Category: Aviation

FARNBOROUGH, July 18, 2010 (AFP) – Boeing’s 787 Dreamliner jet, whose delivery to clients faces fresh delays, landed here Sunday after its first flight outside of the US ahead of the Farnborough International Airshow. The test plane landed at Farnborough airport at 9:08am (0808 GMT), watched by journalists from around the world, ahead of the […]

July 10, 2010 (LBO) – Tourist arrivals to Sri Lanka rose 47.9 percent to 44,730 in June 2010 from a year earlier, with strong growth from South Asia, Western Europe and North American, data from the island’s tourism office showed. In June arrivals from Western Europe rose 36.6 percent to 13,881 in the off-peak season. […]

July 08, 2010 (LBO) – Sri Lankan Airlines has launched its four-times a week service to Shanghai, China’s commercial capital, which the airline says is the third Chinese city in its route network. The first flight landed in Shanghai July 01. The route is operated on wide-body Airbus A330 and A340 aircraft via Bangkok on […]

Computer Play July 08, 2010 (LBO) – SriLankan Airlines will set up a flight simulator centre with SIM Industries of the Netherlands targeting the growing South Asian regional market for pilot training, the airline said. “We have been looking at opportunities in South Asia for some time, and there is no doubt that Colombo is […]

July 07, 2010 (LBO) – The Sri Lankan government has bought a stake owned by Emirates in SriLankan Airlines for 53 million dollars taking full control of its national carrier, finance ministry secretary P B Jayasundera said. Emirates managed the airline for 10 years from 1998. “Payment has been made and shares are held by […]

July 05, 2010 (LBO) – The Dubai-based Emirates airline has started daily services between Colombo and Singapore from July 01 with the addition of two more frequencies to and from the city state, a statement said. Singapore remains one of the most popular destinations out of Colombo for shopping, leisure and business travel, said Devika […]

July 03, 2010 (LBO) – Middle East budget carrier Flydubai has started four weekly flights to Colombo, providing fresh competition for state-run Mihin Lanka, which lost 900 million rupees last year. Mihin’s single aircraft doesn’t always fly direct. Mihin’s Dubai-Colombo run is via Kuwait. After losing billions of rupees since its start and after briefly […]

June 26, 2010 (LBO) – SriLankan Airlines has cut losses in the year to March 2010, and was looking to turnaround in the second half of this year, but may need financial re-structuring in the future, an official said. The airline is now saddled with Mihin Lanka, a loss making start-up budget carrier. A report […]

June 25 – Sri Lankan Airlines is looking for two Airbus A320 aircraft to join is fleet by late 2010 as it plans to expand the winter schedule amid a pick up in tourism traffic, chief executive Manoj Gunawardena said. Sri Lankan said it will also increase flights to India by one to 50 frequencies […]

June 09, 2010 (LBO) – Sri Lankan Airlines had appointed two new directors from private sector firms to its board, and has re-appointed existing directors, the airlines said, with the government on track to buy back a minority stake from Emirates. The airline said it was about to launch a new service to Shanghai, and […]

NEW DELHI, June 9, 2010 (AFP) – Sri Lanka’s President Mahinda Rajapakse on Wednesday began his first foreign trip to influential neighbour India since being re-elected, in a visit that has drawn protests from Indian Tamils. Rajapakse, who was re-elected in January on the back of a resounding victory over Tamil separatists that ended a […]

June 07, 2010 (LBO) – Emirates could sign the deal to sell 43. 6 percent of SriLankan, Sri Lanka’s national carrier this week, its president Tim Clarke was quoted as saying in a media report. “I was in Colombo last week to discuss the sale,” Clarke was quoted as saying by Emirates Business, a Dubai […]