(27/02/23) Oman’s SalamAir has launched direct weekly flights from Muscat to Mashhad in Iran, and confirmed plans to launch a weekly service to Almaty in Kazakhstan on 1 July 2023.
Mashhad is the third destination in Iran for the airline, with flights to Shiraz and Tehran already in its network. Almaty will be the airline’s first entry into Kazakhstan.
SalamAir A320neo
“Iran has been one of the key focus markets for us, and we are pleased to launch the third destination to the country. The steady bilateral connection and strong cultural and economic ties between Oman and Iran have given significant momentum to our growth plans and enabled the route’s success,” said Captain Mohamed Ahmed, CEO of SalamAir.
Mashhad
The holy city is the capital of Khorasan province in north east Iran and the second largest city in the country.
Mashhad is best known for the shrine of Imam Reza and every year millions of people visit the holy shrine considered one of the largest and most magnificent of its kind.
Mashhad is located 850 kilometers North East of Tehran and has a population of over two million.
The city’s climate varies with very cold winters, pleasant springs, usually mild summers and beautiful autumns. It is also known for its delicious cuisine.
Almaty
Kazakhstan, the world’s ninth-largest country, extends from the Caspian Sea in the west to the Altai Mountains east on its border with China and Russia.
Located near the Tian Shan Mountain range, Almaty is a magnificent city that boasts heritage, picturesque scenic views and luxury shopping experiences.
Almaty is the old capital city of Kazakhstan and remains the financial as well as the cultural hub. The city first came to global prominence as one of the many stops on The Silk Road, as traders crossed countries and continents to trade.
Known for its natural attractions such as the Kolsai Lakes, Charyn Canyon and Altyn-Emel National Park, Almaty has wide tree-lined streets, numerous parks and orchards amid a backdrop of mountains.
Tourism is a key and growing industry in Almaty, as well as a major source of foreign exchange earnings. The city is known for mountain hiking and river rafting in summer and skiing in winter.
“This is our first introduction into Kazakhstan. The city of Almaty has promising passenger travel into Muscat, and we expect to carry both business travelers and holidaymakers between the two important cities. Oman and Kazakhstan recently agreed to have close bilateral cooperation in the fields of economy, renewable energy, tourism, and food security too thus this route being mutually beneficial,” said said Captain Mohamed Ahmed.
Operating six A320neo, four A321neo and one Airbus A321F, SalamAir’s domestic destinations include: Duqm, Masirah, Muscat, Salalah and Suhar.
International destinations include: Alexandria, Almaty, Beirut, Bahrain, Baku, Bangkok, Bursa, Chattogram, Colombo, Dammam, Dhaka, Doha, Dubai, Istanbul, Jaipur, Jeddah, Karachi, Kathmandu, Khartoum, Kuala Lumpur, Kuwait, Lucknow, Madinah, Mashhad, Multan, Phuket, Prague, Riyadh, Sarajevo, Shiraz, Sialkot, Tehran, Trabzon and Trivandrum.
The airline also flies directly from Suhar to Calicut, Salalah, Shiraz and Trabzon; as well as Salalah to Calicut.
