Oman Air and Salam Air, both Muscat based airlines are upping their network from the Indian state of Kerala. In this article, we will look at the current and future schedule of both these airlines to Kerala.
Oman Air new connection
From October this year, Oman Air will start operating direct flights between Muscat and Thiruvananthapuram. Thiruvananthapuram, also known as Trivandrum is the state capital of Kerala. The airline will commence 4 times weekly flights between both cities with effect from October 1. This flights will be operated on Sundays, Wednesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays. The airline will deploy its narrow body flagship aircraft – the Boeing 737 on this route.
Lets have a quick look at the timings of this flight :
| Flight Number | Departure | Arrival | Dep time | Arr time |
| WY 216 | Thiruvananthapuram | Muscat | 15:30 | 17:45 |
| WY 215 | Muscat | Thiruvananthapuram | 09:05 | 14:30 |
Salam Air new flights
Apart from Oman Air, Salam Air – the Low Cost Carrier airline based at Muscat International Airport is also enhancing its India network by introducing daily flight services between Muscat and Kozhikode. The airline will start the flight services with effect from October 1 with its Airbus A320 family fleet. Booking of this flight has already started at airline’s website.
Lets have a quick look at the flight timings.
| Flight Number | Departure | Arrival | Dep time | Arr time |
| OV 741 | Muscat | Kozhikode | 22:20 | 03:20 |
| OV 742 | Kozhikode | Muscat | 04:20 | 06:15 |
Competition on these routes
Talking about South India to Middle East routes and you forget about competition, only a fool would do so. The market is very crowded with good competition from both Indian as well as Omani Carriers.
On Muscat to Trivandrum route, 2 airlines are already operating. Air India Express, the budget subsidiary of TATA Group airlines is operating daily Boeing 737 flights on this route. Meanwhile, Salam Air is operating daily Airbus A320neo flights as well.
On Muscat to Kozhikode route, Oman Air is already operating double daily flights with the Boeing 737. Air India Express is also operating daily flights with the Boeing 737 Narrowbody aircraft. In short, both these routes have good direct competition.
Apart from this, other airlines like Emirates and Qatar Airways also take away some of the traffic via middle eastern hubs of Dubai and Doha.
Source : Onmanorama
