Another decent airline. They have a popular Tier Point Run from AUH-CMB-CGK return for around £850/$1050 and thats virtually instant BA Silver (One World Sapphire) for up to 2 years,
That back history was impeccably presented. Fascinating to hear the abridged back stories to both airlines and indeed the history of routes you fly. A very unique feature on your channel
Appreciate your so subtle approach for correction to to bad service without being overtly critical like others - that kind of presentation keeps bringing me back. Good to see channel grow to now 25k+ subscribers. Very commendable work.
I was on several flights where disabled passengers were boarded with special narrow boarding wheelchairs. This worked well but the passenger cannot get up once in the plane until he is deplaned with the same wheelchair.
Hey Patrick, we flew from DFW to LHR and onward on SriLankan to Colombo and on to India. We find it very convenient to fly to Chennai and other destinations in Southern India, and also to stick with One World. If you want to watch cricket matches Dallas and many other US cities are hosting the next world cup this year.
Thanks for taking one for the team. I was just doing some trip planning for next month from Taiwan, and one of the cheaper business call routings has two legs on Sri Lanka. Glad I ponied up the extra dough to fly Singapore.
As a business class passenger on UL, you could have used the Silk Route. Which would have speeded up the entry process into the airport significantly. Also, the London BC ticket offers you a limousine service.
I've just booked a holiday in Sri Lanka in June. I was warned to avoid UL because of reliability issues so I booked TK MAN-IST-CMB. As for UL, they need to upgrade their long-haul fleet to replace the ageing 330's. I don't think they need the 789 or A350, but the 788, A330-900 or even the -800 would more than meet their needs.
Memories from the period of 2006 to 2008 of flying with Sri Lanka Airlines between London Heathrow and Bandaranaike International Airport in Colombo remain vivid and impactful.
A very interesting review. Singapore and KL have those same checks before the holding gate so I try to board last. Sri Lankan do well out of Australia due to a large expat community. Their product is certainly worth experiencing. Thanks for all your work in bringing these reviews.
Such a detail and honest review, hope the airline watch and take note of what they could possible change and do better or just change for there customers, Patrick deffo the best you tube airline reviewer, very knowledgeable
Knew someone from Sri Lanka back in the day when it was known as Air Lanka and he was Sri Lankan and thought it was great saw a few of their A340 on diversion to Manchester which was great but other then that can’t really comment on them but hope things get better in the future 😊😊😊😊
The Rules of Cricket You have two sides, one out in the field and one in. Each man that's in the side that's in goes out, and when he's out he comes in and the next man goes in until he's out. When they are all out, the side that's out comes in and the side thats been in goes out and tries to get those coming in, out. Sometimes you get men still in and not out. When a man goes out to go in, the men who are out try to get him out, and when he is out he goes in and the next man in goes out and goes in. There are two men called umpires who stay out all the time and they decide when the men who are in are out. When both sides have been in and all the men have got out, and both sides have been out twice after all the men have been in, including those who are not out, that is the end of the game!
I watch Jomboy for breakdowns on mostly American sports, but he loves cricket. My understanding is definitely top 1-5% of all Americans now thanks to him.
I wonder why you didn’t go through Silk Route entrance at Colombo. It is much more relaxing and dispenses of a few steps (check in, security) as it’s done at the silk route area.
🙈@ 4:25 & you continue to film anyway😅😂💪🏻 …great video as always & full of informative and useful details(which enhance the watching experience), like your other videos
TBH that whole experience looked pretty grim! I flew the old Air Lanka from London Gatwick to Colombo back in the mid 80s on one of their L1011s - the airport was basic back then and doesn't seem to have changed much. The inside of your aircraft was dirty - poor cleaning and attention to detail. The service looked sloppy, the food unappealing. If they hope to do better, they could start with just making more of an effort with what they've got. Deep clean the planes, fix the bits that are broken, put a decent, acceptable menu on and get someone to go and try another business class so they can see what they are aiming at. I wouldn't pay to fly with them, even if I was flying to Colombo...I'd go with BA (who whilst not great are positively amazing compared to this) or Emirates and connect.
I think you’ve got some good point. Unfortunately their money has been going towards keeping the fleet safe and flying so they haven’t had much extra money for deep dives into the cabin. Hopefully if they can get money from investment or partnerships they can put the money towards that (along with the alleged new fleet coming soon)
@@PatrickSheaAviation but who will pay to fly with them when the planes look so grubby inside and the food looks pretty grim? There's too many other choices available. I know it's tough, but then again, the Sri Lankan government have made some really questionable financial moves recently (banning fertiliser and destroying the food supply chain)....
sooo ya lol gaad you crack me up - the whole boarding segment with that twisted Fellini-esque muzak contrasts nicely against the annoying "no-filming-here!" segue to the cabin 👍 "fun blanket design" like an interesting design (but in a good way ;) ceiling's a nice touch and meal service seems decent; script on historical more slick each week 👏
Airlines in the east have weird departure times for their long haul flights since most of the passengers have to connect to other parts of the world so from the Middle East, Central Asia and South Asia they mostly depart early morning.
