Oman Air is cutting unprofitable routes, simplifying its fleet, reducing costs and resizing its workforce as part of a turnaround plan to "fix foundations" before returning to growth, its chief executive has said.
The state-owned airline, which announced its first new route in five years with the launch of flights to Rome in December, aims to expand in 2025 through better aircraft utilisation and increasing flight frequencies, Con Korfiatis said during the Routes World conference in Bahrain.
The airline also aims to break even by 2027 as part of its restructuring plan that began at the end of last year, he said.
"If you're putting up a two-storey house, you build the foundations for a two-storey house, but over the years we became a five-storey house on the same foundation. So it's time to fix those foundations and then you can go back to growth," Mr Korfiatis said in an interview on the sidelines of the event.
Mr Korfiatis, who has 30 years of experience in the aviation industry, was appointed chief executive of the airline in May with the remit of steering the airline's transformation to turn its finances around.
A strong flag carrier is needed to help implement Oman's Vision 2040 plan to diversify its economy and reduce its reliance on oil revenue. Under that, the sultanate aims to increase the tourism sector’s contribution to 10 per cent of GDP and attract 11.7 million tourists by 2040.
The World Tourism and Travel Council (WTTC) forecasts that Oman's travel and tourism sector's contribution to the GDP in 2024 will exceed 3.3 billion Oman rials ($8.6 billion), or 7.6 per cent of the economy, up from 2.8 billion rials in 2023. The sector is projected to employ more than 206,000 people this year, up from 191,500 last year.
'Simplifying the fleet'
Oman Air currently has 42 planes in its fleet, with 32 of these flying. The 10 Airbus A330s removed from service include seven jets on short-term lease to Qatar Airways and three that are grounded before they are to be sold early next year, Mr Korfiatis said.
The airline currently operates 10 Boeing 787-9s and 22 Boeing 737s. It plans to shift to an all-Boeing 737 Max narrow-body fleet by the end of 2026, once it has phased out the older 737-800s and 737-900s as their leases expire, he said.
The airline expects delivery of five more 737 Max by mid-2025 and two 787s in the first half of next year. Another six 787 Dreamliners will join the fleet between 2026 and 2028. Of the 737 Max deliveries expected next year, some will be delayed by months but "Boeing is keeping us informed", Mr Korfiatis said.
The delivery should ideally coincide with the return of older versions of the aircraft to lessors, so "it's a bit of a balancing act when the Maxs are running some months late". The airline would consider extending some of the aircraft leases or entering into wet lease arrangements to cover any short-term gaps if they arise, he said.
Global airlines are grappling with delayed plane deliveries as Boeing deals with a safety and quality crisis, a union workers' strike and increased regulatory scrutiny of its production processes.
"From a commercial point of view, [delivery delays] don't help us, but the whole industry's eyes are open now, we see what's there and we roll with it until things stabilise – and they will eventually," Mr Korfiatis said.
The airline this year reduced its network capacity by 30 per cent, cutting unprofitable routes as part of restructuring efforts. The move was necessary "to stem the bleeding while we do the transformation work", he said. "Once we've stabilised that and we've put efficiencies in the organisation, we need to get our cost base down to where it needs to be, then we will have a platform to go back to growth."
The airline currently operates 42 routes, down from "the high 40s", as it halted some to Pakistan, India and Sri Lanka, Mr Korfiatis said.
"We will actually grow next year without increasing the fleet ... through some clever rescheduling we are able to do some more flying without increasing the number of aircraft. We can get more flying out of existing aircraft for both the narrow-bodies and wide-bodies," he said.
The airline has also removed its first-class offering and repurposed it to create the new Business Studio.
"The first-class product was flying an empty cabin and our business class was flying a full cabin, so it was clear that this is not a first-class market that we're in," the executive said.
"We've already seen results: instead of flying empty cabins, we're now getting people in the front [of the aircraft]."
The new route from Muscat to Rome starting in December will operate four times per week, with one-way fares from 75 rials. Oman Air is considering adding new routes in markets in the Middle East and Europe as early as 2026, Mr Korfiatis said, without providing further details.
Oman Air will next year join the Oneworld Alliance, which will help the airline increase its connectivity.
"Through the virtual network that you create through the alliance, you improve your network footprint substantially in a way that we could never do by ourselves," Mr Korfiatis said.
