Strengthening the connectivity between Sri Lanka and the UAE, Air Arabia, the Middle East and North Africa’s first and largest low-cost carrier launched its first direct flight from Abu Dhabi to Colombo on Friday, 08 December 2023 from the Abu Dhabi International Airport.

Air Arabia will now operate direct flights between Abu Dhabi and Colombo every Wednesday, Friday and Sunday.

The first flight from Abu Dhabi to Colombo was welcomed by a water cannon salute upon arrival at the Bandaranaike International Airport (BIA) in Katunayake.

The inauguration of direct flights to Colombo will boost the tourism sector of Sri Lanka and will also be a great advantage for the UAE nationals and the expat community in the UAE to take the opportunity to travel to Sri Lanka at a lower cost. 

Ambassador of Sri Lanka to the UAE Udaya Indrarathne, Civil Aviation Authority of Sri Lanka (CAASL) Chairman G.S. Withanage, Airport and Aviation Services Sri Lanka (AASL) Vice Chairman Athula Galketiya, Minister Counsellor of the Embassy of Sri Lanka in UAE Medhavi Peris, Air Arabia Country Manager Shibin Nazeem and officials of Nawaloka Aviation, the GSA for Air Arabia CAASL and AASL were present at the event.

With the successful inauguration of the Air Arbia direct flights to Sri Lanka, the Embassy of Sri Lanka in Abu Dhabi-UAE is committed to collaborate with the UAE authorities to further enhance air connectivity between the two countries.