I see their situation but I think after your video ppl might try to go for them 😅, about the seat it's like that Avianca 787 and Air Algérie new a330 business class seats 💺 good but narrow to the leg room when you wanna get some sleep, judging by the bit narrow body of a330 compared to others, still with 1-2-1 configuration they should make more room for that
Ye it looks so from your videos, especially Avianca flight looked like a very old business class seats, like it has been two decades old with 1-2-1 setup I hope AH thinks well of this
Seriously, @@PatrickSheaAviation, you fly the airlines that it seems nobody else in this format does, and you're not just "CAVIAR, GOLD TRIM, MERCEDES PICKUP CARS" like a FEW of them. Keep it up! :)
Oh you fly this flight on my birthday... I was flying from Jakarta to Singapore to enjoy Singapore Airlines' shortest First Class flight on my birthday Thank you for another awesome flight report from you. What camera did the flight attendant refer? Anyway she was doing her job to check on you lah
You delivered Patrick! Watching this while at 3:05 Kopitiam in Changi after enduring 17 hours on UA29 from SFO. Awaiting my connection on UL to CMB and tbh I have taken BA/UL from SFO to CMB and I’d take that over anyway over UA. UA for 17 hours is like torture lol my croissant was literally made in Chicago! Just to add to your discussion. UL has the most bizarre route plan. They used to have Frankfurt, Rome, Zurich but they axed them even tho I’ve flown multiple times on these routes with 100% LF. They used to divert flights because of the ex-President, one as bad as to bring a pet. The management during the late 2000s and early 2010s fudged shit up really bad. Like CEO had Harvey Weinsteinesque scandals with the FAs, a lot of political appointees in the board and pilot hierarchy. Most of these pilots eventually left for Middle eastern and Asian carriers. I do think the future is bright. Even my flight today is with a leased Brussels Airlines 333. Looking forward to your next flight video!
Did you at least get any miles from the flight? Because the flight itself is pretty basic. But given that Sri Lanka is pretty much a failed state financially, it's a small miracle planes are still flying.
Why don’t you just call Colombo SL airport rather than making a fool of yourself. Millions of shops? Not even hundred. Queues are for all and not for SL & others.
If you wish to learn a bit more about cricket, I watch Jomboy for breakdowns on mostly American sports, but he loves cricket. My understanding is definitely top 1-5% of all Americans now thanks to him.
Unfortunately I had a bad experience with RJ, with not much customerservice, lost luggage, missed connection etc etc.Jordan did not impress me, especially ttheir discriminating price concept towards tourists. Ohh, and never got my miles rewarded. Glad you had a better experience 🙂
"Please don't film anything" "ok" *27 minutes of footage probably cut from hours of raw footage* Great video as always, appreciate the work that goes into these!
Efficiency is not part of the culture, and its basically a minimalist society. If they can duct tape a temporary solution, it becomes permanent. I have concluded that the extreme harsh climate (oppressive humidity and heat) has made the entire society lethargic. But they are quick to announce- “ proud to be Sri-Lankan” Huh?
Nice job as always, Patrick, but I felt that your choice of music when you boarded the aircraft, during your IFE summary, on approach and landing was a little weird, a bit distracting and a little irritating towards the end of the video. (Sounds like children chanting or something...I probably won't be able to get this out of my head now. Thanks a lot, Patrick! LOL!) Subjective of course, so I'm sure others will disagree with me. But it did distract me enough to have to back up the video a little because I missed something you said. 9.550
The claim emirates making profits is quite misleading, in their last years they showed profits mainly through selling of srilankans wide body a340 aircrafts, basically they used srilankan to steal their landing rights while making it a small regional feeder carrier to their middle eastern hub while running in to losses(it was profitable when they took over)
Yea it’s tough. Hopefully as they climb out of financial trouble, they’ll be able to get money put towards that stuff, along with the new fleet that’s allegedly arriving in the next couple years
Flew Sri Lankan SYD/CMB Return Thank you Sri Lankan for the great service 👍 ❤
You're very polite about the lounge in Colombo
🤷♂️ I didn’t think it was all that bad. Better than the other lounges I used throughout India on this trip at least
I would always fly Sri Lankan Airlines. They're a very good airline.
