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Singapore, Sri Lanka sign open skies pact

SINGAPORE, Tuesday (AFP)

Singapore announced Tuesday it had signed an open skies agreement with Sri Lanka in a deal that is expected to boost economic ties between the two nations.

"With immediate effect, airlines of both countries will be able to operate between and beyond Singapore and Sri Lanka with no restrictions on capacity, routing and aircraft type," the government said in a statement.

Transport Ministry permanent secretary Peter Ong said in the statement that the agreement came at an opportune time as intra-Asia air travel was set to grow over the next few years.

"An open-skies regime will definitely boost trade and tourism flows between Singapore and Sri Lanka," Ong said.

Singapore Airlines currently operates seven weekly services between Colombo and Singapore, while Sri Lankan Airlines operates eight weekly services.

Sri Lankan Airlines also code-shares with Emirates Airlines on four services on the Colombo-Singapore route.

The government said passenger and airfreight movements between Singapore and Sri Lanka grew 27.2 percent and 29 percent respectively from January to September this year, compared with the same period in 2002.

A comparison for 2003, when regional air traffic fell dramatically due to the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome epidemic, was not given. Hong Kong's Cathay Pacific also operates flights between Sri Lanka and Singapore.

Singapore is one of the most popular outbound destinations for Sri Lankans as it requires no visa and takes only around four hours. The duty free shopping, entertainment and tourist facilities in Singapore have become a big draw. Sri Lanka is also promoting itself in Singapore in a big way to lure more Singaporeans to the country.

Sri Lanka is also in the process of signing similar open skies agreements with several other countries in order to boost tourism and business prospects.

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