Cinnamon Air takes wing

Tuesday, 9 July 2013 00:00 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

The official launch of Cinnamon Air and the inauguration of the Waters Edge Water Aerodrome under the auspices of Ministry of Defence and Urban Development Secretary Gotabaya Rajapaksa was held on 4 July. Cinnamon Air will operate amphibious aircraft on scheduled and charter passenger services, directly and on a code-share with Sri Lankan Airlines, to bring convenience, reliability and a unique and exciting product to the local and international travellers. The airline will launch scheduled domestic flights originating at Katunayake, initially operating Cessna 208 amphibious aircraft. It will offer daily flights from the Bandaranaike International Airport (BIA) to Koggala, Dickwella and back. Flights will originate from Cinnamon Air’s dedicated domestic passenger terminal within the precincts of the BIA. The daily flights to Koggala and Dickwella will serve key south coast tourist destinations such as Galle, Koggala, Weligama, Mirissa, Dickwella and Tangalle. Later this month, Cinnamon Air will launch daily scheduled flights from BIA to Kandy (Polgolla), via the city of Colombo, consequent to the inauguration of the Water’s Edge water aerodrome in Sri Jayewardenepura. This routing will provide customers arriving at BIA off international flights and customers in the city, an option to travel to or from Kandy in under 30 minutes. Scheduled services from BIA to Sigiriya, Batticaloa and Trincomalee will be rolled out in the succeeding weeks as Cinnamon Air augments its fleet with a wheeled Cessna 208B Grand Caravan aircraft.

Departure and arrival times of Cinnamon Air’s flights from and to the BIA will be synchronised as closely as possible with the arrival and departure times of SriLankan Airlines and most major international carriers serving Colombo. Reservations for seats on Cinnamon Air flights can be made directly via the airline’s website (www.cinnamonair.com), which offers instant confirmation and accepts payment by all major credit cards. Reservations can also be made through most approved travel agents and destination management companies and at Waters Edge and the travel counters of several hotels in Colombo and on the coast. Cinnamon Air will also offer charter services to individuals and groups to all airports and approved water aerodromes in the country. These will include locations such as Nuwara Eliya, Arugam Bay, Mattala, Tissamaharama, Jaffna, Anuradhapura, Vavuniya, Victoria (Digana) and Bentota to name a few. Inquiries for charter flights could be made directly with the airline or via its website or through travel agents, destination management companies and hotel counters. Cinnamon Air is owned and operated by Saffron Aviation Ltd., a BOI approved joint venture between John Keells Holdings, MMBL Leisure Holdings and Phoenix Ventures.