Service is truly Good in Sri Lankan... food.. to good to describe.. enjoyed my MAA-Colombo-LHR and back...
Another decent airline. They have a popular Tier Point Run from AUH-CMB-CGK return for around £850/$1050 and thats virtually instant BA Silver (One World Sapphire) for up to 2 years,
That back history was impeccably presented. Fascinating to hear the abridged back stories to both airlines and indeed the history of routes you fly. A very unique feature on your channel
Appreciate your so subtle approach for correction to to bad service without being overtly critical like others - that kind of presentation keeps bringing me back. Good to see channel grow to now 25k+ subscribers. Very commendable work.
Thanks man! I appreciate it!
Couldn’t handle the airport with my mobility issues. You are very thorough in your reviews.
I was on several flights where disabled passengers were boarded with special narrow boarding wheelchairs. This worked well but the passenger cannot get up once in the plane until he is deplaned with the same wheelchair.
Thanks! Sorry to hear about that airport experience!
Hey Patrick, we flew from DFW to LHR and onward on SriLankan to Colombo and on to India. We find it very convenient to fly to Chennai and other destinations in Southern India, and also to stick with One World.
If you want to watch cricket matches Dallas and many other US cities are hosting the next world cup this year.
Thanks for taking one for the team. I was just doing some trip planning for next month from Taiwan, and one of the cheaper business call routings has two legs on Sri Lanka. Glad I ponied up the extra dough to fly Singapore.
As a business class passenger on UL, you could have used the Silk Route. Which would have speeded up the entry process into the airport significantly. Also, the London BC ticket offers you a limousine service.
Thanks for the info + video!
Thanks!
Thanks for nice n honest review ❤
Greetings from Sri Lanka 🇱🇰
I've just booked a holiday in Sri Lanka in June. I was warned to avoid UL because of reliability issues so I booked TK MAN-IST-CMB.
As for UL, they need to upgrade their long-haul fleet to replace the ageing 330's. I don't think they need the 789 or A350, but the 788, A330-900 or even the -800 would more than meet their needs.
Sounds like it’ll either be new A330-200s or the -900s but we won’t know for a little while
Memories from the period of 2006 to 2008 of flying with Sri Lanka Airlines between London Heathrow and Bandaranaike International Airport in Colombo remain vivid and impactful.
A very interesting review. Singapore and KL have those same checks before the holding gate so I try to board last. Sri Lankan do well out of Australia due to a large expat community. Their product is certainly worth experiencing.
Thanks for all your work in bringing these reviews.
Have flown this already.
Great flight great crew
Such a detail and honest review, hope the airline watch and take note of what they could possible change and do better or just change for there customers, Patrick deffo the best you tube airline reviewer, very knowledgeable
Knew someone from Sri Lanka back in the day when it was known as Air Lanka and he was Sri Lankan and thought it was great saw a few of their A340 on diversion to Manchester which was great but other then that can’t really comment on them but hope things get better in the future 😊😊😊😊
❤❤❤ thanks welcome to SriLanka 🇱🇰💐💐💐💐💐🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹👌👌👍👍👍❤✌️✌️🙏🙏🙏👏👏✈️🇸🇬🇱🇰
The Rules of Cricket
You have two sides, one out in the field and one in.
Each man that's in the side that's in goes out, and when he's out he comes in and the next man goes in until he's out.
When they are all out, the side that's out comes in and the side thats been in goes out and tries to get those coming in, out.
Sometimes you get men still in and not out.
When a man goes out to go in, the men who are out try to get him out, and when he is out he goes in and the next man in goes out and goes in.
There are two men called umpires who stay out all the time and they decide when the men who are in are out.
When both sides have been in and all the men have got out, and both sides have been out twice after all the men have been in, including those who are not out, that is the end of the game!
All very straightforward to an Englishman....
You missed that the game could take more than a day, and everyone stops for tea
I watch Jomboy for breakdowns on mostly American sports, but he loves cricket. My understanding is definitely top 1-5% of all Americans now thanks to him.
And also after 3 days the game is drawn as a spot of rain is seen on the horizon
I wonder why you didn’t go through Silk Route entrance at Colombo. It is much more relaxing and dispenses of a few steps (check in, security) as it’s done at the silk route area.
🙈@ 4:25 & you continue to film anyway😅😂💪🏻 …great video as always & full of informative and useful details(which enhance the watching experience), like your other videos
Thanks man! Call me James Bond with the camera… ain’t no one seeing me recording 👀
Love your trip reports . 10/10 . Thank you Patrick . 🛩️🍮🍝🥗🥪🍷✈️💺
Thanks! I appreciate it!
