Licence awarded for Oman’s first low-cost carrier

Dr. Mohammed bin Nasser al-Za’abi, Chairman of the Public Authority for Civil Aviation (PACA) said that PACA had evaluated the bids to get license to operate low-cost commercial flights. It announced that Muscat National Development and Investment S.A.O.C ( Asas) received the highest rating and thus was declared winner of the license to operate low-cost commercial flights.
PACA Chairman hopes that the preferred company will complete the necessary requirements and procedures soon and start actual operation in 2017.
‘By the end of 2015, the Public Authority for Civil Aviation published the Regulations for the different air transport activities licenses in the Sultanate, as well as the passengers’ rights protection systems. These regulations and systems are available on PACA  website,” he added.
PACA’s announcement coincides with opening the door for private investors to apply for general aviation licenses, such as helicopter, private aircrafts and other air transport types with effect from this year.
He affirmed that such economic regularization rules come within the efforts made to create clear and transparent investment climate that encourages the Omani and foreign private sector investors to introduce new options for private and corporate investors, create job opportunities for the Omani youth and encourage SMEs to participate at such type of investment activities.
He added that these steps come in a bid to promote the civil aviation sector and its supporting facilities and reach the best levels in terms of efficiency and quality. They also aim at supporting the constant development being witnessed by the economic sectors in the Sultanate under the wise leadership of His Majesty Sultan Qaboos Bin Said.