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Sunday Dec 01, 2024
Saturday, 5 December 2020 00:59 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}
By Charumini de Silva
Singapore Airlines will resume flights to and from Colombo from tomorrow (Sunday) after a lapse of nine months.
The airline will operate three flights per week to Singapore on Monday, Wednesday and Saturday and to Colombo on Sunday, Tuesday and Friday. Before the pandemic SIA operated 11 flights per week.
The first incoming flight will be on Sunday 6 December.
Airline sources said whilst there were no restrictions on outbound flights, the Civil Aviation Authority had set a limit of 50 passengers per incoming flight from Singapore and all passengers must have prior approval from the Foreign Ministry.
SIA will be the latest international airline to resume services to Sri Lanka, thereby enhancing connectivity amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. Sri Lankan borders have been closed for tourist traffic since mid-March 2020 as part of measures to contain the spread of COVID-19.
With enhanced health and safety practices, SIA has been gradually restoring its services. Between end-June and end-September 2020, SIA increased destinations served from 24 to 30. With sister airlines SilkAir and Scoot, the Group’s passenger network has increased from 32 destinations in June to 43 destinations, including Singapore, by the end of September.
In the coming months, Singapore Airlines and SilkAir will reinstate passenger services to Brunei, Dhaka, Fukuoka, Johannesburg, Kathmandu, Male and Penang. Scoot will also resume services to Melbourne. Last month SIA launched a three-time weekly service from Singapore to New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport, providing a non-stop connection to the US East Coast and supporting both cargo and passenger traffic on the route.
From this week SIA also upgraded its Los Angeles service to five-times weekly whilst on 17 December, SIA will also make a return to San Francisco with a thrice-weekly non-stop service.
