Opportunity Sri Lanka | » Emirates deploys additional flights to/from Colombo
Emirates deploys additional flights to/from Colombo

Emirates deploys additional flights to/from Colombo

Daily FT: Emirates, the world’s largest international airline, will operate an additional scheduled service between Colombo and Dubai, starting from 1 January.
The newly-introduced flight, to operate as EK654/655, increases the seat capacity on the route by 30% and supports Sri Lanka’s plans to considerably increase tourist arrivals in 2025.
The additional service will operate six times a week until 31 March 2025. EK654 will depart Dubai International Airport (DXB) at 10:05hrs (every day except Wednesdays) arriving at Bandaranaike International Airport (BIA), Katunayake at 16:00hrs (all times are local). The return flight, EK655 will depart BIA at 22:05hrs and reach DXB at 01:05hrs (the following day). From 1 April 2025, a seventh weekly flight on Wednesdays will operate with an adjusted departure time of 22:05hrs, arriving in DXB at 00:55hrs while the return flight will depart Dubai at 13:20hrs and arrive in Colombo at 19:15hrs.
The additional flight can accommodate up to 360 passengers, with eight suites in First Class, 42 Business Class and 310 Economy Class seats, offering a premium customer experience while enhancing convenience and choice with an expanded flight schedule. Emirates currently operates two direct flights between Colombo and Dubai and a third daily service via Male.
Emirates Country Manager for Sri Lanka and Maldives Rashid Al Ardha said: “These are exciting times for Sri Lanka’s tourism industry, which is looking at significant growth between 2025 and 2030. As an airline that has played an integral role in the country’s tourism industry for nearly 39 years, Emirates is committed to support the industry’s growth aspirations, and this additional flight is one example of how we plan to contribute to the nation’s tourism goals.”
“By providing additional flights with convenient timings, we plan to enhance connectivity for passengers when travelling to and from significant feeder markets within our network,” he added.
Emirates and Sri Lanka Tourism share a long-standing strategic partnership, collaborating on initiatives and programs designed to boost tourism to Sri Lanka by showcasing the destination to customers across its global network. Sri Lanka Tourism recently announced its vision to appeal to eco-conscious travellers by highlighting the island’s rich natural and cultural resources. Furthermore, with the boost in capacity on the Colombo-Dubai route, Emirates will contribute to achieving the country’s tourism targets of attracting three million visitors by 2025.
Emirates began operations to Sri Lanka in April 1986 and has consistently supported the country’s tourism and export industries with passenger and cargo services. The award-winning airline has carried more than 12 million passengers to and from Colombo since operations began. With the four daily flights, the airline will offer more than 2,800 seats daily on the service operating between Colombo and Dubai (both directions) with the capacity to carry up to 160 tonnes of cargo on the same flights.

OSL take:
Sri Lanka’s overall economic expansion has resulted in an increase in the number of foreign travelers to the country, which has in-turn increased the number of flights operated by international airlines to the country. The increase in foreign travelers to the country and the increase in flights operating to the country are indicative of an economy on the growth path as well as expanding business/investment opportunities in the airport and aviation industry and the tourism industry. The expanding economy and the increase in air traffic have opened many new business/investment opportunities in the development of infrastructure and supplementary infrastructure facilities required to meet the steadily growing demand. With Sri Lanka on a path to becoming a regional hub supported by the country’s geographical positioning in the Indian Ocean and strong trade ties, foreign businesses/investors could confidently explore the expanding opportunities that are indicative of the growing business potential in the airport and aviation industry and the tourism industry. The lucrative business/investment opportunities in Sri Lanka’s airport and aviation industry could also present opportunities to form strong collaborations between local and foreign ventures.

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Article Code : VBS/AT/20250106/Z_7

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