Srilankan Aircraft order scandal and tax Payers Rs. 25 Billion for Srilankan Aircraft Order Cancellation

 In an interview given by the Finance Minister yesterday, he exposed scandalous Srilankan Aircraft order placed by the previous Mahinda’s Administration.

Sri Lanka will pay Rs.25 Billion to AerCap Holdings NV, the world’s largest independent aircraft leasing company, for cancelling four A350-900s ordered by the previous government, Finance Minister Ravi Karunanayake said yesterday.

The Srilanka Government cancelled four of eight A350 aircraft orders with Airbus Group SE.

Minister Karunanayake later told Parliament that the state-run Sri Lankan Airlines do not require A350s as its longest flight time is around 10 hours and what was ordered can do 17 hours longest time. Flight from Srilanka to far away America won’t take even 15 hours. Why the previous regime Aircraft of this capacity is not known.

Government officials have said the remaining four A350s are scheduled to be delivered towards 2020 but the government is yet to take a decision on them.

Sri Lankan Airlines, which has taken on lease seven Airbus A330-300s since 2012, has debt of around $3.25 billion.

It posted a group net loss of Rs.16.3 billion for the financial year through March 31, narrowing from the Rs. 31.4 billion loss of a year earlier, due to lower oil prices. The carrier last posted a profit in 2009, a year after Emirates sold its stake in the venture.

The company also leased four of its Airbus A330 planes to Pakistan International Airlines Corp.