Oman Air details future widebody plans

5/3/2016 4:34:20 AM

(MENAFN- Bangladesh Monitor) _A Monitor Report
Muscat : Muscat-based Oman Air expects to make a decision on the shape of its future widebody fleet in 2018 with initial deliveries early in the following decade CEO Paul Gregorowitsch said on April 13.
Speaking in London to mark the inauguration of the flag carrier's second daily service from Muscat to Heathrow Gregorowitsch said initial talks are already underway with both Airbus and Boeing.
The national airline of Oman has 10 Airbus A330s and the first two of six Boeing B787s. The initial pair is B787-8s as are two recently wet-leased Kenya Airways aircraft. However the airline will substitute the larger B787-9 for the next two from Seattle and is deciding on whether the final brace will be -9s or -10s.
The airline has 40 aircraft in its fleet and is planning a rapid ramp-up to 70 aircraft by 2020. Of that number 25 will be widebodies.
In coming months there will be further negotiations with the manufacturers to decide whether the airline opts for a future all-Boeing fleet. This would have some commonality advantages Gregorowitsch said as the flight deck of the 787 and the B737 MAX which the airline also has on order are almost identical.
However if the airline decides to spread its risk it would probably opt for the Airbus A350-900 he said.
The A330neo is unlikely to be picked despite having current-generation A330s in the fleets. "We would seem to be a natural customer [for the neo] but sometimes it's better to have a new aircraft that's developed to specifications that's in competition with the B787 rather than have a facelifted design." However he said "If we get an offer we can't refuse [for the neo] then it's back to the table."
He revealed the new second slot pair at Heathrow_ an airport that is severely slot-constrained_ had come about through combining slots from Kenya Airways and Air France-KLM.
One slot came from the African carrier the other from the Franco-Dutch consortium which holds a 29 per cent shareholding in Kenya Airways.
The Nairobi-based flag carrier is facing serious financial problems and is selling or leasing out aircraft to reduce its costs. Oman Air's suggestion that it lease two of Kenya Airways' 787-8s had been seen as helpful to the African airline which helped to steer the slot in Oman Air's direction. "We made an offer to Air France-KLM/Kenya Airways and we won it even though we were not the highest bidder."
Reports in the UK press have talked of Oman Air paying a $75 million price tag for the slot. A nondisclosure agreement means he could not give figures Gregorowitsch said but Oman Air 's bid had been around 6 per cent lower than the highest offer.

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