ECONOMYNEXT – State-un SriLankan Airlines had lost 112.8 billion rupees in the first half of the 2022/2023 financial year, which also includes forex losses, a finance ministry report said.
SriLankan Airline earned revenues of 170.4 billion rupees in the first half and expenditure was 284.5 billion rupees.
The expenses mainly came from “a significant hike in aircraft fuel price, airport, enroute, passenger expenses, and exchange loss.”
The exchange loss was not specified. Sri Lanka’s rupee collapsed from 200 to the US dollar to 360 to the US dollar in 2022, after two years of money printing to mis-target rates.
Sri Lanka’s central bank, the SOE which produces money, frequently mis-targets rates by printing excess money and covers the policy error with depreciation.
“Considering the accumulation of losses over the years, it has been decided to divest the government stake in SLA,” the report said.
“Accordingly, a restructuring process will be carried out with the support of SOE restructuring unit.”
President Ranil Wickremesinghe has asked for a review on how to privatize the airline, whether to sell in in toto, or sell catering and ground handlining separately. SriLankan Airlines is the main customer of SriLankan catering. (Colombo/Nov19/2022)
So, if I do a rough calculation, every person in the country paid Rs. 5,127 to maintain a useless airline, whether you flew it or not. Not to mention in a middle of an economic crisis. What could that Rs. 5,127 do to a poor person, who is struggling today?
The agony, and the ecstasy.