Sri Lankan a very underrated airline and Colombo a quiet favourite airport of mine .Sri Lankan use to have a great deal when flying Sri Lankan from Singapore to India via Colombo - A morning Singapore 9am departure get you into Colombo at 10.30am local and evening 6pm departure to India - For those few hours them would hotel beach stay next to the airport with lunch and tea voucher -a fantastic free holiday - Also always flew Emirates morning 8.30 am departure from Dubai to Singapore via Colombo
In the late '50s I lived at RAF Negombo in the house closest to the runway. When returning to UK at the end of the old man's RAF tour we flew home on an Air Ceylon Super Constellation stopping at Bombay, Karachi, Bahrain, Cairo, and Rome, an amazing experience for an eleven year old kid. This included the jump seat in the cockpit for a while.
Jealous. I did get to do Concord once but a flight in a Constellation, the most beautiful bird out there, would be my dream. Alas I doubt it will happen but one can keep dream……
Hi! I've been following your channel for a while now, and your videos-especially the aviation ones-are definitely my favorites. I appreciate your straightforward approach to the subject matter, along with the historical and technical details you include. You don't waste time, and you manage to make your videos both entertaining and informative. Keep up the great work! Cheers!
The classic tier points run Abu Dhabi via Colombo to Jakarta, 560 tiers on BA as SriLankan is a partner airline, is no longer in the £700-850 range in Business, but doubled ..... 😢😢 I did that run but for pure fun in March, and thoroughly enjoyed the Sri Lankan experience, even though 2 out of 4 flights were cancelled and I was even rerouted via KUL. Glad I did it!
July 23, 2001 flew out of Colombo for Singapore, the following morning all hell broke loose - people killed aircraft blown up and an economy that suffered severely in the aftermath - I’ve transited since but always just a little too scared to stay too long - great video as always Kevin
Great video. Take a bonus point for the history. There's an account of that Catalina route, from Ceylon to Australia, in 'Escape from the Japanese', by Ralph Burton Goodwin - a fascinating read. The airline? Maybe I'll risk it.
Always until the end including the ads! Interesting facts about the PBY's, my grandfather worked on the hydraulics for them, as well as the B-24s while in San Diego in the late 30's & 40s - Consolidated Aircraft. Stay well Kevin!
Sri Lankan Airlines has weathered many storms including the latest political upheaval. But has done brilliantly in the circumstances. The staff are amazing. They try their best with what they've got, and it shows. We fly between Australia and London frequently with many airlines including Sri Lankan, and they're definitely close if not on par with others.
I did both gulf runs (from DXB and AUH) to Jakarta (CGK) a few years ago as status point runs for BA/OneWorld. They were fantastic value and your review largely reflects what I got (mainly!). The on-board service and food were great (those cashew nuts were delicious!). I had the same gate security check and bus boarding at CMB and two flights were on their older A330-200s, where the business cabin was very retro! Unfortunately, Sri Lankan (UL) have recently greatly increased the price of the AUH-CMB-CGK returns (it was always more expensive via DXB), making it much less attractive!
I once spent 32 hours in a packed economy class on an old TWA 747 .. an unforgettable experience for many wrong reasons .. if anyone wants to know why , just reply to this comment and I’ll comment further .. it’s unlikely there’s any interest in my story tho !! Thanks again Kevin .. 🙏
This video-series reminds me how fortunate we are to be living in this day and age. Where we can hop on a metal tube and be transported to the other side of the world in a matter of hours!
Being a Perth local I was very confused by them operating out of Crawley. Really had no idea of the old water plane aerodromes we had. Very interesting stuff... I found Sri Lankan Airlines to be quite pleasant with really above average treatment. Like very much went out of their way for me and ended up moving people around to accommodate a free business upgrade. Perks of status I guess but certainly don't get that on other Oneworld airlines.
Can’t lie this moment Sri Lankan airline has been in world class old days due to the bankruptcy and mismanagement by the former government they had dropped out but I hope soon they will recover fast.
You are so underrated. Much better than many travel vloggers which are much bigger. If the algorithm wizards do you good, you may hit 500k by the end of 2025.
If only the seats and carpet matched the colour palette of the rug, otherwise aircraft looksin good nick. Thanks for another great review in your kangaroo route giga trip ❤.
