"Sri Lankan’s services to Chinese cities are tailored to pamper Chinese travelers, with flights having Chinese cuisine; Chinese movies and even Mandarin-speaking stewardesses."
Sri Lankan Airlines’ Chairman Nishantha Wickremasinghe said the national carrier expects the service to become popular very quickly among both tourists and business travelers of both countries.
The airline said business links between China and Sri Lanka have been growing with several Chinese firms involved in ongoing infrastructure projects in Sri Lanka, including construction of ports, airports, power stations and highways.
It said Shanghai is the world’s largest cargo port, serving China’s booming export economy and one of the largest cities in the world, with a population of 19 million.
The flights on wide-body Airbus A330 and A340 aircraft will operate via Bangkok to China’s largest city and commercial capital on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday.
Flights leave Colombo at 01.25 in the morning and arrive in Shanghai at 12.45 in the afternoon. The return flight would leave Shanghai at 4.20 in the afternoon and arrive in Colombo at 9.55 p.m.
Sri Lanka’s national carrier already operates three flights a week to the Chinese capital Beijing, and another three to Hong Kong.
