SriLankan Airlines

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SriLankan Airlines

IATA UL	ICAO ALK	Callsign SRI LANKAN
Founded		July 1979
Hubs		Bandaranaike International Airport
Frequent flyer program		Skywards
Member lounge		Colombo
Fleet size		14
Destinations		30
Headquarters		Level 22, East Tower, World Trade Centre, Echelon Square, Colombo 1, Sri Lanka
Key people		Peter Hill (CEO)
Website: http://www.srilankan.aero

SriLankan Airlines is the national carrier of Sri Lanka. The airline operates an all-Airbus fleet of 14 aircraft, to Asia, Europe and the Middle East. SriLankan's hub is located at the Bandaranaike International Airport (CMB). The trademark phrase is 'You're Our World', and the company's logo features a peacock.

This airline is not part of an airline alliance. However, it is in partnership with Emirates which has a stake of 43.6% in the company. SriLankan also has an extensive codeshare service with other airlines and is part of the Skywards frequent flyer programme.

1 History
2 SriLankan 'Monara'
3 Skywards
4 Incidents & Accidents
5 Destinations
6 Subsidiary Companies
7 Fleet
8 References
9 See also
10 External links

[edit] History

Air Lanka was set up by the Sri Lankan Government in July 1979 following the collapse of Air Ceylon in 1978. Air Lanka operated two Boeing 707s which were leased from Singapore Airlines. During the 1980s, the airline increased the number of destinations it serviced and made additions to its fleet. From the beginning of 1990, Air Lanka's network included a total of 26 destinations. In December 1992 the airline purchased its first Airbus A320. Air Lanka, which was state owned, was part-privatized to the Dubai based Emirates airline. Emirates and the Sri Lankan Government signed an agreement for a ten year strategic partnership. This agreement would include exclusive rights for all ground handling and airline catering at Bandaranaike International Airport for a ten year period. Emirates bought a 40% stake worth US$70 million (later increased to 43.6%) in Air Lanka, and sought to refurbish the airline's image and fleet. The Government retained the majority of the stake in the airline but gave full control to Emirates for investments and management decisions which saw the introduction of Peter Hill as Chief Executive Officer (CEO). In 1998, the Air Lanka brand was retired and SriLankan airlines was born.

SriLankan acquired six Airbus A330-200s to complement its fleet of A340-300 and A320-200 aircraft. The A330-200s joined the airline between October 1999 and July 2000. The company’s fourth A340-300 arrived at Colombo painted in the airline’s new corporate livery.

SriLankan upgraded its existing A340 fleet into a two-class configuration (business and economy) whilst also overhauling the interior to reflect the new corporate image.

SriLankan has suffered from many environmental factors and terrorism. These have included SARS, the Asian Tsunami, a civil war within Sri Lanka and a terrorist attack which destroyed four aircraft and damaged two, writing off half of its fleet. The airline then took the decision to recreate Colombo as a new hub for flights to Asia. An example of this is the expansion into regional markets such as India. It is now the largest foreign carrier into India with 90 flights a week to 10 destinations.

New Lounge at SriLankan's Hub

Whilst continuing expansion in the region, SriLankan has announced flights to Jeddah, its third destination in Saudi Arabia after Riyadh and Dammam. Jeddah would be the airline's 51st destination in 28 countries and this would increase to nine the number of destinations in the Middle East and would commence by the end of November 2006.

SriLankan's desirability has increased with passengers with the upgrade of its hub, the Bandaranaike International Airport. These upgrades have included eight new gates complete with passenger airbridges; eliminating the need for taking a coach to the aircraft, two new special lounges, new duty-free shopping, immigration areas and baggage reclaim areas.

The cabin crew's uniform has remained unchanged since its inauguration with Air Lanka. The stewardesses' uniform is a Kandyan-style saree in green with a peacock feather print. The stewards' uniform is a red/maroon jacket, white shirt and black trousers.

[edit] SriLankan 'Monara'

Sri Lankan Airlines corporate logo features the peacock bird ('Monara' in Sinhala) and is considered a good Feng Shui motif and signifies growth, fame and abundance. The colors Green, Red and Orange adapted in the logo are in accordance with Feng Shui elemental analysis symbolizing wood and fire.

There was much animosity to the name change and new logo, in Sri Lanka and from Sri Lankan expatriates. 'Air Lanka' had proved to be a loved name amongst a large community who did not want it to change. Due to traditional folk lore and superstition, some Sri Lankan's believe that the new SriLankan logo, which shows the peacock flying away from the aircraft, would bring untold misfortune to the airline, as opposed to the old logo, which showed the peacock facing the direction of the aircraft in flight.

SriLankan's CEO, Peter Hill, talked about the new logo in an interview with Travel Weekly¹:

"In order to change the image, it was felt the airline needed a new name that truly reflected the country. So Sri Lankan Airlines comes with a modern fleet, a new look and an updated Monara (peacock) on the tails of the aircraft. The new logo reflects more graceful and flowing images of today as opposed to the rather angular and square designs of the 70s."

[edit] Skywards

Main article: Skywards

Skywards is the frequent flyer programme of Emirates, SriLankan Airlines, and other Emirates travel partners. Earning opportunities through flights occur when you fly with Emirates and SriLankan, or with partner airlines which include Continental Airlines, Delta Air Lines, Japan Airlines, Korean Air, South African Airways, and United Airlines. Once members earn enough miles or segments, they qualify for membership elite status: Skywards Silver and Skywards Gold. These membership tiers offer premium services not offered to general members.

[edit] Incidents & Accidents

03 May 1986

Location: Colombo International Airport, Sri Lanka
Flight #: UL512
Route: London Gatwick - Zurich - Dubai - Colombo - Maldives
Aircraft Type: Lockheed L-1011 Tristar
Registration: 4R-ULD
Aircraft Name: City of Colombo
Aboard: 128 (passengers:Unknown crew:Unknown)
Fatalities: 14 (passengers:14 crew:0)
Summary: 14 passengers were killed when a bomb planted by the LTTE, exploded while the aircraft was on the tarmac. The device had been timed to explode inflight, however, the aircraft had been delayed in boarding and therefore exploded on the ground. Officials believe the bomb may have been concealed in crates of meat and vegetables being freighted to the Republic of Maldives. Other reports believe that the bomb was hidden in the aircraft's 'Fly Away Kit'.

24 July 2001

Main article: Bandaranaike Airport attack

Location: Bandaranaike International Airport, Sri Lanka
Aircraft Type: Airbus A340-300/A330-200/A320-200
Registration:

Destroyed Planes - A320: 4R-ABA, Airbus A330: 4R-ALE and 4R-ALF, A340: 4R-ADD

Damaged Planes - A340: 4R-ADC, A320: 4R-ABB

Aboard: 0 (passengers:0 crew:0)
Fatalities: 21 (passengers:0 crew:0)
Summary: LTTE launched a suicide attack at the Bandaranaike International Airport killing a total of 21 soldiers on the ground. Four aircraft were written off which included one Airbus A340-300 which was destroyed by an explosive charge and one Airbus A330-200 which was destroyed by a rocket fired from the control tower. In addition, one A320-200 and one A340-300 was damaged in the assault. No passengers/civilians were killed.