Flydubai suspends its operations in Sri Lanka amid violent protests; promises full refund

Amidst the ongoing violent protests in Sri Lanka, UAE airline flydubai has suspended its flights to the South Asian country on Monday with a promise to refund the full amount of the booked tickets. "Flydubai flights between Dubai and Colombo Airport (CMB) have been suspended from July 10 until further notice. We will continue to closely monitor the situation on the ground in Sri Lanka," a flydubai spokesperson said in a statement on Monday, reported Khaleej Times. The major development came merely three months after the airline had mentioned Colombo as one of its popular destinations as it witnessed a surge in passengers' demands to the island nation.

Despite a surge in demand, the airline stated that it has to suspend its services due to an unavoidable situation. "We apologise for the inconvenience caused to our passengers’ travel schedules," said its statement. The Dubai-based airline stated it had expected to carry three million passengers over the busiest summer in the airline’s history with an average of 8,500 departures per month. On the other hand, Abu Dhabi-based Etihad Airways confirmed it will continue its flights as per the schedule. However, it added that the airlines will make a short stop to refuel at Cochin International Airport. "Etihad Airways passenger services between Abu Dhabi and Colombo are currently operating as normal. Starting July 14, select return services from Colombo to Abu Dhabi will make a short stop to refuel at Cochin International Airport. Etihad continues to closely monitor the situation in Sri Lanka," said an Etihad Airways spokesperson.

Sri Lanka economic crisis

Notably, Sri Lanka, which has been facing the worst-ever economic crisis since its independence, has witnessed violent protests since February this year. On Saturday, protestors seized President Gotabaya Rajapaksa's official residence and set ablaze the Colombo-based private residence of PM Wickremesinghe late at night. The arson came despite Wickremesinghe's resignation. Hours after his resignation, Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) Gen. Shavendra Silva, has appealed to the citizens to support the Armed Forces in maintaining the law and order situation in the country. Amid this gloomy situation, the speaker of Parliament said President Gotabaya Rajapaksa would step down Wednesday, July 13. In a televised address on Saturday late at night, Speaker Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena said he informed Rajapaksa that parliamentary leaders had met and decided to oust him from the Presidential post.

Image: ANI