BIA shut down irks passengers

A three hour shut down of the Bandaranaike International Airport (BIA) on Wednesday afternoon had irked thousands of passengers in addition to sending wrong signals to operating airlines.

Sources said that between 2.30 p.m. and 5.30 p.m. on Wednesday the BIA was shut down for airlines allegedly for maintenance.  This move without adequate early notice had forced airlines flying into and out of Colombo during that time to delay or cancel their scheduled flights.

The latter had forced passengers bound to Colombo on urgent matters to look for alterative airlines operating at different times causing severe inconvenience.

Airline industry sources said that if an airport is being shut down for maintenance, then adequate prior notice was the professional practice. The abrupt move led to rumours that the authorities were taking extreme precautions to provide secure passage to either VVIP cargo or persons. Even if the speculation was true then analysts said there were professional ways to handle the situation than opting for an abrupt shut down. Airport officials couldn’t be reached for comment.