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| Founded | 1993 | ||||||
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| Commenced operations | 1994 | ||||||
| Ceased operations | 2006 | ||||||
| Hubs | |||||||
| Fleet size | 6 | ||||||
| Destinations | 10 | ||||||
| Headquarters | Ratmalana, Sri Lanka | ||||||
| Key people | Chandran Rutnam, founder and chairman | ||||||
Lionair was an airline with its head office in the Asian Aviation Centre in Sri Lanka on the grounds of Ratmalana Airport near Colombo. [1] It was a privately owned charter operator. Its main base was Ratmalana International Airport. [2]
The airline was established in October 1993. The airline started its operations on 24 October 1994. Initially it was owned by Lionvert Inc USA (51%), a United States-based investors group and by Sri Lankan investors (49%). Lionvert sold its stake in late 1997. Lionair suspended domestic services when an Antonov An-24 aircraft went missing shortly after it took off from Jaffna in 1998, but resumed services in October 2002. [2]
Lionair had operated services between Colombo and Jaffna since October 1996, until the suspension of services in 1998. They had hoped to resume services in November 1998. [3]
In 2005, Lionair applied to the Civil Aviation Authority of Sri Lanka to operate services to the following destinations: Athens, Chennai, Kochi, Denpasar, Dhaka, Dubai, Guangzhou, Jakarta, Kuala Lumpur, Kuwait, London, Malé, Melbourne, Mumbai, Rome, Singapore, Sydney, Tiruchirapalli, Thiruvananthapuram and Zürich, using Avro 748 and Airbus A320 aircraft. [4]
 | This section needs additional citations for verification .(October 2019) |
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| Aircraft | Fleet | Introduced | Retired |
|---|---|---|---|
| Antonov An-24 | TBA | TBA | TBA |
| Avro 748 | TBA | TBA | TBA |
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SriLankan Airlines is the flag carrier of Sri Lanka and a member airline of the Oneworld airline alliance. It is currently the largest airline in Sri Lanka by number of aircraft and destinations and was launched in 1979 as Air Lanka following the termination of operations of the original Sri Lankan flag carrier Air Ceylon.
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Air Ceylon was the former flag carrier airline of Ceylon. The airline discontinued flights to Europe in early 1978 and finally ceased all local services on 31 August 1979, when it was replaced by Air Lanka. Air Lanka was later rebranded to SriLankan Airlines.
Ratmalana International Airport, is the secondary international airport serving the city of Colombo, the capital of Sri Lanka. It was the country's first international airport and was the only international airport in Sri Lanka until the inauguration of Bandaranaike International Airport, Katunayake, in 1967. The airport currently serves several domestic services and is home to several aviation training organisations. A relaxation of rules has recently seen the airport open for international corporate jet operations and charter flights. The airport is located 15 km south of Colombo City.
The Bandaranaike International Airport attack was a suicide raid Black Tigers of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) on 24 July 2001 on the Sri Lanka Air Force base SLAF Katunayake and the adjoining Bandaranaike International Airport in Katunayake, Sri Lanka. The attack was one of the boldest the LTTE mounted during its war with the Sri Lankan government, and had a profound impact on the country's military, economy, and airline industry.
The Sri Lanka Air Force is the air arm and the youngest of the Sri Lanka Armed Forces. It was founded in 1951 as the Royal Ceylon Air Force (RCyAF) with the assistance of the Royal Air Force (RAF). The SLAF played a major role throughout the Sri Lankan Civil War. The SLAF operates more than 160 aircraft and has a projected trained strength of 30,000 airmen and 2000 officers, who are from both regular and reserve service.
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Lionair Flight 602 was a Lionair Antonov An-24RV which crashed into the sea off the north-western coast of Sri Lanka on 29 September 1998. The aircraft departed Jaffna Airport with 48 passengers and a crew of seven; it disappeared from radar screens ten minutes into the flight. Initial reports indicated that the plane had been shot down by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) using a man-portable surface-to-air missile, which has since been confirmed. All aboard were presumed killed.
Asian Aviation Centre (AAC) is a private aerospace engineering and flying training academy in Sri Lanka.
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Velupillai Suppiah Thurairajah was a Sri Lankan Tamil architect who designed many buildings in Sri Lanka and abroad.
The Air Ceylon Avro 748 4R-ACJ bombing occurred on 7 September 1978 when an Air Ceylon Hawker Siddeley HS 748 was destroyed in a fire following the explosion of a bomb in the aircraft while parked at Ratmalana Airport, Colombo, Sri Lanka. At the time, the pilot, first officer, and a ground crew worker were aboard; all three escaped unhurt.
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