Colombo, Jan. 18 -- In a bid to boost tourism, one of the mainstays of its economy, Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa has lifted a 25-year ban on the operation of helicopter flights by private operators from Colombo.
According to the Civil Aviation Authority, private tourist helicopters can now land at the Defence Ministry grounds on Galle Face in Colombo. Four local operators have been granted permission to re-start flights.
"We were waiting for a long time for this opportunity," Skylark Aviation Flight Operations Manager Captain Ravi Dharmawickrama told the Daily Financial Times, saying it was a "major landmark" in Sri Lanka's aviation history.
"We can service the tourism sector better and contribute more to the economy," he said...