SalamAir has announced the appointment of Yaqoob Al Kiyumi as its new Chief Executive Officer, effective 1 October 2026. The Omani low cost carrier said its Board of Directors expressed appreciation to outgoing Chief Executive Officer Adrian Hamilton-Manns for his leadership, dedication and contributions during his tenure, in what the airline described as a new chapter in its development.
Yaqoob bin Saif bin Hamoud Al Kiyumi joins SalamAir from Oman Power and Water Procurement Company, part of the state owned Nama Group, where he served as Chief Executive Officer. In that role he was responsible for producing the seven year power demand forecast of Oman and managing the development and implementation of new independent power and water projects, as well as the contracts associated with procuring power and desalinated water for the Sultanate, work that gave him extensive experience negotiating long term infrastructure agreements with private developers.
A career built in energy and industry
Before joining Oman Power and Water Procurement Company, Al Kiyumi built a career across the oil and gas and manufacturing sectors of Oman. He previously worked at Petroleum Development Oman and at Oxy Oman, and gained further experience in heavy industry through more than seven years with Sohar Aluminium, the aluminium smelter of the Sultanate. He holds a Bachelor of Engineering in Mechanical Engineering from Coventry University in the United Kingdom and a Postgraduate Diploma in Business Administration from the University of Hull, a combination of technical and management training reflected across his roles in industrial operations and infrastructure planning.
Steering the next phase at SalamAir
The SalamAir board said the leadership of Al Kiyumi would build on the existing foundations of the airline while supporting its commitment to affordable and accessible air travel. His mandate includes strengthening the role of SalamAir within the aviation sector of Oman and expanding connectivity between the Sultanate and international destinations, with the airline linking its strategic priorities to the objectives of Oman Vision 2040.
The appointment was announced on the same day as a separate change at Oman Air, the full service national carrier of the Sultanate, where Nasser Al Sharji was named Chief Executive Officer effective 1 September 2026. Together, the two appointments mark a broader leadership shift across the aviation sector of Oman, bringing executives with backgrounds in energy, infrastructure and logistics into the top roles at both airlines of the country. The move of Al Kiyumi from an energy procurement role to an airline chief executive position reflects a wider pattern in Oman of moving senior managers between state affiliated infrastructure and utility bodies and the transport sector.
