SriLankan Airlines achieves record passenger revenue
Colombo, April 16: SriLankan Airlines, the flag carrier of the island nation, on Monday said it had achieved a record annual passenger revenue of $830 for the 2017-18 fiscal, the highest ever in the company's 38-year history.
In a statement, the airline said the revenue came as a result of its recent expansion to several new destinations such as Hyderabad (India), Gan Islands (Maldives) and Melbourne with additional frequencies to popular cities in its network, reports Xinhua news agency.
Both passenger and cargo divisions exceeded their annual target, enabling the SriLankan Airlines Group to exceed the overall annual revenue target.
SriLankan Airlines CEO Captain Suren Ratwatte said this was the first instance of the airline achieving its annual revenue target since Emirates left as its managing partner 10 years ago.
"This comes at a turbulent time for the industry when most airlines are facing difficulty maintaining their yields due to intense competition. SriLankan has just completed a year of significant expansion with minimal erosion on yields and ended the year comfortably exceeding the revenue target," Ratwatte said.
The airline said the year had been one of transformation in which it inducted four brand new fuel efficient narrow-bodied aircraft to the fleet, becoming the first A321neo aircraft operator in Asia.
A new Board of Directors was also appointed last month to accelerate the restructuring process and create the enabling environment to proceed with entering into a Public-Private-Partnership with a strategic investor.
In February, Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena appointed a special Presidential Commission to investigate alleged large-scale frauds and malpractices in SriLankan Airlines, after the company recorded severe losses.
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Advertisements case: Willing to tender public apology, Ramdev and Balkrishna tell SC
New Delhi (PTI): Yoga guru Ramdev and Patanjali Ayurved managing director Balkrishna on Tuesday told the Supreme Court they are willing to tender a public apology in the misleading advertisements case.
"I am willing to give a public apology," senior advocate Mukul Rohatgi, appearing for Ramdev and Balkrishna, told a bench of Justices Hima Kohli and Ahsanuddin Amanullah.
The apex court asked Ramdev and Balkrishna, both of whom were present in the court, to come forward for an interaction with the bench.
"They should feel they have a connect with the court," the bench said.
The hearing in the matter is underway and the bench is currently interacting with Ramdev.
Ramdev and Balkrishna have tendered an "unconditional and unqualified apology" before the apex court over advertisements issued by the firm making tall claims about the medicinal efficacy of its products.
In two separate affidavits filed in the court, Ramdev and Balkrishna have tendered an unqualified apology for the "breach of the statement" recorded in the November 21 last year order of the apex court.
In the November 21, 2023 order, the top court had noted that counsel representing Patanjali Ayurved had assured it that "henceforth there shall not be any violation of any law(s), especially relating to advertising or branding of products manufactured and marketed by it and, further, that no casual statements claiming medicinal efficacy or against any system of medicine will be released to the media in any form".
The top court had said Patanjali Ayurved Ltd is "bound down to such assurance".
The non-observance of the specific assurance and the subsequent media statements irked the apex court, which later issued a notice to them to explain why contempt proceedings be not initiated against them.