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The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre flat-six
Torque: 450Nm at 6,100rpm
Transmission: 7-speed PDK auto or 6-speed manual
Fuel economy, combined: 13.8L/100km
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The burning issue
The internal combustion engine is facing a watershed moment – major manufacturer Volvo is to stop producing petroleum-powered vehicles by 2021 and countries in Europe, including the UK, have vowed to ban their sale before 2040. The National takes a look at the story of one of the most successful technologies of the last 100 years and how it has impacted life in the UAE.
Read part four: an affection for classic cars lives on
Read part three: the age of the electric vehicle begins
Read part one: how cars came to the UAE
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In numbers: PKK’s money network in Europe
Germany: PKK collectors typically bring in $18 million in cash a year – amount has trebled since 2010
Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille
Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm
Drug trade: PKK income claimed by Turkish anti-drugs force in 2024 to be as high as $500 million a year
Denmark: PKK one of two terrorist groups along with Iranian separatists ASMLA to raise “two-digit million amounts”
Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners
TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013
Specs
Engine: Duel electric motors
Power: 659hp
Torque: 1075Nm
On sale: Available for pre-order now
Price: On request
Real estate tokenisation project
Dubai launched the pilot phase of its real estate tokenisation project last month.
The initiative focuses on converting real estate assets into digital tokens recorded on blockchain technology and helps in streamlining the process of buying, selling and investing, the Dubai Land Department said.
Dubai’s real estate tokenisation market is projected to reach Dh60 billion ($16.33 billion) by 2033, representing 7 per cent of the emirate’s total property transactions, according to the DLD.
The biog
Favourite book: Men are from Mars Women are from Venus
Favourite travel destination: Ooty, a hill station in South India
Hobbies: Cooking. Biryani, pepper crab are her signature dishes
Favourite place in UAE: Marjan Island
BRIEF SCORES
England 353 and 313-8 dec
(B Stokes 112, A Cook 88; M Morkel 3-70, K Rabada 3-85)
(J Bairstow 63, T Westley 59, J Root 50; K Maharaj 3-50)
South Africa 175 and 252
(T Bavuma 52; T Roland-Jones 5-57, J Anderson 3-25)
(D Elgar 136; M Ali 4-45, T Roland-Jones 3-72)
Result: England won by 239 runs
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Creator: Mike White
Starring: Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Natasha Rothwell
Rating: 4.5/5
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- Flexible work arrangements
- Pension support
- Mental well-being assistance
- Insurance coverage for optical, dental, alternative medicine, cancer screening
- Financial well-being incentives
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Analysis
Maros Sefcovic is juggling multiple international trade agreement files, but his message was clear when he spoke to The National on Wednesday.
The EU-UAE bilateral trade deal will be finalised soon, he said. It is in everyone’s interests to do so. Both sides want to move quickly and are in alignment. He said the UAE is a very important partner for the EU. It’s full speed ahead - and with some lofty ambitions - on the road to a free trade agreement.
We also talked about US-EU tariffs. He answered that both sides need to talk more and more often, but he is prepared to defend Europe's position and said diplomacy should be a guiding principle through the current moment.
10 tips for entry-level job seekers
- Have an up-to-date, professional LinkedIn profile. If you don’t have a LinkedIn account, set one up today. Avoid poor-quality profile pictures with distracting backgrounds. Include a professional summary and begin to grow your network.
- Keep track of the job trends in your sector through the news. Apply for job alerts at your dream organisations and the types of jobs you want – LinkedIn uses AI to share similar relevant jobs based on your selections.
- Double check that you’ve highlighted relevant skills on your resume and LinkedIn profile.
- For most entry-level jobs, your resume will first be filtered by an applicant tracking system for keywords. Look closely at the description of the job you are applying for and mirror the language as much as possible (while being honest and accurate about your skills and experience).
- Keep your CV professional and in a simple format – make sure you tailor your cover letter and application to the company and role.
- Go online and look for details on job specifications for your target position. Make a list of skills required and set yourself some learning goals to tick off all the necessary skills one by one.
- Don’t be afraid to reach outside your immediate friends and family to other acquaintances and let them know you are looking for new opportunities.
- Make sure you’ve set your LinkedIn profile to signal that you are “open to opportunities”. Also be sure to use LinkedIn to search for people who are still actively hiring by searching for those that have the headline “I’m hiring” or “We’re hiring” in their profile.
