Middle Eastern carrier Oman Air has unveiled a new board of directors, following the government’s decision to restructure the loss-making operator. Some of the company’s board members “have been replaced”, says the carrier, while it has also recruited new members who have “extensive global experience” in the aviation sector. Oman Air’s new board features ex-Aer Lingus chiefs Christoph Mueller and Stephen Kavanagh, as well as Portuguese carrier SATA’s former chief Antonio de Menezes, who was also previously a board member of TAP Portugal and EuroAtlantic Airways. The board also includes ex-Oman Air chief Abdul Rahman Al Busaidi, and two figures – Ahmed Tufail Al Rahman and Haitham bin Muhammad Al Ghassani – respectively linked to the sultanate’s finance and tourism ministries. Oman Air chair Saeed bin Hamoud Al Mawali disclosed the new structure days after the government outlined a transformation and restructuring strategy for the airline, having indicated it would seek international as well as domestic expertise to implement the scheme. The board approved steps to progress with the transformation programme during a meeting on 19 August. Al Mawali says collaborative efforts are necessary to enhance the airline’s capabilities and meet the government’s aims for achieving financial sustainability and maximising returns on investment.<br/>
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SF Airlines is continuing to expand with the launch of a new route between Shenzhen in China and Port Moresby in Papua New Guinea. The first flight on the route took place on August 20 using a B747-400 freighter, carrying electrical equipment, said SF Airlines in a press release. This is the first cargo route encompassing Oceania, said the Chinese freighter airline, which already operates in Asia, Europe and the US. SF Airlines also recently launched a new air cargo route between China’s first cargo airport Ezhou Huahu and Abu Dhabi International, using a Boeing 747-400 freighter. And following Abu-Dhabi-based Etihad Cargo’s expansion of its reciprocal block space agreement with SF Airlines, the airline has recently operated its first flight to Ezhou Huahu Airport. Ezhou Huahu Airport officially opened in July last year and is promoted as China’s first “professional cargo hub airport”. The first international flight from the airport took place in April.<br/>
Beijing has allowed North Korea's state carrier Air Koryo to resume flights to China more than three years after they stopped amid COVID-19 restrictions, the Chinese foreign ministry said on Monday. The approval comes amid signs of increased contact between North Korea and its neighbour and biggest trading partner. Train services between the countries have been increasing, South Korea's Yonhap news agency reported on Thursday. Last month, a Chinese delegation visited Pyongyang to celebrate the 70th anniversary of the end of the Korean War, the first such group to travel to the reclusive state since the pandemic. China's foreign ministry did not say when flights would resume and referred further questions to China's aviation regulator which was not immediately available to comment. An Air Koryo employee who answered a call to the number for the airline's Shanghai office said he had no knowledge of the situation. Flights between the two countries were suspended in early 2020 as both shut their borders in response to the pandemic. Previously, Air Koryo and Chinese state airline Air China flew the route. "They used to have only one flight per day, alternating between Air China, Air Koryo," Li Hanming, a Chinese aviation analyst, said.<br/>