrier said the amount of passengers on its planes rose 8 percent year on year to 5.8 million.

Almost 64 percent were visitors flying directly into Oman, up 34 percent on 2024, Oman News Agency reported.

Capacity utilisation grew to 82 percent from 76 percent.

Oman Air joined the oneworld Alliance, a group of 15 global airlines, which expanded its reach to 900 destinations. New direct services to Amsterdam, Taif, Singapore, Baghdad and Copenhagen also boosted the sultanate’s connectivity, the report said.

“These results highlight the tangible progress made through Oman Air’s transformation strategy, which has prioritised commercial optimisation, smarter deployment of resources, and a sharper focus on customer experience,” CEO Con Korfiatis said.

Domestically, Oman Air increased available seats to Salalah by 17 percent, carrying 19 percent more passengers.

The airline also launched its first direct charter service between Moscow and Salalah, with plans to expand the service to other Russian cities this year. The route will connect further European markets from 2027, the report said.

These initiatives are expected to attract up to 580,000 passengers to Salalah by 2030, and generate more than OMR320 million ($832 million) in tourism revenue. 

Further reading:

• Oman Air close to breakeven in 2025
• Supply-chain challenges force Oman Air to ground aircraft
• Oman Air examines narrow-body fleet order

In August 2023 Oman Air announced restructuring plans to reduce losses and debt accumulation. It cancelled flights to some South Asian cities in January 2024 to improve its financial performance.

As part of cost-saving measures, the airline disposed of its entire A330 fleet of 10 aircraft and sold two Boeing 787-8s.

No details were given on the financial performance for last year. 

In December chief commercial officer Mike Rutter said the airline was close to breaking even in 2025 and may post its first profit in 2026.

The Civil Aviation Authority unveiled a new strategy to improve connectivity and modernise infrastructure in January, aiming to attract more than OR1 billion in cumulative private-sector investments under the country’s National Aviation Strategy 2040.

However, industry analysts told AGBI that turning investor interest into bankable projects will be “operationally demanding”.