Chairman of the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation (CPC), SriLankan Airlines, and its subsidiary SriLankan Catering G.S. Withanage resigned from these positions on Monday (18), The Sunday Morning Business learns.Withanage was appointed as the Chairman of SriLankan Airlines on 14 November 2018 during the constitutional crisis and was also subsequently appointed as the Chairman of SriLankan Catering Ltd.
The appointment of Withanage came following heavy criticism resulting in the resignation of Kapila Chandrasena from the airline’s chairmanship on 14 November 2018. Chandrasena had been appointed just a day earlier to the position.
Prior to this appointment, Withanage was serving as the Secretary to the Ministry of Transport and Civil Aviation since 18 September 2018.
Withanage is one of the many heads of state institutions to have resigned along with the election of President Gotabaya Rajapaksa to facilitate the transition of power. Among others are Export Development Board Chairperson Indira Malwatte, Board of Investment Chairman Mangala Yapa, Sri Lanka Tourism Promotions Bureau Chairman Kishu Gomes, and Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority Chairman Johanne Jayaratne.
In the previous Government, SriLankan Airlines was entrusted to the Ministry of Finance, specifically to State Minister of Finance Eran Wickremaratne. It is yet unclear which ministry SriLankan would be allocated to under the new Government.
SriLankan Catering Ltd. recorded a 24% Year-on-Year growth in operating profits from Rs. 3.8 billion to Rs. 4.7 billion for the financial year ended 31 March 2019. The company also reported post-tax net profit of Rs. 5.7 billion during the year, which is a 46% increase compared to the previous year.
In April this year, SriLankan Airlines formulated a new five-year strategic business plan for the period 2019-24 with the objective of transforming itself into a financially viable airline group while turning Sri Lanka into a strategic hub for air travel and air cargo in the Asia-Africa-Middle East region.
In June, SriLankan Airlines was named the World’s Most Punctual Airline, with 90.75% of its flights in May 2019 being “on-time” throughout its route network. In October this year, SriLankan Airlines won the prestigious “Asia’s Leading Airline to the Indian Ocean” title for the third consecutive year at World Travel Awards Asia and Oceania Gala Ceremony.
In addition to the Chairmanship of SriLankan, Withanage is also serving as Chairman of Ceylon Petroleum Corporation. It is unclear whether he has resigned from that position as well