GENEVA — The International Air Transport Association (IATA) announced global passenger traffic results for November 2019 showing that demand (measured in revenue passenger kilometers or RPKs) rose 3.3% compared to the same month in 2018. This was unchanged from October’s result and below the long-term trend. Capacity (available seat kilometers or ASKs) increased by 1.8%, and load factor climbed 1.1 percentage points to 81.1%, which was a record for any November. All regions saw annual increases in traffic....

MUSCAT, JAN 8 – India’s budget airline, Indigo, will resume its Kochi-Muscat operations next month.
An official at Indigo in Muscat told the Observer that the airline has started bookings on the sector for flights from February 16.
“For now, it will be a permanent daily service as before.”
With fares for initial days starting from RO 43, the direct flight will leave Muscat at 2.35 am to arrive in Kochi at 7.30 am.

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Muscat: The Sultanate’s national carrier, Oman Air, has announced that it has cancelled over 700 flights for the month of January 2020.

The company made the decision following the Public Authority of Civil Aviation’s directive that suspended all activity of the Boeing 737 Max airliner.

“As a result of the Public Authority for Civil Aviation directives on suspending operations of Boeing 737 Max, we have cancelled the following flights in the period January 2-31, 2020. We are rebooking"...

General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc. (GA-ASI) concluded a series of flight demonstrations using its MQ-9 Guardian Remotely Piloted Aircraft System (RPAS) on December 19, 2019. The demonstrations showcased the maritime surveillance capabilities of the MQ-9, and the GA-ASI-developed Detect and Avoid (DAA) system for traffic-deconfliction in civil airspace. The flights were sponsored by the Hellenic Air Force (HAF) and the Hellenic Coast Guard (HCG) and staged out of Larissa Air Base in Greece. The flights were performed"...

MUSCAT, JAN 6 – Oman Aviation Services (OAS) — part of Oman Aviation Group (OAG) — plans to launch its new brand and identity during 2020. The corporate makeover will mark the start of a transformational journey for Oman Aviation Services — a strategy for which was formulated in 2019, said CEO Dr Khalfan Said al Shueili. “Our first accomplishment for 2020 is the launching of our new brand and identity,” said the CEO in a recent New Year message to employees. “Oman Aviation Services"...

Oman Air achieved one of its best on-time-performance (OTP) rate of 90 per cent over the past calendar year of 2019.

This metric measures the airline’s flight punctuality – important criteria amongst customers, particularly frequent international air travellers, when selecting an airline to fly with. Oman Air’s achievement of 90 per cent for 2019 makes it one of the best performing airlines globally in terms of flight punctuality.

In December 2019, the year’s busiest month"...

Muscat: A SalamAir flight that was flying from Muscat to Kathmandu was diverted to Patna due to poor weather in Nepal.

SalamAir flight OV427, which was scheduled to land in Kathmandu on Sunday, 3 January, was forced to make a temporary halt in Patna, the capital of the Indian state of Bihar, before proceeding to the Nepalese capital once the weather had cleared up.

An official from SalamAir said, “Due to low visibility brought about by the weather conditions in Kathmandu airport, flight number"...