I Like When Airlines Have Personal Air Nozzles.Great Video And Info
Agreed! Thanks!
Amazing explanation and thanks for flying to LK and using Sri Lankan for your review!!!
Sri Lankan Airlines allows onboard filming. As an Sri Lankan Aviation geek I am sorry to hear what you had to go through
Thank you for your informative description of the Ariline's status.
TBH that whole experience looked pretty grim! I flew the old Air Lanka from London Gatwick to Colombo back in the mid 80s on one of their L1011s - the airport was basic back then and doesn't seem to have changed much. The inside of your aircraft was dirty - poor cleaning and attention to detail. The service looked sloppy, the food unappealing. If they hope to do better, they could start with just making more of an effort with what they've got. Deep clean the planes, fix the bits that are broken, put a decent, acceptable menu on and get someone to go and try another business class so they can see what they are aiming at. I wouldn't pay to fly with them, even if I was flying to Colombo...I'd go with BA (who whilst not great are positively amazing compared to this) or Emirates and connect.
I think you’ve got some good point. Unfortunately their money has been going towards keeping the fleet safe and flying so they haven’t had much extra money for deep dives into the cabin. Hopefully if they can get money from investment or partnerships they can put the money towards that (along with the alleged new fleet coming soon)
@@PatrickSheaAviation but who will pay to fly with them when the planes look so grubby inside and the food looks pretty grim? There's too many other choices available. I know it's tough, but then again, the Sri Lankan government have made some really questionable financial moves recently (banning fertiliser and destroying the food supply chain)....
srilankan has no competition for South indian routes, cmb connects South india to many east, west destinations.
Hmmm overall I’d definitely give it a miss - they worry me
Thank you Patrick for another great vlog, it is hard to depart at 1:00 a.m and it is also tire thanks again to bring this enjoyment to your viewers.
Thanks!
sooo ya lol gaad you crack me up - the whole boarding segment with that twisted Fellini-esque muzak contrasts nicely against the annoying "no-filming-here!" segue to the cabin 👍 "fun blanket design" like an interesting design (but in a good way ;) ceiling's a nice touch and meal service seems decent; script on historical more slick each week 👏
Ha thanks homie
Airlines in the east have weird departure times for their long haul flights since most of the passengers have to connect to other parts of the world so from the Middle East, Central Asia and South Asia they mostly depart early morning.
Yea it’s somewhat normal… but dang it’s hard to stay awake for that sometimes
Srilankan airlines vary good airlines ❤
Hi
I see their situation but I think after your video ppl might try to go for them 😅, about the seat it's like that Avianca 787 and Air Algérie new a330 business class seats 💺 good but narrow to the leg room when you wanna get some sleep, judging by the bit narrow body of a330 compared to others, still with 1-2-1 configuration they should make more room for that
Yea the seat setup is fairly common. The material they use isn’t great though. I think it shows much more age than the fabric seats
Ye it looks so from your videos, especially Avianca flight looked like a very old business class seats, like it has been two decades old with 1-2-1 setup I hope AH thinks well of this
wonderful flight report mate.
Thanks g
Your videos are great. Any plans on a Turkish Airlines business class review
Soon hopefully!
I LOVE your content Patrick! We definitely need to get you a new mic, though.
Ha fair enough. Thanks bro
Seriously, @@PatrickSheaAviation, you fly the airlines that it seems nobody else in this format does, and you're not just "CAVIAR, GOLD TRIM, MERCEDES PICKUP CARS" like a FEW of them.
Keep it up! :)
@@jakooboo147 thanks man! Although I do wish I could fly Qatar at least once per year 🥲 shits expensive…
Oh you fly this flight on my birthday...
I was flying from Jakarta to Singapore to enjoy Singapore Airlines' shortest First Class flight on my birthday
Thank you for another awesome flight report from you.
What camera did the flight attendant refer?
Anyway she was doing her job to check on you lah
That’s awesome! (Happy belated birthday)!
Wow great flight vlog! How do you travel so much ???
If you work hard, you play hard 🤷♂️
GOOD ANSWER @@PatrickSheaAviation
Nice video 👍thanks 💖
You delivered Patrick! Watching this while at 3:05 Kopitiam in Changi after enduring 17 hours on UA29 from SFO. Awaiting my connection on UL to CMB and tbh I have taken BA/UL from SFO to CMB and I’d take that over anyway over UA. UA for 17 hours is like torture lol my croissant was literally made in Chicago!
