Sri Lanka Aviation

May be that's why Mihin Lanka is increasing the frequency of flights to Dhaka from 5 to 6 weekly effective Summer 2015. Does Mihin has sufficient demand for business class in the Dhaka route? I am quite surprised still Biman hasn't launched the Colombo route but Mihin Lanka is looking to add Chittagong, Kathmandu and Ho Chi Minh City to it's network in year 2015.

I don't know how well Business Class can sell because the demographic that flies between Colombo and Dhaka are primarily price-sensitive passengers. However, there is a relatively large and wealthy Bangladeshi upper class that Sri Lankan/Mihin can tap into, especially if Sri Lanka is promoted more aggressively as a tourist destination. The proposed Bangladesh-Sri Lanka FTA coming into effect might drive up the Business traffic even more.

Korean Air vs Sri Lankan Airlines

Korean Air posts $350m loss for 2013

Korean Air, has posted an annual net loss of $US357 million.



Korean Air swings to big operating profit in 2014

Korean Air has reported an operating profit of $US355 million for the year ended 31 December 2014, a major improvement on the $US357 million loss over the previous fiscal year.



Sri Lankan Airlines lose Rs21.5bn in 2012

http://www.lankabusinessonline.com/n...2012/581343886

Sri Lankan Airlines lose 30.1 billion rupees (230 million US dollars) in 2013

http://www.lankabusinessonline.com/n...ears/276075621

2014 - More Loss

Don't confuse full flights with profitable flights. If you sell tickets cheaply enough you can fill all the seats no problem.

What's the price of a return ticket?

When I flew the CMB-LHR-CMB route these flights were also always full. This was still a money losing flight.

Lets see some figures.

It's incredible actually. I've bought DAC-CMB return flights ranging from $650 - $900! Which is insane considering it's a 3/3.5 hour flight with no IFE, minimal service, and a tiny meal. They have a monopoly on the route, and they're really milking it. I've heard that Mihin officials say that Jakarta and Dhaka are their most profitable routes, and I wouldn't be surprised if it were true.

They are transit to Middle-East I believe- so add in the onward sector, not bad I guess !!!

So does IXM. Its a 95% feeder for UL network especially middle east. This flight always gets good load round the year, but I cannot comment on yield. I think nobody has exact figures of it.

Service of Srilankan Airlines

As per recent skytrax comments, Srilankan does not have a good service rating. People have bad comments specially on the flights running to Europe. Bad seating, outdated flight entertainment systems, food, toilet facilities have been highlighted. Hope they will provide a better service with the introduction of new flights.They need to improve a lot to competed with EK,QR,EY,SIN etc.

SriLankan Airlines finalized agreement to lease four A321neos, two on lease from AerCap (Netherlands) and two on lease from Air Lease (US). 20FEB2015




Should've leased some more NEOs IMHO to replace the Mihin fleet (although I suspect this would now be negotiated separately after the merger).

At the end of the day its the people that make the Airline.

UL have lost so many good people in all departments since the GOSL took over the Airline. The Airline's reputation has been badly damaged. The Clowns at the top have only made things worse. Any form of people management is completely missing at the moment.

There is a culture of impunity and zero accountabilty. That needs to change before anything else gets done.

The management didn't count on the election results - they thought the party would never end. They are most likely frantically trying to avoid any accountability. Unfortunately there are e-mails and signed letters that prove otherwise.

The investigation will turn up a lot - I hope people have the courage to come forward and provide the necessary information.

The real tragedy is that none of this should have happened in the first place.

Mihin cancels Boeing deal; Airbus planes instead

Mihin Lanka has cancelled a deal for two Boeing 737-800 aircraft after convincing the international leasing company that the costs associated with changing its Airbus fleet to Boeing would cripple its finances. After protracted talks, the California-based Air Lease Corporation (ALC) has agreed to let Mihin have three Airbus planes instead, said Nishantha Ranatunga, the former Chief Executive Officer (CEO), who spearheaded the negotiations. Two of them are new-generation A320neo aircraft while the third is an A319.

Company sources said it had not been easy to reshape the agreement. Mihin had already signed up with ALC for Boeing before Mr. Ranatunga became CEO in April 2014. But it was found that the expense of operating Boeing aircraft (particularly the purchase of spare parts) would squeeze the struggling company’s balance sheet further.

Boeing initially adjusted or introduced some terms to make the deal more affordable. Even this would have required a heavy investment and was not sustainable for Mihin, which had adopted a new business plan. After ALC agreed to lease out Airbus aircraft instead of Boeing, the amended contract was closed in November.

ALC buys new commercial jets directly from manufacturers and leases them to airlines. The international jetliner market is dominated by the European Airbus and the American Boeing companies which are in intense competition with each other.

Mr. Ranatunga, who vacated the post of CEO earlier this month, said Mihin currently had three Airbus aircraft, of which one would be returned. With the addition of the new planes, the total fleet would be five. However, the new Government’s plans for Mihin remain unclear.

Presenting the interim budget in parliament on January 29, Finance Minister Ravi Karunanayake called Mihin “a loss making entity” and said it had incurred a cumulative loss of Rs. 15 billion over five years. He proposed a consolidation of Mihin and SriLankan as an interim solution.

But Mr. Ranatunga said the airline could recover if the business plan — which was produced by Mihin’s own staff and which aimed to make it self-sufficient in four years –was adhered to. The company suffered operational losses of US$ 1.2 million in April 2014. This dropped progressively until it made profits in August the same year. It suffered losses during the last quarter, rallying again in January this year.

The turnaround was a result of Mihin negotiating with its partners to reduce costs, Mr. Ranatunga said. For instance, the company secured a 35 per cent reduction on airport charges in Sharjah. Meanwhile, SriLankan Airlines gave paid access to its resources. The two companies shared country managers and arranged for secondment of cabin and safety crew. Incentive schemes were introduced for technical and cabin crew to facilitate optimisation of labour.

One reason for past losses was a failure by the Government to inject the required capital on time, Mr. Ranatunga said. The State spent Rs. 14.5 billion over eight years on Mihin. Of this, 45 per cent — or Rs. 6.5 billion — was allocated in 2014-2015. “This was a positive factor for us to do well,” Mr. Ranatunga said. He said much of the money was used to settle fuel bills and unpaid airport charges, both local and foreign.

A massive 43 per cent of Mihin’s expenditure goes towards aviation fuel, statistics provided by Mr. Ranatunga show. Only six per cent goes towards staff. Finance charges, at four percent, were “substantial,” he said. Mihin had been trapped in a “vicious cycle”, the former CEO held. When there was no funding to pay for fuel, the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation slapped penalties on Mihin. This caused the airline to borrow from banks, and so it continued.

Mr. Ranatunga said the key challenge administrators faced was to change perceptions. “My personal view is that if you manage this organisation well, you can run it on a commercially viable basis,” he said. He also said that amalgamation of the two airlines was “okay, so long as you run different profit and loss accounts”.

“Mihin’s costs are low,” he explained. “And its recent performance has been good.” The projected loss for this year was US$ 13 million. This has now been revised to US$ 11 million. “If this trend continues, Mihin can make profits in the first quarter of 2017,” he claimed.

Nishantha thinks Mihin can be turned around and was on its way there.

Sounds just like Kapila stating that UL will become profitable!

These people have zero credibility imho.

Mihin Lanka adds a fourth aircraft to its fleet
Is Mangalore a new destination for Mihin Lanka?
Any pictures of 4R-MRF?

Good News.... Thought MJ was gonna merge with UL