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| Tuesday, 22 February 2005 |
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Minister keen on Italy-Lanka direct flights by Anjana Gamage The Minister of Industries, Investment Promotion and Tourism Anura Bandaranaike will discuss with Sri Lankan Airlines authorities on the possibilities of operating direct flights between Italy and Sri Lanka, Secretary to the Ministry of Tourism Dr.P. Ramanujam told the Daily News. " This was one of the major issues raised by the Italian and Sri Lankan tour operators during the special tsunami conference held in Italy along with its BIT Milan travel fair held last week. They raised the issue on the lack of a direct air link between Colombo and Rome or Milan. Therefore the Minister is expected to take up the matter with SriLankan Airlines shortly", he said. According to sources, last year 20,000 tourists from Italy visited Sri Lanka while 150,000 visited the Maldives. Furthermore, 70 to 80 thousand Sri Lankans live in Italy of whom nearly 50 to 60 percent visit Sri Lanka during their holidays. Hence there is a huge market for a direct airline operation between the two countries. The lack of a direct airline link between the two countries is one of the main bottlenecks preventing rapid growth of tourist arrivals from Italy to Sri Lanka, sources said. |
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