The Royal Flight of Oman (RFO) is the VIP air transport capability embedded within the Sultan of Oman's Royal Household. The Royal Flight is not a military organisation, but rather part of the Diwan of Royal Court Affairs;[5] it is not part of the Royal Guard of Oman.[6]
| Royal Flight of Oman | |
|---|---|
 Royal Standard of the Sultan of Oman | |
| Active | 1974 - present |
| Country | Sultanate of Oman |
| Allegiance |  Oman |
| Role | VIP Transport |
| Part of | The Diwan of Royal Court Affairs |
| Main operating base | Muscat International Airport (MCT/OOMS)[1] |
| Paint scheme on fixed wing aircraft | All over white with red and green cheatline with national flag on tail fin[2] |
| ICAO and IATA Codes | ORF and RS |
| Commanders | |
| Commander of His Majesty’s Royal Flight Oman | Captain Suleiman Bin Harith al Barashdi (since 2010)[3][4] |
| Aircraft flown | |
| Transport | Airbus A319 & A320, Boeing 747, Gulfstream 550 & VIP helicopters |
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The RFO was formed in 1974 and started with a few fixed wing aircraft, rotary wing aircraft were added in 1975.[7][8]
The RFO has its own staff housing and welfare complex (including a club and an international school) on Al Matar Street near Muscat International Airport.[9]
Bases
editThe RFO has one permanent operating base and a secondary base:[10]
- Muscat International Airport - in a segregated and separately secured VIP terminal and hangar area[11][12]
- Salalah International Airport - is used regularly and there is a segregated and separately secured VIP terminal supporting RFO activities.
RFO aircraft will also make use of Omani regional airports and RAFO airbases as necessary.
Current inventory
editThe RFO operates the following aircraft types:[13]
| Aircraft | Origin | Type | Variant | Numbers | Registration/Nickname | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Passenger Jet Aircraft | ||||||
| Boeing 747SP | United States | VIP Transport | SP27 | 1 | A4O-SO/Sohar[14] | Delivered 02/07/1984 |
| Boeing 747-400 | United States | VIP Transport | 430 | 1 | A4O-OMN/Sohar[15] | Delivered 30/04/2004 |
| Boeing 747-8 | United States | VIP Transport | 747-8 | 1 | A4O-HMS/Nizwa[16] | Delivered 2012[17] |
| Airbus A319 | Germany | VIP Transport | 133 CJ | 1 | A4O-AJ/Khasab[18] | Delivered Feb 2013 |
| Airbus A320 | France | VIP Transport | 233 | 1 | A4O-AA/Saiq[19] | Delivered Dec 2005 |
| General Dynamics Gulfstream G550 | United States | VIP Transport | G550 | 2 | A4O-AD/Masirah[20]
A4O-AE/Al Hazim[21] |
Delivered Jul 2011[22] |
| Transport Aircraft | ||||||
| Lockheed Martin C-130 Super Hercules | United States | Medium lift transport | J variant | 1 | 525[23] | Delivered 2012[24] |
| Passenger Rotary Wing Aircraft | ||||||
| Eurocopter EC225 Super Puma II | France | VIP Transport | EC225LP | 6 | A4O-HD, A4O-HE, A4O-HF
A4O-HMA, A4O-HMB, A4O-HMC |
Delivered 2007 |
| Eurocopter AS550 Fennec | France | VIP Transport | AS550C3 | 3 | 07, 08, & 09[25] | Delivered 2005 |
Fixed wing aircraft in the RFO's fleet are normally painted all over white, with a mid-fuselage red and green cheatline. The tail fin carries the national flag of the Sultanate of Oman. The only script painted on the fuselage is in Arabic and the aircraft are named after places in the Sultanate. The RFO's C-130 transport aircraft and its helicopters are painted in a desert camouflage scheme.
References
edit- ^ "Scramble - Oman". www.scramble.nl. Retrieved 11 August 2017.
- ^ Bowman, Martin (2014). Boeing 747: A History: Delivering the Dream. Pen and Sword. ISBN 9781473838239. Retrieved 11 August 2017.
- ^ "The Second Region MID Safety Summit April 2014" (PDF). www.icao.int. ICAO IATA. Retrieved 11 August 2017.
- ^ "Home Page - Gulf in the Media". www.gulfinthemedia.com. Retrieved 11 August 2017.
- ^ "Royal Flight of Oman - PILOT CAREER CENTRE". www.pilotcareercentre.com. Retrieved 11 August 2017.
- ^ "Oman Yellow Pages". www.omantel-yellowpages.com. Retrieved 11 August 2017.
- ^ "Oman Royal Flight". Aeroflight. Retrieved 11 August 2017.
- ^ "Oman Royal Flight". Helis.com. Retrieved 11 August 2017.
- ^ "The Royal Flight International School | Muscat Football Academy". muscatfootballacademy.com. Retrieved 11 August 2017.
- ^ "Airport Projects Joannou & Paraskevaides Group" (PDF). Retrieved 11 August 2017.
- ^ Ripley, Tim (2010). Middle East Air Power in the 21st Century. Casemate Publishers. pp. 160–161. ISBN 9781848840997. Retrieved 11 August 2017.
- ^ Allen, Calvin H.; II, W. Lynn Rigsbee (2014). Oman Under Qaboos: From Coup to Constitution, 1970-1996. Routledge. ISBN 9781135314378. Retrieved 11 August 2017.
- ^ "Royal Flight of Oman Fleet Details and History". www.planespotters.net. Retrieved 11 August 2017.
- ^ "Oman - Royal Flight Boeing 747SP photo by Maximilian Kramer". Retrieved 26 July 2021.
- ^ "Oman - Royal Flight Boeing 747-400 photo by Lars Hentschel". Retrieved 26 July 2021.
- ^ "Oman - Royal Flight Boeing 747-400 photo by John Ballantyne". Retrieved 26 July 2021.
- ^ "FlightSource - Aviation Photo Database". www.flightsource.ca. Retrieved 11 August 2017.
- ^ "A4O-AJ Airbus A319-133(CJ) Oman - Royal Flight | JetPhotos". JetPhotos. Retrieved 11 August 2017.
- ^ "F-WWDG Airbus A320-232 Oman - Royal Flight JetPhotos". JetPhotos. Retrieved 11 August 2017.
- ^ "DSC08987 - HostingPics.net - Hébergement d'images gratuit". www.hostingpics.net (in French). Retrieved 11 August 2017.
- ^ "Aviation Photo 2037129: Gulfstream Aerospace G-V-SP Gulfstream G550 - (Oman Royal Flight)". Airliners.net. Retrieved 11 August 2017.
- ^ "A4O-AE Royal Flight of Oman Gulfstream Aerospace G550". www.planespotters.net. Retrieved 11 August 2017.
- ^ "Aviation Photo: Lockheed Martin C-130J-30 Hercules - (Oman Royal Flight)". Airliners.net. Retrieved 11 August 2017.
- ^ "C-130J Super Hercules Celebrates One Million Flight Hours, Code One Magazine". Retrieved 11 August 2017.
- ^ "AS550 Fennec in Oman Royal Flight". Helis.com. Retrieved 11 August 2017.
