International flights to the southernmost atoll in the Maldives have been introduced by SriLankan Airlines.
The carrier is to run four flights a week to Gan Island from its hub in Colombo.
The service will provide connections to the airline’s global route network of 102 destinations in 47 countries plus 1,000 destinations throughout the Oneworld alliance.
Gan is the most populated island in Addu Atoll, also known as Seenu Atoll.
Flights depart from Colombo at 07.01am and arrive in Gan at 08.20 am on Mondays, Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays.
Gan is one of 11 new destinations added by the carrier in the Asia-Middle East region in the fourth quarter of 2016.
The start of services to Gan is part of a strategic shift by SriLankan Airlines to focus on its network on India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and the Middle East, including destinations such as Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Bahrain, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Oman.
The airline will also intensify its focus on the far east including Japan, China, Malaysia, Thailand, Singapore and Indonesia.