Sri Lanka Aviation

wait, did I not see this or was this an edit? I genuinely posted the previous post about the WAW-MCT-CMB one without seeing this/

Smartwings PL to start 1x weekly WAW-MCT-CMB winter service from 23/12/2025 using 7M8s.

Is Batik Air canceled the plan of flying to Colombo?

Thanks for the update! Edelweiss also have planned to increase ZRH-CMB flights from 1 to 2 weekly effective end of Oct 2025

Smartwings Poland is planning to fly WAW-MCT-CMB route once a weekly effec 23 December 2025. Operated every Tuesdays onboard B737Max8. CMB Arrival time 20:55 and departure time 21:55.

Edelweiss to replace A343 with A359 on CMB route from 09 April 2026 as per their website.

Cancelled long ago.

There is no actual announcement yet, just a meeting between Belavia and CAASL.

Demand? Yes there is likely demand from Belarus to Sri Lanka for tourism in their winter.
From Sri Lanka, there are hundreds of Sri Lankan medical students at Medical School in Minsk. The Belarus qualification is recognised by the medical authorities of Sri Lanka. (Strangely, medcial qualifcations from EU countries are not recognised in Sri Lanka).
So there could well be demand for a seasonal flight as there is from Moscow and other countries in that region.

According to airfleet, ex-thai A333 (MSN 1037) due for SriLankan Airlines. Can anyone confirm?

https://www.airfleets.net/ficheapp/plane-a330-1037.htm

I believe so, as per the request for flights from Belarus to Colombo, not alot of demand, but some demand. EW-588PD is the only A332 that is currently in operation by Belavia, operates short to medium hops, from MSQ to either IST or BEN specifically, i havent seen this aircraft operate on any other route other than these two. since Belavia is banned from European airspace.
Screenshot 2025-08-09 152614.jpg

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Are there a pax and cargo demand on MSQ-CMB route for direct flights? Which routes that A332 currently serve for Belavia?

Air Arabia is going to increase SHJ-CMB flights from 18 to 20 weekly and Air Arabia Abu Dhabi is going to increase AUH-CMB flights from 5 weekly to Daily effec end of Oct 2025. Salamair also increasing MCT-CMB flights from 5 to 6 weekly effect end of Oct 2025. Sadly UL is pulling out of CMB-AUH route from 8-Sep-2025.

Belavia currently has 737's and a singular A332 in service (two other airframes are parked), if they do begin flights it will be safe to assume they will operate with A332s, or sometimes even B737s with a stop at RKT.

Belavia Airlines Ready to Launch Direct Flights from Belarus to Colombo

In a significant step towards strengthening air connectivity, a delegation from Belavia Airlines, the National Air Carrier of the Republic of Belarus, paid a courtesy visit to the Civil Aviation Authority of Sri Lanka (CAASL) on 05th August 2025.

The discussions centered around Belavia’s new business plans and potential opportunities within Sri Lanka’s aviation sector. CAASL extended a warm welcome to their proposals, and the Belavia representatives expressed strong interest in exploring these opportunities further.

Representing CAASL at the meeting were Mr. Sunil Jayarathna, Chairman, Mr. Rayhan Wanniappa, Acting Director General of Civil Aviation and Chief Executive Officer, Capt. Daminda Rambukwella, Deputy Director General (Flight Safety Regulation), Mr. M. A. K. Prasanna, Deputy Director General (Aeronautical Services Regulation) along with other senior officials.

The Belavia Airlines delegation was led by Mr. Uladzimir Barkun, Deputy Director General & Chief Commercial Officer, and Ms. Olga Mikhed, Head of Government & Industry Affairs, together with other senior officials.

The meeting was coordinated by Ms. Kaumadie Wijesinghe, Assistant Director (Europe and North America) of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Foreign Employment and Tourism. Representatives from Far East Air Services (Pvt) Ltd, including Mr. Andre Fernando and Ms. Thanuja De Silva, General Sales Agents for Belavia in Sri Lanka, also attended the meeting.​

Last time UL operated to AMS was in early 1999, when 503/4 flew AMS-LHR. Correct me if I'm wrong. They didn't restart it when European operations was at a peak in around 2001 with ARN, SXF, FCO, MXP in the network. They didn't consider to restart when Air Holland, KLM, MartinAir and several other airlines operated meanwhile.

AMS would be a great addition to UL's network and would give travelers lots of options to North America if UL could offer onward connections on Delta and KLM. However flights to AMS seem unlikely, since the airport is reducing the number of slots available to carriers?