SriLankan Airlines expands its footprint into the US and Europe

 

SriLankan Airlines is bolstering its footprint in the US and European markets by extending its current codeshare agreement with Qatar Airways, with new connections to serve different cities in these areas. SriLankan Airlines Group Chief Executive Vipula Gunatilleka said: "The extension of our corporation with Qatar Airways is an imperative component in SriLankan's ongoing ingenuities to provide our esteemed passengers with seamless connectivity across a wide range of destinations, except for increasing the number of cities to which we travel."

SriLankan will codeshare flights operated on Qatar Airways between Doha and Chicago's O'Hare, George Bush, Dallas-Fort Worth, Boston Logan, and Dulles International Airport in the US capital Washington DC, Madrid-Barajas Airport, accordingly with effect from February 8.

This proposal is the second phase of the recent expansion of the codeshare agreement between the two airlines, both members of the Oneworld global airline alliance, which links passengers via 13 member airlines to over a thousand cities in more than 180 countries and territories.

Phase 1 of the project was completed in the last quarter of 2019, adding a considerable number of destinations to both airlines ' networks. SriLankan's route network will cover 116 cities in 51 countries with the addition of Houston, Dallas-Fort Worth, and Boston as codeshare destinations.

By codeshare agreements with other partner airlines, SriLankan already serves Chicago, Washington DC, Madrid and Larnaca. Code-sharing arrangements are commonly used by similar airlines to strengthen their operations in various parts of the world. Passengers of SriLankan Airlines will now have the option of seamless long-distance travel via one travel booking through Doha. SriLankan has a variety of deals with other airlines, including codeshare.

OSL Take: Sri Lanka’s airport and aviation industry are currently undergoing a facelift with the government of Sri Lanka, giving prominence to the development and upliftment of the country’s airports, including the main international airport in the island. Sri Lanka’s national carrier is also undergoing a restructuring program. The airline is also on the lookout for a foreign investor to form a joint venture operation for the airline. Sri Lanka’s geographical positioning in the Indian Ocean region, the ease of doing business environment, and the strong trade ties with foreign nations have made Sri Lanka the ideal business destination in the South Asian region. All this indicates the growing business/investment potential in Sri Lanka’s airport and aviation industry.

The government of Sri Lanka is engaged in a program to uplift the country’s airport and aviation industry by launching a plan to develop regional airports in several parts of the country. The local airports aimed at further developing Sri Lanka’s connectivity to foreign destinations and trading markets. It has also helped boost the country’s tourism industry and the operation of many international airlines to the island.

Further, Sri Lanka’s geographical positioning in the Indian Ocean, the ease of doing business environment in the country, and the strong trade ties with other countries as well as the continuously growing tourism industry make the island the ideal business/investment destination in South Asia. Foreign businesses could, therefore, confidently explore business opportunities in Sri Lanka’s airport and the aviation industry as well as the opportunities in developing additional infrastructure facilities.