AeroSvit enters Sri Lankan skies

By Cheranka Mendis

Hayleys Group on friday introduced the latest airline to enter the Sri Lankan skies, Ukrainian airline AeroSvit, which has been brought into Sri Lanka on an investment of US$ 65,000 (approximately Rs. 7. 16 million).

The airline, acknowledged as the largest in Ukraine, will operate on a point-to-point non-stop basis to Colombo from 23 October, operating three flights to Sri Lanka per week. Hayleys Leisure and Aviation Sector Head Johann Wijesinghe told the Daily FT that AeroSvit’s move into Sri Lanka was based on two grounds – to expand its network and cater to the increasing demands to Sri Lanka.

He stated that Sri Lanka had been named as a popular destination among the Ukrainians and with the demand growing for Asia and CIS markets, the move to Sri Lanka was a timely and highly beneficial one.

“Maldives and Sri Lanka are both very popular destinations for CIS countries. AeroSvit’s move into Sri Lanka even before Maldives shows the importance placed on the country,” Wijesinghe said. “There is a very strong demand for Sri Lanka and both AeroSvit and Hayleys are looking forward to benefit from this demand.”

Even with no direct flights to Sri Lanka, a total of 5,700 Ukrainians have travelled to Sri Lanka in 2010, he said. During the January to August period this year, the number of arrivals has been recorded as 5,100. With AeroSvit’s operations, Wijesinghe believes that the country can welcome 8,900 Ukrainians by the end of the year.

However most of the visits as at now have been business-oriented travel, he said. “There are strong trade ties between the two countries from the local tea industry to the mineral and machinery industries in Ukraine. From a tourism point, arrivals are almost negligible.”

Noting that December seating was almost sold out already, he said that AeroSvit would also operate on a year-round basis. “This is not just a winter operation,” he stressed. “Schedule for summer operations is already in plan.”

From 23 October, the aircraft, a wide-body Boeing 767, will depart from Kyiv on Mondays, Wednesdays and Saturdays and flights to and back from Colombo will be activated on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Sundays. Flight duration is said to be approximately nine hours long.

The airline expects to attract new tourist traffic from Europe, North America and Middle East to Sri Lanka. With AeroSvit now flying Lankan skies, Colombo will be connected with Ukraine’s largest cities as well as Stockholm, Copenhagen, Budapest, Vilnius, Warsaw, Prague, Sophia, Riga, Moscow, Minsk, New York, Toronto, Tel Aviv, Istanbul and other AeroSvit destinations.

As part of the initial start up, special promotional packages have been launched, which will be valid up to 10 November. These packages include Colombo-London one way flight for Rs. 30,000 and both for Rs. 99,000. Colombo to Kyiv and back is offered at a competitive price of Rs. 46,000.