SriLankan Airlines is to launch services to Coimbatore this month, making the 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, South-east Asia, and the Far East. A major industrial city, Coimbatore is the second largest metropolis in Tamil Nadu.

Peter Hill, CEO of SriLankan, 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 start operating 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.

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% 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).
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