Fuel tanks at Sri Lanka's sole international airport went dry on Sunday, due to an unusual high demand of cargo flights carrying emergency supplies for tsunami affected victims, officials said. Fuel tanks at Sri Lanka's sole international airport went dry on Sunday, due to an unusual high demand of cargo flights carrying emergency supplies for tsunami affected victims, officials said. "We usually don't deal with such a lot of traffic at the Bandaranaike International Airport, it is usually about 15 to 16 flights per day, now it's more than double," Airport & Aviation Ministry Secretary Ariyaratne Hewage told reporters.
Since the Asian tsunami virtually wiped off the southern and eastern coastlines of the island, some 87 cargo flights have landed, and a further 20 more expected to arrive late Sunday or early Monday.
Fuel supplies ran out in the morning, but were fully restored by afternoon, by local suppliers, he said.
To cope up with the surge of relief aid, the government has converted a half built terminal building, into a warehouse, with volunteers roped in to clear the cargo, Hewage said.
To house the plethora of cargo planes, Sri Lankan authorities have also cleared air
