Air France expanded its long-haul network with the launch of three weekly direct flights between Paris and Colombo. Customers will be able to travel to Paris and connect to the Air France global network with close to 200 destinations via the convenient hub of Paris, Charles de Gaulle. Colombo will be served as a seasonal operation in the winter schedule 2021 – 22 and a continuation of the Air France flight from Male. Customers will experience the best of Air France cabins on board the Boeing 787-9 operating on this route, Air France said in a statement. • Seating capacity of 279 seats (30 in Business, 21 in Premium Economy and 228 in Economy class) • Full – flat beds in Business Class • A dedicated Premium Economy cabin with more comfort and space • Comfortable economy cabin with ample legroom and practical accessories such as USB port Wi-Fi across all cabins The first flight departure from Colombo – Paris was yesterday (05). Symbolic to new beginnings, Air France marked this occasion with the lighting of a traditional lamp and a ribbon-cutting ceremony at the airport. Speaking in this regard, Jean-Noel Rault, the General Manager Air France – KLM, Indian Sub-continent stated: “We are thrilled to start operations between Colombo and Paris and offer the best of Air France services and care to our customers while applying strict health and hygiene protocols. The connection of Air France and Colombo dates back to the 1950’s with the route Paris-Rome-Cairo-Bahrain-Karachi-Colombo-Bangkok-Saigon, operated by our sister company UTA. 27 years later, we are excited to return to Colombo and display our ambition to include Sri Lanka in our extensive global network.” Ambassador of France to Sri Lanka and the Maldives Eric Lavertu meanwhile said: “A wonderful reopening of the connection between Paris and Colombo by a French Airline after many years. No doubt that the city of lights and the pearl of Indian ocean are two cities which need direct and frequent relations. Thank you very much to Air France to give them that opportunity.” Minister of Tourism Prasanna Ranatunga commented: “The government of Sri Lanka is pleased with the decision taken by Air France to operate direct flights to Sri Lanka after a lapse in services for more than 30 years. This marks a momentous occasion in terms of Sri Lankan tourism and the tourism drive undertaken by the government in a post- COVID landscape. The introduction of direct services between Colombo and Paris will assist with the recovery process of tourism in the country and more importantly act as a conduit connecting Sri Lanka to Paris; one of the most important tourism hubs in the world. The network offering from Air France has the capacity to open up our island nation to the entire globe and we are thankful to the airline for selecting us as a winter destination. This step taken by Air France will no doubt lead towards strengthening the bilateral bond between our two nations and we look forward to working closely with France and with the airline towards enhancing these operations in a manner beneficial for both countries. As a government we would like to pledge all possible support to Air France in carrying out its operations in Sri Lanka.”