Turkish Airlines announces daily flights to Sri Lanka from 27 May
Daily FT: Turkish Airlines plans to strengthen its services from Colombo by adding a seventh frequency every Sunday, starting from 27 May.
With this expansion, Turkish Airlines will offer daily flights from Colombo, a move aimed at enhancing tourism, trade, and cultural ties between Türkiye and Sri Lanka.
This development marks a significant milestone in Turkish Airlines’ service to Sri Lanka, which spans over 11 years.
In October 2023, the airline ushered in a new era by inaugurating direct flights from Istanbul to Colombo. Previously, the airline had a stopover in Male before arriving in Colombo.
Sri Lanka Tourism Promotion Bureau last month successfully conducted its first ever roadshow in Turkey in collaboration with the Sri Lanka Mission in Ankara and the national carrier SriLankan Airlines that has direct connectivity from Istanbul which operates five flights per week. The roadshow saw participation of 19 Sri Lankan travel companies and hotels.
OSL take:
The increase on the number of flights operated by international airlines to Sri Lanka is indicative of the steady growth in foreign travelers to the country. The increase in air travel to Sri Lanka as well as the growth in tourist arrivals to the country have opened up a host of new business/investment opportunities in Sri Lanka’s airport, aviation and tourism industries. The opportunities in these industries vary from the development of infrastructure and supplementary infrastructure facilities as well as in the strengthening of individual sectors under the relevant industries. The leisure and hospitality sectors in the tourism industry are two areas that have seen a growth in business/investment opportunities. In the airport and aviation industries, the Sri Lankan government has decided to develop and expand the operations of the country’s key international airport – Bandaranaike International Airport – as well as in several identified domestic airports. Realizing the growth and business potential in Sri Lanka’s airport, aviation and tourism industries, many foreign businesses/investors have expressed interest in engaging in these industries.