The first commercial flight to the Mattala Rajapaksa International Airport (MRIA) which was opened for commercial operations nine years ago on March 18, 2013 arrived from the USA with 108 passengers.
The significance about the flight was that it carried Sri Lankan/American dual citizens from various parts of the USA including, professionals, businessman and diplomats on board an A340-200 aircraft.
The necessity of having another international airport emerged at the beginning of the 21st century and subsequently a new plot of land in Mattala had been identified for the project.
Work on the second international airport commenced on November 2009. This was the brief history of the second international airport..
The chief organiser of the historic flight was Upul Dharmadasa, the present Chairman of the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) of Sri Lanka. We caught up with Dharmadasa to talk more on the rare occasion.
Q: Can you tell us the importance of the historic flight that was organised by you?
A. We as Sri Lankans living in the USA wanted to make our mark to honour this event because generally an opening a new airport is a rare occasion. For a country like ours, this could be the only opportunity we would get to see in our entire life time. An additional international airport to any country is vital as it not only enhances the value but also provides additional benefits to the country. Therefore, we were determined that we should arrive in Mattala on the first commercial flight.
Q: The proud members of the first flight were those living in various parts of USA. There would have been tremendous work behind arranging the flight. How exciting was the preparation and journey to you?
A. Absolutely. Those who flew to Sri Lanka were from cities such as New York, Los Angeles, Dallas, Fort Worth, Chicago and Houston. They all gathered in Dubai, on March 16, 2013 to be a part of the historic event as we thought it would be convenient to initiate the important historic flight from the UAE. The next step of the plan was to land at the MRIA at the scheduled time subsequent to the inauguration ceremony.
Our team managed to make a reservation of an Airbus A340-200 aircraft belonging to our national carrier, SriLankan Airlines and then we left from Dubai to Mattala. We were content about the present level of the second international airport that would make a significant contribution to the economy of our mother country.
Q: We all witnessed the significant role, the MRIA played as the second international airport during the Covid -19 pandemic. What is your take on this?
A. It was a heartfelt moment of bringing back the stranded Sri Lankans from Wuhan, China during the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic. The flight landed at the MRIA. After that flight, there were numerous flights to the MRIA carrying stranded Sri Lankans from almost all corners of the world while adhering to the Covid-19 health guidelines. The MRIA was used primarily for this task for a considerable time.
Not only that, we cannot forget the fact that the use of the airport as an intermediary point for crew transferring to international vessels operating on the International Vessel Line located a few miles away from the airport. We were able to establish the MRIA as one of the most appropriate intermediary points to change crew members from international vessels.
Q: As a veteran in the aviation industry counting nearly five decades what strategic plan do you have to develop the airport?
A. Many initiatives have already been taken to develop the airport to the next level. Many procedures and convenient systems have been adopted by the airport and the Government for the betterment of the passengers and the flights arriving at the airport. It has been already decided to continue this atmosphere for the next two years. Many new airlines have already carried out initial discussions to make the MRIA a destinations in their network.
The MRIA can also be developed as a crew transferring point. Since the road highway network has already been linked with the MRIA, I believe that tourists and commercial flights could be attracted easily and it is possible to use the airport as an export connecting point for agriculture and other export crops.
I need to mention the support I received from the former Sri Lankan Ambassador to the USA, Jaliya Wickramasuriya, Dilan Ariyawnsa, General Sales Agent of Sri Lankan Airlines USA and Canada, and the former Chairman of Airport and Aviation Services when I organised this flight nine years ago.
Jaliya Wickramasuriya supported in arranging the diplomatic details while Dilan Ariyawnsa looked after the flight arrangements.
– By Nilantha Tennakoon
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Prasanna Ranatunge, Minister of Tourism
Today at this special moment of celebrating nine years since producing the second international airport with the intention of contributing to the aviation sector to achieve future development targets, I take this opportunity to thank those who contributed immensely for building this international airport.
We have already prepared the development and business plans to convert the MRIA as a regional centre in line with President Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s ‘vistas of prosperity’ program.
During the Covid-19, we were able to strengthen the export sector using the MRIA for Covid-19 rescue flight operations, vessel crew transferring, and for scheduled cargo and charter flight operations.