Kevin, considering the war and turmoil its home country has had to endured over the last few decades, I am amazed SriLankan can still offer an acceptable level of service. The long years of the Sri Lanka civil war ravaged the country and put a big dent on SriLankan's prospects, which along with government interference and mismanagement, certainly didn't help the airline. Then there was a brief economic boom with the end of the civil war and large inflow of foreign investment, bolstering the airline. But then came the current economic crisis triggered by the balance-of-payment crisis and Covid travel shutdown. That of course hit the airline hard. Frankly, I'm amazed the airline is still around due to the upheavals. It should still be here in a few years time, right?
@@tfft Hahaha. :) I do hope the best days of SriLankan are ahead. The country deserves an airline they are proud of. The people of Sri Lanka are a wonderful group that has endured the horrors of war and yet still maintain a positive outlook. The country actually has acheived notable economic growth and gain a standard of living ahead of its South Asian neighbors before the current economic crisis. Their airline deserves better days.
That boarding process... sometimes you just want to shake the person that came up with that. BTW really enjoying your hotel reviews. That Ritz Carlton Reserve in Krabi sure looked incredible. How were the insects in rainy season?
Given your interactions with the cabin crew on the last flight, do we read between the lines in this review of your overall perception of the airline and the title of the video. You seem restrained, and cautious in your approach to how you shape your sentiment. Good video regardless, certainly engaging, thumbs up.
Kevin I’m an eagle eyed enthusiast and been in travel industry for many years, not sure why when you were showing the entertainment screen the flight path says CMB-MLE 🤔. The IATA code for international airport for Dubai is (DXB) so are you going to Dubai or Male, Maldives? 😂
Can't imagine being stuck in a tiny metal container for 32hrs straight - not to mention having the pilot the craft. That can't really be good for the body, could it?
I flew with SriLankan in 2012 from Colombo to Frankfurt and they had fully flat seats in business class at a time when Lufthansa still had sliders on their longhaul planes, it was a very pleasant flight with good food in a modern Airbus A330-200.
TFFT, do you know why a biz class traveller would want to board first? Like wouldn't it be better to spend more time in the airport lounge than on the plane and just show up for boarding at the last bit? 🤔
There are some that think like that, but I'd comfortable say it's less than 10% of business class passengers. Not to mention, the crew want them on board first as there are many "things" to do to welcome and orient business class passengers.
@tfft I get why the crew wants them on board first. But I don't get why whenever boarding is called for biz class, so many people immediately get up and line up to board. Is it just the "first" mentality?
Government of Canada 100 percent donation Katunayake airport 1960 opened in 1970 and also given Air Ceylon Hangers Canadian technology officially opened by Former Canadian prime minister Pierre Elliott Trudeau also road to the katunayake named by Canada Sri Lanka fried ship road Masterpiece of Asia called by Government of Canada
Sri Lankan is a disaster Loss making hardly have any planes and afraid of criticism Government tired to privatise and no luck due to 1.2USD in its belly Having said that Safety wise rest assured the airline is top class Sri Lanka need a fund manager like backstone and kick everyone out to make thr airline work
Drop your questions for future Community Q&As here: bit.ly/tfft_qa1
Sri Lankan a very underrated airline and Colombo a quiet favourite airport of mine .Sri Lankan use to have a great deal when flying Sri Lankan from Singapore to India via Colombo - A morning Singapore 9am departure get you into Colombo at 10.30am local and evening 6pm departure to India - For those few hours them would hotel beach stay next to the airport with lunch and tea voucher -a fantastic free holiday - Also always flew Emirates morning 8.30 am departure from Dubai to Singapore via Colombo
In the late '50s I lived at RAF Negombo in the house closest to the runway. When returning to UK at the end of the old man's RAF tour we flew home on an Air Ceylon Super Constellation stopping at Bombay, Karachi, Bahrain, Cairo, and Rome, an amazing experience for an eleven year old kid. This included the jump seat in the cockpit for a while.
Jealous. I did get to do Concord once but a flight in a Constellation, the most beautiful bird out there, would be my dream. Alas I doubt it will happen but one can keep dream……
Wow lucky boy, you flew on a constellation ❤❤❤ Air Ceylon had those birds, really 😊
Thanks for the video, Sri Lankan Airline still recovering from bankruptcy and getting better, I hope they will raise withing a year with new investors
Hi! I've been following your channel for a while now, and your videos-especially the aviation ones-are definitely my favorites. I appreciate your straightforward approach to the subject matter, along with the historical and technical details you include. You don't waste time, and you manage to make your videos both entertaining and informative.
Keep up the great work!
Cheers!
Departure gate prison. How terrifying! Great video!
