SriLankan Airlines CEO: 'Nobody flies' to Mattala Airport; AAI likely to take it over

SriLankan Airlines CEO Suren Ratwatte, speaking at CAPA Airline CEOs in Sydney, commented (05-Jun-2018) on the new Mattala Rajapaksa International Airport, noting that "nobody flies there" and it can be best described as a "white elephant", with the airport having a "very small" catchment area. Mr Ratwatte also noted that the "airport currently seems to be taken over by the AAI, exactly what I don't know", further reiterated that it "evidently seems to be the plan" for AAI to invest in the airport. He added that, in terms of some of the large China supported infrastructure projects in Sri Lanka: "Who the infrastructure was supposed to cater to, I really don't know". He however said that it has an ultimate "positive impact" for Sri Lanka, who is "not paying the financial price" for recent infrastructure projects financed by international capital.