Opposition MP Dayasiri Jayasekara has called on the government to explain why SriLankan Airlines entered into an eight-year operating lease worth approximately USD 26.6 million for a 14-year-old Airbus A330-200, after the deal had been publicly described as the acquisition of a “new aircraft.”
The details emerged after journalist Rahul Samantha Hettiarachchi obtained the lease agreement through a Right to Information (RTI) request, following a prolonged effort to access the records. The airline had initially resisted disclosure, citing “commercial secrecy,” before the Right to Information Commission ordered it to release the financial details.
According to documents disclosed before the Commission, the aircraft — registration 4R-ALT — was acquired under an operating lease rather than an outright purchase. The airline pays an initial monthly lease instalment of USD 275,000, equivalent to USD 3.3 million annually. The agreement runs from June 2025 to June 2033, bringing the total payout over the eight-year term to roughly USD 26.6 million.
Jayasekara questioned the transparency of the transaction and called for an investigation, describing the deal as a waste of public funds. He also questioned why such a sum was being committed to an aircraft already 14 years old.
The disclosure adds a new accountability angle to airline governance at a sensitive time. The government recently confirmed that SriLankan Airlines’ Rs. 91.3 billion (USD 993.78mn) debt has been restructured, with options including a public-private partnership, a management contract, or full state ownership still under discussion. The carrier had already been under scrutiny for the Honeywell USD 25 million APU contract and retreaded aircraft tyre imports.
Source: Newswire — May 7, 2026.