Better than the real thing! lol
The classic tier points run Abu Dhabi via Colombo to Jakarta, 560 tiers on BA as SriLankan is a partner airline, is no longer in the £700-850 range in Business, but doubled ..... 😢😢
I did that run but for pure fun in March, and thoroughly enjoyed the Sri Lankan experience, even though 2 out of 4 flights were cancelled and I was even rerouted via KUL.
Glad I did it!
I did mine last year for £828 pound sterling..‼️😊😇☺️
July 23, 2001 flew out of Colombo for Singapore, the following morning all hell broke loose - people killed aircraft blown up and an economy that suffered severely in the aftermath - I’ve transited since but always just a little too scared to stay too long - great video as always Kevin
Oh I think that was the attack carried by the ltte. Was it 2001?
Trouble times sir 😢
Great video. Take a bonus point for the history. There's an account of that Catalina route, from Ceylon to Australia, in 'Escape from the Japanese', by Ralph Burton Goodwin - a fascinating read.
The airline? Maybe I'll risk it.
Always until the end including the ads!
Interesting facts about the PBY's, my grandfather worked on the hydraulics for them, as well as the B-24s while in San Diego in the late 30's & 40s - Consolidated Aircraft. Stay well Kevin!
He worked on a legend!
Sri Lankan Airlines has weathered many storms including the latest political upheaval. But has done brilliantly in the circumstances. The staff are amazing. They try their best with what they've got, and it shows. We fly between Australia and London frequently with many airlines including Sri Lankan, and they're definitely close if not on par with others.
I did both gulf runs (from DXB and AUH) to Jakarta (CGK) a few years ago as status point runs for BA/OneWorld. They were fantastic value and your review largely reflects what I got (mainly!).
The on-board service and food were great (those cashew nuts were delicious!). I had the same gate security check and bus boarding at CMB and two flights were on their older A330-200s, where the business cabin was very retro! Unfortunately, Sri Lankan (UL) have recently greatly increased the price of the AUH-CMB-CGK returns (it was always more expensive via DXB), making it much less attractive!
I once spent 32 hours in a packed economy class on an old TWA 747 .. an unforgettable experience for many wrong reasons .. if anyone wants to know why , just reply to this comment and I’ll comment further .. it’s unlikely there’s any interest in my story tho !! Thanks again Kevin .. 🙏
Good job mate 👍 Greetings from Helsinki
This video-series reminds me how fortunate we are to be living in this day and age. Where we can hop on a metal tube and be transported to the other side of the world in a matter of hours!
Ground experience was horrible. I'm glad to see a modern cabin on this A330 after all the chaos at the gate.
Thank you Kelvin for another great trip report.
Being a Perth local I was very confused by them operating out of Crawley. Really had no idea of the old water plane aerodromes we had. Very interesting stuff...
I found Sri Lankan Airlines to be quite pleasant with really above average treatment. Like very much went out of their way for me and ended up moving people around to accommodate a free business upgrade. Perks of status I guess but certainly don't get that on other Oneworld airlines.
Can’t lie this moment Sri Lankan airline has been in world class old days due to the bankruptcy and mismanagement by the former government they had dropped out but I hope soon they will recover fast.
Great Trip Report And Info
Sri Lankan airlines is the best airline in the world
Where else you would see airline pilots at the lounge (I saw a Sri Lankan pilot using the lounge (2:28)? Only Sri Lankan airlines! 😂😂😂
Sounds like a propeller plane 🙂. Thanks for great coverage - AS ALWAYS
Excellent video sir. I have questions. What is your favorite destination and what is your favorite airline?
You are so underrated. Much better than many travel vloggers which are much bigger. If the algorithm wizards do you good, you may hit 500k by the end of 2025.
If only the seats and carpet matched the colour palette of the rug, otherwise aircraft looksin good nick.
Thanks for another great review in your kangaroo route giga trip ❤.
Thanks for watching
Till today, I was wondering about partnership between Qantas and air shri Lanka, you gave that answer with historical connection between two realms.
NO Complaints??? Wow you are already better than Josh Cahill.
Lions and tigers and bears, oh mai tai!
Probably all the same beer in different cans lol
Colombo is a bit similar to Singapore in terms of transit procedure
That dinner looked to me like a 9/10!
