Aviation & Airports

[Amal]

[Fusionist]

Another inflight award for SriLankan


AWARD : SriLankan Airlines has once again been adjudged to have some of the finest inflight entertainment systems in the world, being selected Second Runner-up in Best Overall Inflight Entertainment, the prize honour at the World Airline Entertainment Association's annual Avion Awards.

Peter Hill, Chief Executive Officer of SriLankan, said: "We at SriLankan Airlines take pride in being world class in every aspect of our product, and our efforts have been rewarded with many accolades. But it is an added honour to receive awards from our peers in the industry such as the World Airline Entertainment Association".

source : http://www.dailynews.lk/2006/11/04/fin01.asp

[Fusionist]

Ethiopian Airlines to fly to Colombo

Shirajiv Sirimane

FREQUENCY : Ethiopian Airlines is looking at flying to Colombo from next year. The award winning airline hopes to operate four flights a week.

Chairman of VMS Air Services GSA for Ethiopian Airlines Sri Lanka and Maldives A. Vigneswaran said that they are looking at operating from Mumbai where the flight is grounded for almost 24 hours. "This is the time we hope to utilise to fly to Sri Lanka," he said.

more..http://www.dailynews.lk/2006/11/04/fin02.asp

[maran]

Originally Posted by Amal

SriLankan Airlines launch services to Goa and sets sights on 100 flights per week

MUMBAI, October 31

SriLankan Airlines took a significant step forward in its continuing expansion of services to India, with the commencement of flights to Goa on 30th October. The famed resort became SriLankan’s 10th destination in India, and also its 50th globally.

SriLankan is the largest foreign carrier into India, with 87 flights per week. These include 15 to Chennai, 13 to Trivandrum, 11 to Kochi, 10 to Trichy, 8 to Calicut, and daily to New Delhi, Mumbai, Hyderabad, and Bangalore The recently concluded Air Services meeting in Colombo has also provided the airline with the opportunity to add an additional 7 flights to Mumbai this winter.

“The launch of services to Goa is an important element in our business strategy throughout India. We have positioned Colombo as the Gateway to South Asia, and we are constantly seeking to expand our activities in India. Sri Lanka has been given permission to add another 7 frequencies to Mumbai and we are hopeful of starting double daily services in the near future. We are definitely on target towards launching 100 flights per week in either direction” said Barry Brown, Chief Commercial Officer at SriLankan.

The airline is continuously increasing the number of frequencies to Indian cities. It also increases capacity by deploying wide-bodied aircraft as the quantum of passengers grows. Capacity to Bangalore and Calicut has been increased starting this winter by rotating existing A320 flights with the larger A330s.

“SriLankan Airlines offers maximum convenience and connectivity at Colombo for passengers visiting India or Indian citizens going overseas,” said Manoj Gunawardena, Head of Worldwide Passenger Sales. “We have scheduled our flights in order to provide the shortest transit time in Colombo where possible.”

SriLankan’s global network of 51 destinations (services to Jeddah begin in November 2006), supported by its strategic partner Emirates, gives it the ability to offer the option of flying SriLankan to travellers from cities ranging from New York to London, Paris, Tokyo and Sydney.

Travel between the two South Asian neighbours is also at an all-time high. Sri Lankans now rank as the third largest origin of visitors to India, while more Indians visit Sri Lanka (more than 100,000 annually) than travellers from any other nation. Most Indian visitors to Colombo avail themselves of excellent value for money in shopping. A large number of Indian companies have chosen Sri Lanka as a site for corporate events such as Meetings, Conventions, Incentives and Exhibitions (MICE tourism).

Goa will initially have two flights per week, on Mondays and Saturdays, with an A320 aircraft. Flying time is approximately two hours’ duration, departing Colombo at 0530 and arrives in Goa at 0730. Return flights leave Goa at 0830 and touch down in Colombo at 1030.

SriLankan has conducted a series of international promotions to draw more travellers to Indian cities and Goa has been a welcome addition to meet demand. SriLankan Airlines has received many industry accolades such as the Galileo Indian Express Award for Best Eastbound International Airline from India, and the TTG Asia Award for Best Airline in South Asia for three consecutive years and the government of Kerala recently entered into a strategic tourism partnership with SriLankan Airlines.

http://www.agencyfaqs.com/news/compa...ate/10378.html

Hi, wish to look forward in seeing Sri Lankan airlines having immediate connection from Trichy to Singapore, Kuala Lumpur & Bangkok, since, large number of Indian natonals from central and southerly Tamil Nadu state here, who are both residing and working in this regions, would benefit a great deal, thus, would definitely will be a win-win situations for all.

[Amal]

[sjinadasa]

Ooh a new duty free area And our Control Tower looks nice, better than how I last saw it..

[nitzomoe]

best place to stock up on tippy tip!

[lordvader]

Sri Lanka begins work on second international airport at Weerawila
LankaEveryting.com News Desk 19-11-2006

Sri Lanka’s president marked his first year in office by launching work on a new international airport to handle the giant Airbus A380 airliner and pledging a major new port. President Mahinda Rajapakse laid the foundation stone for a 125-million-dollar, 4,000-metre (13,200-feet) upgrade to a small airport at Weerawila, which is to become an international terminal by November 2009. The airport is slated to handle two million passengers a year and will be the second international terminal in the country, where tourism is a mainstay of the economy.

