The Maldives, officially the Republic of Maldives, is an archipelagic state and country in South Asia, situated in the Indian Ocean. It lies southwest of Sri Lanka and India, about 750 kilometres from the Asian continent's mainland. The Maldives' chain of 26 atolls stretches across the equator from Ihavandhippolhu Atoll in the north to Addu Atoll in the south.
Malé is the capital and most populous city of the Maldives. With a population of 252,768 including other districts and an area of 8.30 square kilometres (3.20 sq mi), it is also one of the most densely populated cities in the world. The city is geographically located in the southern edge of North Malé Atoll.
The Maldives has remained an independent nation throughout its recorded history, save for a brief spell of Portuguese occupation in the mid-16th century. From 1887 to 1965, the country was a British protectorate while retaining full internal sovereignty. At its independence in 1965, the Maldives joined the United Nations on 20 September.
Air Astana is an airline group based in Almaty, Kazakhstan. It operates scheduled international and domestic services across 64 routes from its two hubs; Almaty International Airport, and Nursultan Nazarbayev International Airport.
Kudahuvadhoo is one of the inhabited islands of Dhaalu Atoll in the Maldives.
Velana International Airport (VIA) is the main international airport in the Maldives. It is located on Hulhulé Island in the North Malé Atoll, nearby the capital island Malé. The airport is well connected with major airports around the world, mostly serving as the main gateway into the Maldives for tourists. It is managed financially and administratively by a state owned company known as Maldives Airports Company Limited (MACL).
Maldivian is the airline division of Island Aviation Services and is based in Malé, in the Maldives. It is the flag carrier airline of the Maldives. It operates international flights in addition to inter-island services. Its main base is Velana International Airport.
Aitken Spence PLC is a Sri Lankan blue chip conglomerate with operations in South Asia, Middle East, Africa and Pacific. Listed on the Colombo Stock Exchange since 1983, it has major interests in hotels, travel, maritime services and logistics. The group also has a significant presence in printing, plantation, power generation, financial services, IT, Business Process Outsourcing/Knowledge Process Outsourcing sector, elevator agency services, garments, and property development.
MEGA Maldives Airlines was a Maldivian airline based at Ibrahim Nasir International Airport. It suspended all operations on 2 May 2017.
Abdulla Yameen Abdul Gayoom is a Maldivian politician who was President of the Maldives from 2013 to 2018.
US-Bangla Airlines is a privately owned Bangladeshi airline headquartered in Dhaka and based at Shahjalal International Airport under the umbrella companies of US-Bangla Group. The airline is the largest private airline in Bangladesh in terms of fleet size and overall second largest airline after the flag carrier Biman Bangladesh Airlines. Though Airlines is the flagship company of the parent US-Bangla Group, it owns numerous businesses in other industries such as real estate, education, media, electronics, consumer foods.
The Vanilla Alliance is an airline alliance formed in September 2015. The alliance is the 4th largest in the world as of 2018, trailing Oneworld, Star Alliance, and SkyTeam. All of the airlines within the alliance operate in the Indian Ocean region and are based in sovereign states that are members of the Indian Ocean Commission or French overseas territories in the Indian Ocean.
Ibrahim Mohamed Solih, better known as Ibu, is a Maldivian politician and the current president of the Maldives since 17 November 2018.
Manta Air is a Maldivian domestic airline based in the Maldives, which began its operations on 24 February 2019.
Funadhoo Airport is a domestic airport located on the island of Funadhoo in Shaviyani Atoll, Maldives. The first test flight to Funadhoo airport landed on January 24, 2020. The country's national airline, Maldivian (airline) commenced scheduled direct flights to Funadhoo island in Shaviyani atoll on February 3, 2020. According to the Ministry of Transport and Civil Aviation, three flights are scheduled to land every week when operations begin at Funadhoo Airport. The scheduled flights are expected to increase to three flights a day once March 2020 reaches an end.
