National carrier SriLankan with its passenger traffic growing by nearly 25 per cent last year and expected to take even a bigger leap with eventual flights to Toronto, Melbourne and Moscow is now urgently in need of new aircraft.
According to insiders with Toronto region alone having more than 200,000 Sri Lankan Tamils, the carrier has already negotiated a code share deal with Air Canada to facilitate the new service.
Though the European Airbus aircraft have been the workhorses of the SriLankan since mid 1990s after President Premadasa first acquired a fleet of five aircraft from Toulouse, the France based manufacturer just prior to President Premadasa’s assassination in May 1993, most SriLankan pilots The Nation spoke with were not in favour of acquiring any more of its aircraft allegedly due to the repeated failure of the manufacturer to keep to its word, even when it comes to engine performance.Read more
Pilots also allege certain unethical business practices resorted to by Airbus.
Pilots who have been wooed by sales teams from rival American Boeing and Airbus are in favour of former’s 777 as it is much faster and economical, especially on long haul flights in comparison to similar aircraft on offer by the latter.
A top official familiar with discussions underway with the two manufacturers said yesterday that their offers were yet being weighed.
But others said they expected the American firm to come up with a total package, including finance, training and even transition aircraft till such time the new planes could be delivered, which is said to be at least three years from ordering.
President Rajapaksa has already said in public that the National Carrier needs more than 30 aircraft to meet its requirement. It is now struggling with about a dozen mostly leased aircraft.
The Nation
