This article first appeared in The Edge Financial Daily on July 21, 2017

KUALA LUMPUR: Oman Air, the flagship carrier of the Gulf state of Oman, has recorded a 21% increase in passenger capacity so far this year for flights between Muscat and Kuala Lumpur.

“If you are looking to our forward bookings for the period of June till December 2017, we’ve seen an increase of 39%,” its chief executive officer Paul Gregorowitsch told a media briefing yesterday.

The significant increase, he said, is mainly due to a growing demand from business guests coming to Malaysia, as they see the country as a global centre for trade and finance.

The airline currently operates two daily flights on the route, compared with one last year.

“If the sales team is successful and we are able to enjoy even greater loyalty in premium and economy from the Malaysian guests, we do not exclude [the possibility] to fly triple daily between Kuala Lumpur and Muscat,” said Gregorowitsch, who is here to celebrate the seventh anniversary of the airline’s presence in Malaysia.

“This is a route which is of special significance to Oman Air, as it is both commercially successful and stands as a vital symbol of the close relationship between the Sultanate of Oman and Malaysia,” he added.

Oman Air is currently on an expansion programme which will see the carrier operate 70 aircraft to over 75 destinations by 2023.

“In recent months, we have launched new destinations to Guangzhou, Nairobi and our latest in Europe — Manchester,” said Gregorowitsch.

Earlier this month, the airline was named the “Best Airline Staff Service in the Middle East” at the Skytrax World Airline Awards.