SriLankan Airlines CEO says ‘it’s the best time to visit island of serendipity’

SriLankan Airlines CEO says ‘it’s the best time to visit island of serendipity’

Muscat: SriLankan Airlines Chief Executive Officer Richard Nuttall said that it is the best time to visit Sri Lanka.

“There has never been a better time to visit (the country) as the hotels have low occupancy and the Sri Lankan currency is devalued. The government, SriLankan Airlines and all participants in the tourism industry are aligned and doing everything possible to support the return of tourism in the coming months,” he said, in an exclusive interview with the Times of Oman.

He also welcomed the government’s plans to privatise the airline. “I believe that it will offer greater opportunities for the organisation in terms of a much-needed capital infusion and the streamlining of decision-making,” he said.

Excerpts from the interview:

Q: I have heard that SriLankan Airlines made a profit this year. Is this true? How come this was possible?

A: SriLankan Airlines was profitable for the last four months of the year ending March 2021. We were also operationally profitable for the first six months of the current financial year starting April. However, given the high interest rates in Sri Lanka and the extra costs of operating for two months without jet fuel in our home base, we could not quite cover financing costs.