• The airline is expanding partnerships to meet growing demand from Asia’s middle class and address aircraft shortages
• The carrier is in talks with Vietnam Airlines and Saudi Air to enhance connectivity and resolve its capacity issues

SriLankan Airlines, the national carrier of Sri Lanka, is to increase its code-share agreements within the Asian region, in response to global trade volatility and a growing Asian middle class segment, SriLankan Airlines Sri Lanka and Indian Ocean Regional Manager Indunil Wijekoon said at the Sri Lanka Aviation Forum, held recently.

“When it comes to development of the network- us being one of the smallest airlines in the region have to leverage all of our partnerships opportunities. One World is one,” Wijekoon said, in response to a question on the importance of expanding connectivity and partnerships within the Asian region.

“Currently we have about 17 code-share agreements, and of that, six of the code-share agreements are with Asian carriers; starting from Malaysian, Cathay Pacific, Japan Airlines, Korean Air, Asia Air. So that’s the kind of focus we have.”

Around 70% of SriLankan Airline’s capacity is deployed in the Asian markets when assessing the carrier's total frequency for a year.

“We can pull more, only if we have more aircrafts in our hands. We are eager to go to China, which we have postponed for next year.  We need to get into Korea. There are a few more locations in India we are looking at. These are on our wishlist,” Wijekoon added.

Wijekoon also said that the carrier is looking to resolve its aircraft capacity issues by looking towards partnerships with other airlines in the region.

“For the stopgap, with the aircraft shortage, we are looking to partner with other airlines in the region. Currently we are in talks with Vietnam Airlines and Saudi Air.”

Commercial Aviation Airline Strategist Duminda Amaratunga said that of the two million tourists that visited Sri Lanka, Asia was among the top source markets.

Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority (SLTDA) data shows that of the 2,053,465 foreign tourists that visited Sri Lanka in 2024, 21.3% were from India 4% were from China.

A majority of the other top source markets were European nations such as Russia (9.8%), the United Kingdom (8.6%) and Germany (6.6%).

“With the rise of the middle class in India, China, Malaysia, Indonesia and Vietnam - we are seeing a new profile of travellers. Young, tech-savvy, experience driven and increasingly flying,” Amaratunga said.

Chinese tourist arrivals in Sri Lanka doubled this year during the Chinese Lunar New Year with 19,809 arrivals, statistics from the SLTDA shows. Monthly tourism arrivals data from the Chinese New Year period in 2024 in the month of February shows that Sri Lanka saw 14,836 arrivals.

Meanwhile, the Chinese outbound tourism market is projected to reach $ 255 billion in 2025, according to a report by Goldman Sachs. This projected figure is meant to reflect a rebound to pre-pandemic levels, driven by pent-up demand and increased travel spending.

According to Mckinsey and Company, the market is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 10-12% from 2023-25, fuelled by increased international flight capacity, easing of travel restrictions, and rising consumer confidence.

Mckinsey and Company also found that China’s middle class is expected to reach 550 million by 2025, driving demand for outbound tourism.

South Asia remains relatively underexplored by Chinese tourists compared to Southeast Asia.