Oman increases investment capital to stave off tough times

Hill, said that the airline's financial performance has been "significantly lower than originally forecast" and said he is knows 2010 will be difficult for Oman Air.

Oman Air is majority-owned by the sultanate. Chairman and national economy minister Ahmed Bin Abdulnabi Macki said that the Government is "confident" that it will see positive returns on investment once the carrier has established its presence and its network has matured.

The carrier raised capacity by 28% last year by introducing new Airbus A330s and has started operating to several long-haul destinations including Paris, Frankfurt, Munich, Male and Colombo. It transported 19% more passengers, with an overall load factor of 61%.

In an interview with Arabian Aerospace Hill said : "We have a first class senior management team in place that is capable of imparting their skills, knowledge and experience in developing the talents of Omani nationals to enable them to take on a greater responsibility for the management and strategic development of the company in the future."