WTM: SriLankan Airways to increase Colombo flights

SriLankan Airways plans to increase its London-Colombo service from 12 flights a week to a double daily.

Head of worldwide passenger services Manoj Gunawardena said although services are adequate, there is a shortage of capacity at peak times.

He said: “We need the slots and additional long-haul aircraft, but increasing frequency from the UK is a priority.”

The airline has just launched its 11th flight from Sri Lanka to India, taking the number of flights between the two countries to 100 a week. The new service to Coimbatore started on October 22.

Gunawardena said: “We want to expand our long-haul fleet but plans have not been finalised. For now we are concentrating on our short-haul services. We want to expand to the second-tier cities in India.”

• More from World Travel Market 2007