SRILANKAN AIRLINES TURNS 33

The national carrier of Sri Lanka, SriLankan Airlines celebrates its 33rd anniversary this month. This milestone will be marked with religious ceremonies for the staff commencing from the first week of September.

The life journey of the airline has been fascinating, checked with victories and surviving turmoil during the country's three decade long civil war which claimed half of its fleet during the airport attack in 2001, the global recession and stifling competition in what is a mature, yet dynamic industry.

SriLankan took flight on September 1, 1979 as Air Lanka, its former name, with a humble fleet of two leased Boeing 707300B jetliners. Air Lanka's preliminary route network spanned destinations such as, Frankfurt; London; Paris; Bangkok; Singapore; Kuala Lumpur; Bahrain; Dubai; Male; Mumbai and Chennai.

Today, SriLankan's fleet has expanded to 21 Airbus A320, A330 and A340 aircraft, with some being brand new, delivered just this year and its network extends to 58 destinations in 33 countries in Europe; North America; Canada; Australia; Far East; Middle East and the Indian Sub-Continent.