UAE's flydubai to go double daily to Sri Lanka

UAE budget carrier flydubai is to double its daily flights to Sri Lanka starting from June 3.

The announcement from the Dubai-based airline comes a week after the South Asian nation inaugurated the new Mattala Rajapaksa International Airport in Hambanota.

The carrier also operates daily flights to Colombo, Sri Lanka’s largest city.

“The additional flights are in direct response to strong passenger demand across our network and we are delighted to contribute to the successful developments in the trade and tourism sectors taking place in the eastern and southern part of the island,” commented flydubai’s chief commercial officer, Hamad Obaidalla.

“We’ve been impressed by the facilities at the new airport and we’re certainly excited about the opportunities that these new flights bring to Sri Lanka and the United Arab Emirates,” he added.

Flights Hambanota will depart Dubai at 22:50 local time, arriving in Sri Lanka to 06:35 the next day following a stop in Colombo. The return service will leave Hambanota at 07:30 and arrive back in the UAE at 10:50 local time.

The airline said that more than 30 percent of its total passenger traffic to Sri Lanka last year was connecting from Central and Eastern Europe and the CIS states.

One of two budget airlines in the UAE, flydubai commenced operations in 2009 and services a network of more than 60 destinations via a fleet of 28 aircraft.