SriLankan Airlines will launch services to Coimbatore on October 29, making this South Indian city the airline’s 11th destination in India.

Coimbatore, sitting near the border of Tamil Nadu and Kerala, provides an ideal gateway for travellers from East Kerala to fly to the Middle East, Southeast Asia, and the Far East. A major industrial city, Coimbatore is the second largest metropolis in Tamil Nadu.

SriLankan CEO Peter Hill said: “SriLankan Airlines has positioned Colombo as the gateway to India, and we are continuously increasing our services there.

“This includes the addition of more and more cities across India to our route network, and we are proud to add Coimbatore to this list.”
 
The airline will initially operate four flights a week on Monday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday using Airbus A320 aircraft. It already has services to three major cities in Kerala – Trivandrum, Kozhikode, and Kochi; and two in Tamil Nadu – Chennai (Madras) and Trichy.
 
Manoj Gunawardena, head of worldwide passenger sales, said: “Our new service to Coimbatore will provide convenient access to and from all regions in our international network, we are confident that the new service would be useful to many segments particularly business traveller, leisure traveller, those traveling to visit relations and friends and for employment .”
 
Senaka Fernando, regional manager Indian subcontinent and Maldives, said:

“SriLankan Airlines is very familiar with the travel requirements of South Indian passengers, and we take great care in providing the best facilities to them.”
 
A short 70-minute flight would bring travellers to Colombo, where the airline has rapid connections to its global network of 54 destinations in 28 countries.

Colombo’s Bandaranaike International Airport has earned a reputation as the finest in the South Asian region following its recent expansion, with its modern terminal and aerobridges, comfortable lounges, and well-stocked duty free shopping complex.
 
SriLankan carried a staggering 1.1 million passengers to and from India in the 12 months from April 2006-March 2007, 32 per cent of the airline’s global traffic.

Sri Lanka is a popular destination among Indian tourists, for its excellent value-for-money shopping, diverse climates and landscapes, and ancient cultural sites. It is also a favourite among business travellers, especially with companies that prefer Colombo for meetings, incentives, conventions, and exhibitions (MICE tourism).
 
SriLankan has won many awards for its operations to India, including the Galileo Indian Express Award for Best East bound International Airline.

Its global and regional accolades include “World’s Best Airline” in a survey of Economy Class passengers; “World’s Friendliest Cabin Staff”; first runner-up for “World’s Best Cabin Staff”; “Best Overall Inflight Entertainment (small fleet)”; Best Airline in Central Asia four consecutive years; and Best Airline in South Asia three times.