‘We are building this second international airport so that A380 planes could land here,’ Rajapakse said in a nationally-televised ceremony from Weerawila, 260 kilometres (162 miles) south of Colombo by road. National carrier SriLankan Airlines is around 40 percent owned by Dubai-based Emirates, which has ordered 45 A380 planes, making it the largest single client for the outsized, European-built long-haul jet. Weerawila is located within Rajapakse’s home constituency of Hambantota, which he also pledged to make the country’s second major seaport.

Rajapakse said an average of 180 ships pass Hambantota at the southern end of the island, which lies astride the Arabian Sea and Bay of Bengal, and the government hoped to set up a port there to service them with supplies. At

http://www.lankaeverything.com/vinew...1119102054.php

[sjinadasa]

There was a small picture of the model...

[Tmac]

impressive airport to say the least.

[Fusionist]

any better images ?

[sjinadasa]

There was a large picture in the TV News but not on the net yet

[Amal]

Do you think International airlines will actually use the new airport? Plus, its far away from Colombo.

[Amal]

SriLankan Air Taxi starts flights to Victoria

SriLankan Air Taxi is once again flying to the Victoria Reservoir in Kandy, one of the most popular destinations in its extensive route network throughout the island.

The Reservoir provides easy access to the Victoria Golf & Country Resort, a popular holiday and golfing destination among both Sri Lankans and expatriates.

“Our customers will certainly be glad to hear the news that we are back flying to Victoria. This means that their journey will be that much shorter and hassle-free,” said Amith Sumanapala, General Manager, SriLankan Holidays. “The timing of the re-launch was also quite fortunate, since the SriLankan Golf Tournament took place last month and both participants and spectators had the option of travelling in comfort.”

Air Taxi flights to the other destination in Kandy, the Mahaweli River, were re-launched in August. This site is more popular with passengers on their way to and from the country’s ancient hill capital.

Both sites offer passengers the thrills of a water landing on Air Taxi’s amphibious Turbo Otter aircraft.

The 35-minute flights to Kandy have been very popular since passengers can forget the hassle of battling through traffic. The road journey from Colombo to Kandy often takes more than three hours.

SriLankan Air Taxi plays an important part in supporting the tourism industry with flights to all major resort areas. It has made any part of the island accessible within an hour and now flies to 16 destinations – Kandy (2 sites), Bentota, Nuwara Eliya, Hingurakgoda, Galle (Koggala), Weerawila, Ampara (2 sites), Katunayake, Ratmalana, Trincomalee, Katukurunda, Sigiriya, Dickwella and Anuradhapura.

“Passengers from Colombo can choose to embark from Katunayake or Ratmalana, and a third site Kelaniya was commissioned recently, for the passengers originating from Colombo city” said Sumanapala.

On the way, travellers can enjoy a view of the island that they probably haven’t seen before. Flying only a few thousand feet above the ground, far lower than regular jet airliners, they get a bird’s eye view of Sri Lanka’s exotic fauna and flora and the beauty of the Indian Ocean.

http://www.dailymirror.lk/2006/11/21/ft/01.asp

[sjinadasa]

There are airlines who had signed agreements to fly there, and there will be connecting flights to colombo as well. And since The BIA airport is hard to expand due to it being in an urban area, in my opinion this airport is needed.

[Bertez]

Well....being 260 kms away from your major city isn't the best selling point for the airport. Yes BIA will be hard to expand, but it is not impossible. From what I understand, the second airport is being built as an alternative when BIA cannot recieve airplanes....ie bad weather or (hoping not) a terrorist attack)

[Amal]

I agree for the need for an alternative airport to Bandaranaike - apparently planes have to fly to Chennai if this airport isn't working, but I don't understand the need for a completely new airport down south so far away from the capital city. To be honest I don't think many International airlines will choose to fly to Weerawila over Bandaranaike. Could be wrong.

[sjinadasa]

And of course there are these recreational activities and flying schools, that cant operate at the BIA due to security reasons.. And tourists wanting to get straight down to the beaches can use that airport instead of going through Colombo (That was one of the reasons as well), and The shipping lane just below Hambantota is nearly untouched, so aviation services to the ships like maintainance crews, changing crews, fuel, etc can be supplied without the ships having to delay their schedules to dock at Hambantota.

[Fusionist]

Well here is my two pennies worth about the airport project..

The decision to built a second International Airport is very sensible, specially for security reasons/weather. A country of the size of Sri Lanka certainly need two airports and can afford to maintain both to good standards especially since Sri Lankan Airlines is doing well and needs more home turf.

However I simply can't digest why it has to be near Hambantota. I see dirty politics there. Politicians trying to get the best for their own town and so on. Buiding a port by Hambantota makes sense as it is on a heavy shipping route and would attract more investment to the region. But why an airport ?

Are airports only for tourists ? What about Sri Lankans ? Ho well connected is Hambantota with the rest of Sri Lanka let alone Colombo. This is absurd. I would have thought an airport in the southern vicinity of Colombo ( somewehre between Ratmalana to Kalutura ) would have served the purpose well. 1. Easier for tourists to get to the beach resorts rather than having to circumnavigate Colombo metro 2. Easier for locals to get to Colombo and from there on to any part of Sri Lanka. 3. The Colombo-Matara Expressway already serves this place meaning no added infrastructural cost 4. Many hotels/ beach resorts already in place nearby.

Also I think even now ( after the plans for the second airport ) it makes more sense to expand BIA and move the SLAF base to Ratmalana and build a second runway there. Meaning capacity to BIA can also be incresed and this perhaps can act as a regional airport for South Asian/local flights and the new airport for long hauls/transits/A380s.

[Fusionist]

Sri Lankan Airtaxi







routes..