Indian airport operators, state governments, and oil marketing companies (OMC) are registering revenue boosts as more flights make refueling stops on their way to Sri Lanka. The frequency of such flights has increased dramatically in the last one month alone as the fuel crisis in Sri Lanka continues to deepen.

Escalating crisis

It started with a few flight anomalies involving SriLankan Airlines A330s making short hops over to India. Then came the advisory from the country's aviation authority, asking all foreign carriers to carry extra fuel while flying into Sri Lanka. Since then, three airports in South India – Kochi, Thiruvananthapuram, and Chennai – have been increasingly hosting flights to and from Sri Lanka and getting busier by the day.

Sri Lanka's economic crisis has drastically hit the country's fuel supplies, with its aviation sector taking a huge blow. As a result, many airlines have had to make significant changes to their schedule and take on added fuel-related expenses.

SriLankan Airbus A330 Inflight
SriLankan has made more than 100 refueling stopovers in India. Photo: Airbus

South Indian airports get busy

With more than a month of such flights making refueling stops in South India, we now have a clearer picture of the situation. While most of these flights are operated by SriLankan Airlines, plenty of other international carriers are also on the list.

Business Standard quotes a source from Bharat Petroleum Corporation, an Indian OMC, as saying that SriLankan Airlines has operated more than 100 such flights and lifted 9,300 kilo liters (kl) of additional jet fuel from Indian airports.

Air Arabia A320 taking off seen from below
Photo: Getty Images

Other airlines, such as Air Arabia, Jazeera Airways, Gulf Air, and AirAsia Malaysia, have also been picking up fuel from South India since May. Thiruvananthapuram airport alone has handled around 90 flights so far, including 55 from SriLankan, bound for long-haul destinations such as Paris, Melbourne, and Sydney. Air Arabia and Gulf Air also make daily stops there, loading up almost 30 to 40 kl of fuel.

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All of this has meant additional revenues for OMCs, air operators, and state governments. The extra revenue is trickling in not just from refueling but also from landing and parking fees.

More to join

It is believed that more carriers have informed Indian OMCs that they will start landing at Indian airports, according to Business Standard. Kochi airport is now offering a 25% discount on landing charges to attract more airlines. It seems to have worked as Etihad Airways plans to use the airport for a refueling halt for its Colombo-Abu Dhabi flight from July 15.

The crisis is affecting airlines operating narrowbodies, such as the A320 and Boeing 737, on this route, which have smaller fuel tanks and need to land at a third airport, driving the costs up.

Etihad,_A6-EIM,_Airbus_A320-232_(49570660241)
Etihad will start refueling at Kochi airport from July 15th. Photo: Anna Zvereva vis Wikimedia Commons

Sri Lanka's main international airport, Bandaranaike International Airport, has the capacity for 7.8 million liters of Jet-A1 fuel. However, the airport has managed to secure an average of just 250,000 liters per day. It is being reported that currently, Sri Lanka is reserving most of its remaining aviation turbine fuel (ATF) for air ambulances and emergency flight diversions.

Until the situation improves, carriers flying into Sri Lanka will, unfortunately, have to bear the added expense.

Have you traveled to Sri Lanka on one of these flights lately? Please leave a comment below.

Source: Business Standard