As part of Oman Airports' constant efforts to promote and expand the scope of the direct international routes between the Sultanate's airports and world capital cities through major global airlines, Muscat International Airports welcomed today morning Sunday 24th October the first flight of France Air connecting between the French capital Paris and Omani Capital Muscat on basis of three flights weekly (Monday, Wednesday and Friday). France Air will operate Boeing-787 for this route linking the two great capitals, offering 279 seats with three travel classes; business class, premium economy class, and economy class.

France is one of the most attractive countries for travelers worldwide, being a destination for all world tourists with more than 80 million a year, making it on the top of the global tourism in terms of tourist volume. This is driven by its charming nature and picturesque coasts which create a unique memorial tourism experience. Besides that, France is a key market for Oman's inbound tourism as about 68000 visitors came from France to Oman in 2019 prior to Covid-19. The newly launched route will unlock for the passengers the opportunities of discovery and enjoyment of various landmarks and cultures between the two great countries.

Furthermore, Oman-based travelers will advantage from this route to reach Paris and from which they can connect to a wide network of airlines across Europe and through the Atlantic Ocean and South America. All these flights are run by France Air and its airline partners within SkyTeam Program. This route is also aimed at expanding the existing flights between Muscat and Paris along with the current operations of SkyTeam alliance-affiliated airlines at Muscat.

Sheik Samer Ahmed Al-Nabhani, Chief Commercial Officer of Oman Airports, said that the new route will serve to link the two capitals Muscat and Paris. It also will contribute to increasing the number of passengers between both friendly countries either for business or tourism and entertainment purposes.

Al-Nabhani added that we are fully prepared to welcome all local and international airlines in synchronizing with the efforts of the teams concerned in marketing our airports as key regional and global hubs while highlighting our continuous implementation for the highest HSE standards and precautionary measures imposed by the relative entities and ensuring their alignment to create a hassle-free safe travel experience for all users of Oman airports at this period that are associated with globally-accredited travel protocols and standards.

Worth mentioning that the number of inbound tourists to the Sultanate is growing on a yearly basis with an average growth rate of 5% between 2018 and 2023 to climb into 3.5 million tourists according to the Arabian Travel and Tourism Market 2019.

(C) 2021 Electronic News Publishing, source ENP Newswire