Friday, 6 December 2013 00:00
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Cinnamon Air, Sri Lanka’s premier domestic airline, will add a sixth inland destination to its network of scheduled services when it commences operations from the Bandaranaike International Airport to Sigiriya today, 6 December.
Cinnamon Air will operate the latest addition to its fleet, a Cessna 208B Grand Caravan aircraft in a luxurious Executive configuration that will carry up to eight passengers in absolute comfort on the BIA /Sigiriya route, on a flight that will last slightly under 30 minutes. The introduction of this flight will reduce travel time from the International Airport and the Colombo/Negombo area to the Cultural Triangle area by over three hours.
Commenting on the introduction of the flight, Cinnamon Air Director Romesh David stated that in addition to significantly enhancing Sri Lanka’s tourism infrastructure by providing incoming tourists with direct access to hotels in the Cultural Triangle area, this flight is an important extension of Cinnamon Air’s growing network by connecting with flights from Dickwella and Koggala on the southwest coast of country, thus affording tourists holidaying at beach hotels with easy and fast access to the Cultural Triangle.
He further stated that the airline would operate daily flights departing BIA at 2:15 p.m. on Mondays, Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays and 10 a.m. on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Sundays, with the return flight from Sigiriya to BIA departing Sigiriya at 5:15 p.m. on Mondays, Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays and at 11 a.m. on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Sundays.
The one way fare from BIA to Sigiriya or vice versa is listed at US$ 199 plus taxes with the airline offering an introductory discount of 30% for travel during the month of December. Tickets are available for purchase through all travel agents and via the airline’s website, www.cinnamonair.com.
All flights will operate in code share with SriLankan Airlines, consequent to which they will be available for sale throughout the SriLankan Airlines network and all travel agents around the world via global distribution systems, under a ‘UL’ designated flight number.
The introduction of this flight would provide all SriLankan Airlines passengers with the option of a useful and important extension of travel options within Sri Lanka, which can be booked at the time of purchasing their international travel.
Cinnamon Air, owned and operated by Saffron Aviation Ltd., is a joint venture between Sri Lanka’s largest listed conglomerate, John Keells Holdings, MMBL Leisure Holdings (a part of the Mercantile Merchant Bank Group) and Phoenix Ventures (parent of the Brandix Group, Sri Lanka’s largest garment manufacturer).
The airline operates a fleet of two Cessna 208 amphibian aircraft and one Cessna 208B Grand Caravan aircraft, with scheduled services to key inland points in Sri Lanka.
Cinnamon Air also offers charter services to and between all airports and water aerodromes in Sri Lanka. The airline is based out of Katunayake where it operates a dedicated domestic terminal (with the precincts of the BIA) and also its own purpose-built hangar and maintenance facilities.
