Sri Lanka’s airports are still operating at roughly 30 percent below normal capacity as the Middle East war disrupts global air traffic, Deputy Tourism Minister Janitha Ruwan Kodithuwakku has said.
Speaking on the operational impact of the Iran-Israel-US conflict on civil aviation, the deputy minister said flight operations had collapsed by close to 60 percent in the early days of the war, before stabilising at around 30 percent below pre-conflict levels in recent weeks.
“The income generated by airports has reduced to some extent because flight operations dropped by about 60 percent,” Kodithuwakku said. He confirmed that final loss calculations are still being compiled, but acknowledged that revenue from landing fees, ground handling and concessions had fallen sharply.
Several international carriers have reduced frequencies to Bandaranaike International Airport, suspended overnight stops or rerouted services to avoid Gulf airspace exposure. Higher war-risk insurance premiums and cargo delays have compounded the disruption.
The deputy minister said authorities remained “hopeful” that year-end tourism targets could still be met if the conflict ends within April. “As soon as the war is over, we can promote tourism and boost the aviation sector,” he said.
The aviation slump deepens an already weak first quarter for Sri Lankan tourism, with March arrivals falling 19 percent year-on-year. The country had been counting on a strong Q2 to recover before the regional war upended Gulf transit hubs that account for a large share of inbound traffic. Turkish Airlines’ recent expansion of Istanbul-Colombo flights, partially rerouting traffic away from Gulf hubs, has helped offset some of the loss but has not closed the gap.