- Prepare for online interviews using mock interview tools. Even before landing interviews, it can be useful to start practising.
- Be professional and patient. Always be professional with whoever you are interacting with throughout your search process, this will be remembered. You need to be patient, dedicated and not give up on your search. Candidates need to make sure they are following up appropriately for roles they have applied.
Arda Atalay, head of Mena private sector at LinkedIn Talent Solutions, Rudy Bier, managing partner of Kinetic Business Solutions and Ben Kinerman Daltrey, co-founder of KinFitz
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Sheikh Zayed's poem
When it is unveiled at Abu Dhabi Art, the Standing Tall exhibition will appear as an interplay of poetry and art. The 100 scarves are 100 fragments surrounding five, figurative, female sculptures, and both sculptures and scarves are hand-embroidered by a group of refugee women artisans, who used the Palestinian cross-stitch embroidery art of tatreez. Fragments of Sheikh Zayed’s poem Your Love is Ruling My Heart, written in Arabic as a love poem to his nation, are embroidered onto both the sculptures and the scarves. Here is the English translation.
Your love is ruling over my heart
Your love is ruling over my heart, even a mountain can’t bear all of it
Woe for my heart of such a love, if it befell it and made it its home
You came on me like a gleaming sun, you are the cure for my soul of its sickness
Be lenient on me, oh tender one, and have mercy on who because of you is in ruins
You are like the Ajeed Al-reem [leader of the gazelle herd] for my country, the source of all of its knowledge
You waddle even when you stand still, with feet white like the blooming of the dates of the palm
Oh, who wishes to deprive me of sleep, the night has ended and I still have not seen you
You are the cure for my sickness and my support, you dried my throat up let me go and damp it
Help me, oh children of mine, for in his love my life will pass me by.
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
The bio
Studied up to grade 12 in Vatanappally, a village in India’s southern Thrissur district
Was a middle distance state athletics champion in school
Enjoys driving to Fujairah and Ras Al Khaimah with family
His dream is to continue working as a social worker and help people
Has seven diaries in which he has jotted down notes about his work and money he earned
Keeps the diaries in his car to remember his journey in the Emirates
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Six large-scale objects on show
- Concrete wall and windows from the now demolished Robin Hood Gardens housing estate in Poplar
- The 17th Century Agra Colonnade, from the bathhouse of the fort of Agra in India
- A stagecloth for The Ballet Russes that is 10m high – the largest Picasso in the world
- Frank Lloyd Wright’s 1930s Kaufmann Office
- A full-scale Frankfurt Kitchen designed by Margarete Schütte-Lihotzky, which transformed kitchen design in the 20th century
- Torrijos Palace dome
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
Why seagrass matters
- Carbon sink: Seagrass sequesters carbon up to 35X faster than tropical rainforests
- Marine nursery: Crucial habitat for juvenile fish, crustations, and invertebrates
- Biodiversity: Support species like sea turtles, dugongs, and seabirds
- Coastal protection: Reduce erosion and improve water quality
APPLE IPAD MINI (A17 PRO)
Display: 21cm Liquid Retina Display, 2266 x 1488, 326ppi, 500 nits
Chip: Apple A17 Pro, 6-core CPU, 5-core GPU, 16-core Neural Engine
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In the box: iPad mini, USB-C cable, 20W USB-C power adapter
Price: From Dh2,099
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RESULT
Manchester United 2 Burnley 2
Man United: Lingard (53', 90' 1)
Burnley: Barnes (3'), Defour (36')
Man of the Match: Jesse Lingard (Manchester United)
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WHAT IS GRAPHENE?
It was discovered in 2004, when Russian-born Manchester scientists Andrei Geim and Kostya Novoselov were experimenting with sticky tape and graphite, the material used as lead in pencils.
Placing the tape on the graphite and peeling it, they managed to rip off thin flakes of carbon. In the beginning they got flakes consisting of many layers of graphene. But when they repeated the process many times, the flakes got thinner.
By separating the graphite fragments repeatedly, they managed to create flakes that were just one atom thick. Their experiment led to graphene being isolated for the very first time.
In 2010, Geim and Novoselov were awarded the Nobel Prize for Physics.
LILO & STITCH
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