4th Oman Air Media Awards announced at ITB Berlin 2016

Muscat: Oman Air has announced the winners of the Oman Air Media Awards 2016. The awards celebrate the best of German and Swiss travel and aviation writing and recognise writers’ contributions over the past five years to the success of Oman Air and the destination of Oman.
The winners in each of the four categories of the awards were announced at ITB Berlin, the world’s leading travel trade show, on March 9.
They were each presented with a framed reproduction of their reports, a certificate and a presentation case of traditional Omani silverware. In addition, an overall winner was chosen and was presented, along with two business class flights and five-star accommodation in Muscat.
The winners in the two magazine categories were Ina Volkmer and Tina Bremer, whilst Marko Roth won in the blogger category and Harald Schmidt won the online media award. Harald Schmidt was also named as the overall winner.
Presenting the awards, Oman Air Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Paul Gregorowitsch, said: “It has been an honour to host the Media Awards during ITB Berlin. They have enabled us to recognize both the exceptional talent at work within Germany‘s and Switzerland’s travel media, and the awe-inspiring source of inspiration that Oman provides for journalists.”
“We would like to offer our sincere congratulations to each of the four winners: Ina, Tina Marko and Harald, who have all published outstanding print, online or video articles about Oman and we are delighted to recognise their work.”
“We would also like to thank the very many other journalists throughout the German-language media, who have helped raise awareness about Oman, celebrated the many wonderful attractions that the country offers to visitors, and set an extremely high standard in travel writing.
“This year’s Oman Air Media Awards come at a crucial time for the airline. We have currently embarked upon an ambitious expansion programme that will see Oman Air’s fleet increase in size to 70 aircraft by 2020. Over the last year, we have taken delivery of more Boeing 737 aircraft, and have unveiled the first two of our iconic new Boeing 787 Dreamliners. Oman Air’s expanded fleet will enable us to introduce a wide range of new routes in our network, adding to the 50 destinations to which we already fly.
As a result of our expansion, Oman Air will be able to introduce thousands travellers from around the world to the unique and authentic charms that Oman offers to visitors.
“And many of those visitors will first hear about Oman, and Oman Air, via the media.
“The Oman Air Media Awards are designed to recognise and acknowledge the very best of that media coverage. We look forward to reading the many articles that we know will be published about Oman over the next 12 months and to recognising future talent in the years to come.”
Each of the winning pieces provided readers and viewers with a wealth of information about Oman and how to get there. Volkmer, writing for Laura magazine, brought the desert to life in a colourful article, which also featured the food offered at a Nizwa souk (market) and the warm hospitality of the Omani people.
Bremer’s feature, published in Swiss magazine Bolero, described the balance that the Sultanate of Oman successfully achieves between tradition and progress. It followed a road trip, which took one from the capital city of Muscat and the modernity of the Royal Opera House, to the rose gardens of Jabal Akhdar and on a romantic desert camp.
Hospitality was again the focus of Schmidt’s online feature for the reisestories.de travel website. Schmidt was invited to stay with an Omani oil worker and to experience life in the Sultanate. His article is rich in information about Oman, it history and culture, whilst stressing the friendliness and hospitality offered by Omanis to their guests.
Roth’s winning entry in the Bloggers category of the awards was an outstanding film about Oman, which was published on easywriters.de.
The awards were organised by Oman Air’s Marketing Department, along with the Corporate Communications and Media Departments, with support from the Oman Air Office in Germany.