- Airport and Aviation Services denies rumours
There are no flights kept on standby at the Bandaranaike International Airport (BIA) in Katunayake or the Colombo International Airport in Ratmalana (CIAR) for the ruling Rajapaksa family to leave Sri Lanka, Airport and Aviation Services Sri Lanka (Pvt.) Ltd. Director – Chief Operations (All Airports) and Board Member Shehan Sumanasekara confirmed.
Speaking to The Morning, Sumanasekara said that there is no such flight on standby at both the airports, adding that anybody could ascertain the veracity of the same by coming to the said airports.
Rumours were spreading across social media that in the face of the current crisis, Finance Minister Basil Rajapaksa and his family would flee the country if the people became violent.
“Only SriLankan Airlines and FitsAir who especially run cargo flights have permission to provide such a facility. If they provide a certain flight, they should inform the management and I should be aware of it too.”
Moreover, if a person keeps a flight waiting, they need to bear the cost of the airport charges as well as the airline company charges, which is a huge amount, he said.