Just to add to your discussion. UL has the most bizarre route plan. They used to have Frankfurt, Rome, Zurich but they axed them even tho I’ve flown multiple times on these routes with 100% LF. They used to divert flights because of the ex-President, one as bad as to bring a pet. The management during the late 2000s and early 2010s fudged shit up really bad. Like CEO had Harvey Weinsteinesque scandals with the FAs, a lot of political appointees in the board and pilot hierarchy. Most of these pilots eventually left for Middle eastern and Asian carriers. I do think the future is bright. Even my flight today is with a leased Brussels Airlines 333. Looking forward to your next flight video!
Great info! I’m very familiar with UA29! That flight is a marathon for sure!
By seen your laptop sticker I am guessing you are from San Francisco ❤❤❤❤❤
Did you at least get any miles from the flight? Because the flight itself is pretty basic. But given that Sri Lanka is pretty much a failed state financially, it's a small miracle planes are still flying.
That OneWorld partnership makes mileage redemption not too bad. Got my BA miles and walked away happy enough
Excellent trip report. Can't believe they told you off for filming though smh
Happens more than you’d think. Some airlines just care more than others
@@PatrickSheaAviation yeah I’ve been told off a handful of times too but not on UL
26:26, Did British airways rebook your flight to San Francisco or refund to stay in London?
Nah they were able to get me on the later flight to San Francisco at least. Super great dudes working the counter for BA
Oh, you flew the 2nd British airways flight to San Francisco on the same day, I see, that's cool.
Why don’t you just call Colombo SL airport rather than making a fool of yourself. Millions of shops? Not even hundred. Queues are for all and not for SL & others.
If you wish to learn a bit more about cricket, I watch Jomboy for breakdowns on mostly American sports, but he loves cricket. My understanding is definitely top 1-5% of all Americans now thanks to him.
Ain’t a bad idea. I live for those jomboy breakdowns
When that moth started floating across the room at 2:30 I swatted at my screen 😂
I'm glad that you did not use the camera!!
Unfortunately I had a bad experience with RJ, with not much customerservice, lost luggage, missed connection etc etc.Jordan did not impress me, especially ttheir discriminating price concept towards tourists. Ohh, and never got my miles rewarded. Glad you had a better experience 🙂
@patrick Shea, your mike audio on this video is signifigantly worse than your normal.
"Please don't film anything" "ok" *27 minutes of footage probably cut from hours of raw footage*
Great video as always, appreciate the work that goes into these!
Next better be TFN to CCS
🤨
Caracas ain’t happening until Venezuela actually gives me a visa ….
Efficiency is not part of the culture, and its basically a minimalist society. If they can duct tape a temporary solution, it becomes permanent. I have concluded that the extreme harsh climate (oppressive humidity and heat) has made the entire society lethargic. But they are quick to announce- “ proud to be Sri-Lankan” Huh?
Nice job as always, Patrick, but I felt that your choice of music when you boarded the aircraft, during your IFE summary, on approach and landing was a little weird, a bit distracting and a little irritating towards the end of the video. (Sounds like children chanting or something...I probably won't be able to get this out of my head now. Thanks a lot, Patrick! LOL!) Subjective of course, so I'm sure others will disagree with me. But it did distract me enough to have to back up the video a little because I missed something you said. 9.550
The claim emirates making profits is quite misleading, in their last years they showed profits mainly through selling of srilankans wide body a340 aircrafts, basically they used srilankan to steal their landing rights while making it a small regional feeder carrier to their middle eastern hub while running in to losses(it was profitable when they took over)
Interesting. Thanks!
❤❤❤
👍
Fake leather. Real leather is breathable and luxurious. That seat looks anything but luxurious.
I mean yea… it wouldn’t make a ton of sense to put leather in airplanes, but still gets the vibe across
Hi 👋🏻
කොළඹ ඉඳන් ලංඩන් යන්න ඕනෙනම් කවදාවත් ශ්රී ලංකන් එයාවේස් වලින් යන්න එපා. උන් සුද්දන්ට විතරයි හොඳට සලකන්නෙ. ඒක නිසා වෙන එයාලයින්ස් වලින් යන්න.
the food looks shite for USD 1,200
Thats actually looks pretty appalling... I'd much rather fly with Air India 😂
Yea it’s tough. They just haven’t had much extra cash to put towards it in a while
You enjoyed all that thanks to poor people in Sri Lanka whose tax payments are channelled to run this mis-managed air line.
Not sure if you visited the toilets at the Airport in SRI LANKA. It’s infested with Cockroaches.
London baj
the lounge , food and planes all looked dirty and filthy - I certainly wouldn't be using this airline
Yea it’s tough. Hopefully as they climb out of financial trouble, they’ll be able to get money put towards that stuff, along with the new fleet that’s allegedly arriving in the next couple years