State-owned Sri Lankan Airlines has officially cancelled a decision by the previous government to lease four wide-body Airbus A330 aircraft and is now negotiating the acquisition of two new wide-body jets under more favorable terms, Chairman Sarath Ganegoda announced on yesterday (04).
In April 2024, the former administration approved a cabinet decision for the airline to lease four A330s — two from ORIX Aviation on a 6-year term at $360,000 monthly and another two from Aergo Capital Limited on an 8-year term at $365,000 monthly. Ganegoda confirmed that none of these deals have proceeded.
“Yes, currently there is nothing in the pipeline,” he told reporters when asked about the status of the previous cabinet-approved acquisitions. “But we are negotiating with various parties to acquire a couple of wide bodies.”
The move marks a strategic pivot for Sri Lankan Airlines as it aims to boost capacity on high-demand, profitable routes that are currently underserved due to aircraft limitations. “There are so many profitable routes we can’t connect due to lack of aircrafts. Even this [latest addition] is not sufficient,” Ganegoda said, referencing the newly added A330.
The airline added a new Airbus A330 to its fleet on Wednesday (June 4), bringing the total number of aircraft to 23. The latest aircraft was acquired from Carlyle Aviation Partners, a France-based lessor affiliated with the Carlyle Group, under an eight-year dry lease agreement with an option for extension. Ganegoda praised the airline’s engineering and finance teams for securing “very favourable terms” but declined to disclose the cost of the lease.
The delivery flight from Paris was marked by a low-altitude flyover along Colombo’s shoreline, visible from Port City to Moratuwa, before landing at Bandaranaike International Airport (BIA).
With the newest A330, Sri Lankan’s all-Airbus fleet now includes 10 long-haul A330s and 13 medium-haul A320/A321 aircraft. The airline is targeting an increase in its market share for routes from Colombo — aiming to grow from 35% to 45%.
Despite long-standing financial difficulties and accumulated losses since 2007, Sri Lankan Airlines is pressing ahead with expansion. The government has allocated 20 billion rupees in the 2025 budget to cover part of the airline’s legacy debt, as efforts continue toward balance sheet restructuring and potential privatization.
Ganegoda also highlighted that routes such as Beijing-Colombo and Nairobi-Colombo, which offer strong commercial potential, remain unserved due to current fleet limitations. “If everything goes well, we believe it will be possible to have at least two more aircrafts by the end of this year,” he said.
Sri Lankan Airlines had previously faced criticism over a controversial re-fleeting deal involving Airbus A350s under an earlier five-year plan. The current leadership is positioning its new leasing approach as a more pragmatic and performance-driven strategy for the national carrier.
