Sri Lanka’s Mattala Rajapaksa International Airport (MRIA) marks its 12th anniversary today but the underutilised facility continues to struggle with financial losses and minimal airline traffic, renewing calls for a strategic overhaul.
Opened on March 18, 2013, MRIA was intended to be the country’s second international gateway. However, despite its modern infrastructure, it has failed to attract sustained airline operations, with major carriers pulling out, due to low passenger demand.
Former Civil Aviation Authority Chairman Upul Dharmadasa, who facilitated MRIA’s first commercial flight landing, said the airport still has potential, if repositioned effectively. Contd. on page 11
“Having a secondary airport is an advantage—it helps reduce insurance costs for airlines, including SriLankan Airlines,” Dharmadasa said, adding that MRIA could be repurposed as a maintenance and cargo hub to generate revenue.
Efforts to revive the loss-making airport have included a potential management takeover.
Despite these efforts, the National Audit Office revealed in January that US $ 247.7 million (Rs.36.56 billion) spent on MRIA’s construction had not been effectively utilised. The airport posted an operating loss of Rs.2.12 billion (US $ 6.8 million) in 2023, with revenue at just Rs.288 million.
MRIA, which was built to handle one million passengers annually, processed just 190,750 passengers over the past six years, with only 2,182 flights recorded between 2018 and 2023. The cumulative net loss after tax for this period stood at Rs.38.49 billion (US $ 123 million).
Daily Mirror