If it tasted like it looked, 😋
Thank You ✈️
Thanks for watching
Kevin, considering the war and turmoil its home country has had to endured over the last few decades, I am amazed SriLankan can still offer an acceptable level of service. The long years of the Sri Lanka civil war ravaged the country and put a big dent on SriLankan's prospects, which along with government interference and mismanagement, certainly didn't help the airline. Then there was a brief economic boom with the end of the civil war and large inflow of foreign investment, bolstering the airline. But then came the current economic crisis triggered by the balance-of-payment crisis and Covid travel shutdown. That of course hit the airline hard. Frankly, I'm amazed the airline is still around due to the upheavals. It should still be here in a few years time, right?
A predictor of futures, I am not lol.
@@tfft Hahaha. :) I do hope the best days of SriLankan are ahead. The country deserves an airline they are proud of. The people of Sri Lanka are a wonderful group that has endured the horrors of war and yet still maintain a positive outlook. The country actually has acheived notable economic growth and gain a standard of living ahead of its South Asian neighbors before the current economic crisis. Their airline deserves better days.
What a nice information ❤❤
Here because Mr Floppy has promised to reply to all comments
Within the first 90 minutes of releasing a video*. As for the rest, blame troll saturation.
@@tfft Amen brother. And please folks, remove trolls from water to cease oversaturation 🥞🩴🩴
Back ground music from Air india ❤
That boarding process... sometimes you just want to shake the person that came up with that. BTW really enjoying your hotel reviews. That Ritz Carlton Reserve in Krabi sure looked incredible. How were the insects in rainy season?
Oh never mind, I finally received notification that you already answered my question over there. Thanks again for all the information.
The airport stats gives you something to think about.....Dubai gets 2 departures every minute.....24/7. Dang!
Why does the IFE say Colombo to Malé? You are flying to Dubai right?
I was, hence me zooming in on it 🙂
Given your interactions with the cabin crew on the last flight, do we read between the lines in this review of your overall perception of the airline and the title of the video. You seem restrained, and cautious in your approach to how you shape your sentiment. Good video regardless, certainly engaging, thumbs up.
Seems like you answered your own question within your comments… 😆
i thought departing colombo was bad enough at a regular gate but bus gates are so much worse it appears
It's definitly one that sticks with ya lol
7:14 Why there is Indian music
Is it illegal?
@tfft not illegal, but its clearly kills the vibe !
Kevin I’m an eagle eyed enthusiast and been in travel industry for many years, not sure why when you were showing the entertainment screen the flight path says CMB-MLE 🤔. The IATA code for international airport for Dubai is (DXB) so are you going to Dubai or Male, Maldives? 😂
Yes, that's why I zoomed in on it lol. No idea why it said Male.
Can't imagine being stuck in a tiny metal container for 32hrs straight - not to mention having the pilot the craft. That can't really be good for the body, could it?
I mean, cigarettes were also basically candy at the time- so I doubt they were worrying too much about that lol.
@@tfftno, people don't eat as much candy as people smoked cigarettes back then. Cigarettes back then was like breathes of air 😂
I flew with SriLankan in 2012 from Colombo to Frankfurt and they had fully flat seats in business class at a time when Lufthansa still had sliders on their longhaul planes, it was a very pleasant flight with good food in a modern Airbus A330-200.
TFFT, do you know why a biz class traveller would want to board first? Like wouldn't it be better to spend more time in the airport lounge than on the plane and just show up for boarding at the last bit? 🤔
There are some that think like that, but I'd comfortable say it's less than 10% of business class passengers. Not to mention, the crew want them on board first as there are many "things" to do to welcome and orient business class passengers.
@tfft I get why the crew wants them on board first. But I don't get why whenever boarding is called for biz class, so many people immediately get up and line up to board. Is it just the "first" mentality?
You are flying business class. You just wanna settle in early and enjoy. Don’t want to worry about lines
@ actually if you show up at the last minute you'll get small lines as well
🏃♂️ ✈️ 🌏
That’s a loooooooong kangaroo jump…
Government of Canada 100 percent donation Katunayake airport 1960 opened in 1970 and also given Air Ceylon Hangers Canadian technology officially opened by Former Canadian prime minister Pierre Elliott Trudeau also road to the katunayake named by Canada Sri Lanka fried ship road
Masterpiece of Asia called by Government of Canada
Sri Lankan is a disaster
Loss making hardly have any planes and afraid of criticism
Government tired to privatise and no luck due to 1.2USD in its belly
Having said that Safety wise rest assured the airline is top class
Sri Lanka need a fund manager like backstone and kick everyone out to make thr airline work
Sri Lanka airport boarding process is the worst.. The rooms are so stuffy and way overcrowded..
Yeap limited counters 😢