Thai Airways fly to Sri Lanka’s Katunayake Airport after four years
The Morning: After a four-year hiatus, Thai Airways flight TG 307 arrived at Katunayake Bandaranaike International Airport (BIA) at 11:55 on 31 March, the Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Aviation said in a statement.
Originating from Bangkok, Thailand, the said flight carried approximately 150 foreign tourists, including Thai nationals.
According to Katunayake airport authorities, flights between Thailand and Sri Lanka are now operating daily.
Minister of Ports, Shipping, and Aviation, Nimal Siripala de Silva welcomed the flight and its passengers at the arrival terminal.
A special cultural dance performance had also been organised by Airport and Aviation Services (Sri Lanka) Ltd. (AASL) to commemorate the occasion and welcome the flight and passengers.
Minister de Silva and Thai Airways Chief Pilot Captain Ophad Sankrung jointly cut a cake to celebrate the aircraft’s arrival. Several officials, including Airport and Aviation Services (Sri Lanka) Ltd. (AASL) Chairperson Eng. Athula Galketiya also attended the event.
Addressing the gathering, Minister de Silva highlighted the increasing number of tourists visiting Sri Lanka in 2024 noting that nearly 800,000 tourists had arrived in the island from Katunayake International Airport in the past three months alone.
He expressed confidence that the introduction of daily flights by Thai Airways would further boost tourist arrivals.
Additionally, he proposed that reduced airfare could attract more Sri Lankan travellers to visit Thailand, thereby fostering increased bilateral tourism.
OSL take:
The steady growth in Sri Lanka’s tourism industry with the increasing number of tourist arrivals to the country is further evident by the increase in the number of flights operated by international airlines to Sri Lanka. The past few months have witnessed many international airlines increasing the number of flights operated to the country while some others recommenced operations after a temporary hiatus due to the decline in the tourism industry during the past few years. However, the increase in air travel being operated to the country and the steady growth in tourist arrivals have resulted in the expansion of several key industries in Sri Lanka – airport, aviation and tourism. The expansion in these key industries have resulted in a growth in business/investment opportunities in the airport, aviation and tourism industries. There’s a growth in direct business/investment opportunities in these three industries while there are also opportunities in the development of supplementary infrastructure facilities required by the industries to meet the growing demand. With Sri Lanka on the path to becoming a regional hub, these opportunities are bound to see a further growth resulting in a growing business potential. Foreign businesses/investors could therefore explore the expanding business/investment opportunities in Sri Lanka’s airport, aviation and tourism industries.
| Article Code : | VBS/AT/20240416/Z_3 |