Date:27/11/2008 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2008/11/27/stories/2008112760930200.htm

Kerala

Rome link flight for Kochi passengers

A Correspondent

The flight is scheduled such a way as to connect passengers from Kochi, who reach Colombo by UL 166.

Nedumbassery: Seven years after suspending its service following the 9/11 attacks in the U.S., Sri Lankan Airlines has announced its return to the city of Rome from next month, with a thrice-weekly service. The timing of the new flight is scheduled such a way as to connect passengers from Kochi, who reach Colombo by their morning flight UL 166. The flight — a wide-bodied A340 aircraft, would operate on Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays and take the route Colombo-Rome-Paris-Rome-Colombo with a flying time of around 10 hours, said the airline. The flight, UL563, would take off from Colombo at 1 a.m. local time and land at Rome’s Fiumicino Airport at 7 a.m. local time from where it would depart at 8 a.m. to reach Paris at 10:10 a.m.

In the return leg, UL564, would start from Paris at 11:50 a.m. and reach Rome at 1:45 p.m. It would leave Rome at 2:45 p.m. and touch down in Colombo at 5 a.m.