Sri Lanka Aviation

President allows SriLankan Airlines strategic plan to work, if not, open to other options

By Kapila Bandara

Other options will be considered for the national carrier if the strategic plan by the board and its management does not produce a justifiable outcome, President Anura Kumara Dissanayake told Parliament Friday in his Budget 2026 presentation.

“The board has been given a timeline. They have given us a plan. And if, after implementing their plan and there is no justifiable outcome, then the Government will be open to think differently about the airline,’’ President Dissanayake said. As Finance Minister, he has often underlined the carrier’s strategic importance to the country.

SriLankan Airlines rolled out a five-year strategic plan to regain operational efficiency. An important pillar of the strategy is to rebuild the fleet, alongside expansion of the network.


SriLankan Airlines has rolled out a five-year strategic plan which includes rebuilding its fleet, alongside expansion of the network.

Operating expenses have fallen to Rs 333.492b from Rs 444.467b in 2022/23.

Net finance costs in 2023/24 have dropped by Rs 13.625 billion to Rs 36.564b from Rs 50.189b in 2022/23.

The president also said Friday that the process of successfully restructuring the debt of SriLankan Airlines is continuing.

He was referring to overhauling of legacy debt including the unpaid, US$175 million sovereign guaranteed international bond. The airline has not made coupon or principal payments on the bonds since December 2022.

Up to January 2025, the airline has been infused with Rs 6.3b equity support to help build its liquidity position.

The Government and the financial advisor Lazard Freres are evaluating proposals to negotiate with bondholders. The Cabinet approved a restructuring plan by the adviser and the airline has said the adviser is engaging with the ad hoc committee of bondholders “for a potential restructuring plan”. Norton Rose Fulbright Llp is the airline’s international legal adviser to deal with bondholders and the trustee, DB Trustees (Hong Kong) Ltd. In June 2025, Law Debenture Trust (Asia) Ltd, with offices in Hong Kong, threatened to file a winding up application, but the airline got a Commercial High Court enjoining order in July 2025. The airline contended that neither the law firm nor the trustee are creditors.

In Budget 2026, President Dissanayake allocated Rs 446 billion including Rs 56b recurrent expenditure, for transport, ports, highways and civil aviation.

The National People’s Government he leads, took a decision to support the national carrier instead of privatising it and to overhaul the debt.

There were repeated failures by previous governments to entice buyers, the last effort being under accountant Suresh Shah, who headed the ‘State Owned Enterprise Restructuring Unit’. A former CEO of Lion Brewery, Mr Shah repeatedly questioned the state running any business and failed to entice an investor to SriLankan Airlines by June 2024. In July, the bidding process ended. At the time in 2023, the airline had an unsustainable debt stock of US$826m, impeding cashflow. Part of the cash flow went into repaying interest bearing liabilities and leases.

On Friday, President Dissanayake noted the airline had become a controversial subject along with its burden on public funds.

He said the Government has had discussions with the airline management and the board. “A solid plan has been presented and they have made us believe the airline can be rebuilt. So far, no one has sought to acquire it. For it to be sold, the airline has to be further modernised from its existing state.”

Divestment is not only about selling a majority or minority interest. It can also mean conversion into limited liability entities, issuing new shares, or even disposing of existing shares. There are other options, too.

Hi Banu,

4R-EXQ is under maintenance due to an unexpected trouble with one powerplant, 4R-EXS is here for a Check (Proly C check) and will be operated for 8D only for a week in-order to avoid Flight Disruptions due to the AOG of EXQ. EXS will return to 8D somewhere around Jan 2026.

Air Transat Granted Temporary Codeshare Licences for India, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Lebanon


The Canadian Transportation Agency (CTA) has granted Air Transat codeshare licences to operate services from Canada to Lebanon, India, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. The approvals do not obligate the airline to proceed with the codeshare services and no such announcements have been made.

The CTA decisions, issued on 29 and 30OCT, authorize Air Transat to place its code on flights to those destinations should the airline decide to proceed with the arrangements.

While approvals for India, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka fall under existing bilateral air service agreements, signed in 1982, 2013, and 2016 respectively, the CTA noted that the Lebanon approval is temporary and “extrabilateral.” The agency said the authorization was made despite the absence of a formal air service agreement between the two countries. The temporary licence will remain valid until 30JUN, 2027.

To maintain the approvals, Air Transat must continue to meet standard regulatory requirements, including holding a valid operating licence, maintaining an active Canadian aviation document, and carrying adequate liability insurance. The CTA said it already has these materials on file and is satisfied that Air Transat meets the conditions.

While codeshare permissions are a routine step in airline regulatory processes, they do not necessarily mean new routes will be launched. Instead, the approvals create a legal framework allowing Air Transat to activate the partnerships in the future. In many cases across the industry, approved codeshares are never implemented.
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Thanks for the update!

Can see 4R-EXS is operating Fitsair flights from 1st Nov. so that means 4R-EXS has completed the wet-lease ops with Salam Air?
I wonder why 4R-EXQ is not flying from 23rd Oct. Is it undergoing maintenance ?

HI Guys, Any update on Vietnam Airlines, Beijing Capital Airlines and Jetstar flights to Colombo ? Is SF Airlines Cargo still flying to Colombo?

Noticed yesterday VP-CRP [1037] was active again on FR24.

4R-ALN is back in service since 05th Nov.
4R-ALR is inactive since 03rd Nov.
4R-ABL is inactive since 01st Nov.

hi! I would like to retract my statement about MH ending the use of the A333 on KUL-CMB route as the information yesterday wasn't updated!!! Sorry!!!

what will MH use afterwards? A339 or A359? or B738/B38M?

Thai Air Asia has begun to deploy their brand new A321Ns from Bangkok (DMK) to CMB.. In other news,MH will be ending the deployment of A333 from KUL-CMB today as well, will update if they decide to continue with the A333 but not sure, please correct me if I am wrong!!! Thank you!!

Hi,

So far nothing. But I did heard from there that there is some guy/spotter is going to see it soon. Still can't confirm if 1037 will go to UL or if it is in UL colors until we actually get a photo of one..

Hi Haleef,

Is there any update or news regarding the Aircraft Interior / Cabin Config and Seats?

Update on VP-CRP.

Aircraft has been getting induction testing and has come out in fresh paint, still no photos of it. Unsure as to if it's painted in UL livery or not. Awaiting first images of CRP on this forum soon.

Really Appreciate your effort , Banu!

Small addition : https://www.facebook.com/numbers.lk/posts/pfbid08xxX7AGpfXJQ9zkdewggMLBzFk1q69uDmaxkVavkaAS7 WYYt5NRuh46fet8wW7Znl

As per these details : UL Fleet monthly utilization is lower than 400 hours per aircraft...