Scheduled Jaffna flights put north on tourism map

• Flights see good demand; open up travel options attractive for corporate, leisure, diaspora

By Charumini de Silva

The successful launch of scheduled flights to Jaffna by FitsAir has boosted prospects of the Northern Province to become a tourist hotspot.  

The company on 1 February kicked off scheduled flights thrice a week, becoming the first private sector operator to Jaffna, and fulfilling a big need for time-conscious travellers to and from the north.   

“Since the launch we had a 60% to 70% load factor, and we have forward books till August this year,” FitsAir Passenger Aircraft Marketing Manager T.Z. Mohamed Ishan told Daily FT.

The company launched three weekly flights on Saturday, Monday and Wednesdays, with departure from the Ratmalana International Airport at 7:30 a.m. and at 8:20 a.m. from Jaffna. He believes that the success so far and the anticipated demand will make the Northern Province an attractive component in the tourism map of Sri Lanka.

“The demand for service is encouraging and growing. There are advance bookings being made,” Ishan added.

Accordingly, the customer mix includes corporate, leisure and diaspora.

Industry analysts said that the FitsAir service would be an added advantage and complement in extending incoming South Indian travellers to Sri Lanka to explore tourist destinations in southern Sri Lanka.

Ishan said the Government was supportive of the development with Airport Aviation Services (Sri Lanka) Ltd. providing free scheduled services to passengers from Jaffna International Airport to the town.