Cabinet Approves US$ 175M To Srilankan Airlines

Addressing the Media at the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) head office yesterday (26), State Minister of Public Enterprise Development, Lakshman Yapa Abeywardena said, Cabinet has approved US$ 175 million to be obtained from Credit Suisse to give a much-needed lifeline to the cash-strapped, ailing national carrier SriLankan Airlines. Out of this amount US$ 50 million was a short-term loan.

Replying to a question raised by a journalist Minister said, a new Board of Directors will be appointed soon.

“President Maithripala Sirisena has decided to appoint a presidential commission to probe the internal issues which have resulted in the financial crises at Mihin Air and Sri Lankan Airlines. He is on a firm stance to carry out this investigation in a transparent manner. We hope that vital information regarding the crisis situations in both Airlines will be revealed during the Presidential Commission’s investigations,” Minister explained. It is reported that the Sri Lankan has made a staggering loss of nearly Rs 40 billion after 2015, mainly due to mismanagement.