SriLankan Airlines

BKK-CMB in economy class. Old plane seats are ok for 3-4 hours flight but would be dreadful to it in for a long haul flight. Food looked very bad I did not touch it. Cabin crew were friendly. The only reason to choose this company is that they have flights in normal hours somehow most of the airlines flying during night to Colombo.

Travelled in January 2014 from London to Colombo and return. Delayed flight by 1 hour 40 minutes outbound but departed on time on return. All staff on both flights were friendly and helpful. The choice of food was fine - 3 choices of main course and the use of real metal cutlery. Drinks were plentiful and when I asked for a glass of wine and a rum and coke I was served both without complaint or any negative indicators. Not all the seats were of uniform colour some were green and others brown but that is a covering the seats my wife and I sat on were comfortable and plenty of leg room. Sufficient entertainment to keep me entertained though not as recent in the line of films than other carriers. This was my first experience of SriLankan Airlines and having read the reviews prior to flying I was a little sceptical but I was pleasantly surprised and will use SriLankan again.

Dubai to Colombo (UL226) on 19 December 2013 and Colombo to Bangkok (UL882) on 20 December. I returned to Colombo (UL887) on 31 December and on to Dubai (UL225) on 1 January 2014. I had 4 flights with them last month two of which were delayed. The airplane toilets were very dirty right from take-off. The food also unpalatable. The staff begin with big smiles but these disappear very fast especially if you voice a comment or question they don't like. They are highly unprofessional and very quick to display irritation with passengers. The entertainment service malfunctioned so much it is better to forget about it. Even when it worked in 3 of my 4 flights my TV or earphones didn't work. Very cramped seats flimsy blankets which the staff takes back 40 minutes before landing in an aggressive way on all my flights. The tickets were cheaper than other airlines but next time I will pay more to use a different airline. I frequently use budget airlines so am used to lower quality but Sri Lanka Airlines hit new lows for me.

CMB-Rome. Silk route check-in a delight and fast track to the Serendib Lounge. Busy but nice views of apron and excess of food and beverages with waiters in white jackets. Boarding a bit chaotic but as usual a warm and smiling greeting onto aircraft by cabin crew. Addressed by name and welcomed on-board again by crew at my seat. Quality amenity kit with extensive menu placed next to me with my melon juice. Superb personal service everything anticipated by crew and better than first class on many high tier airlines. Night flight so I did not bother with IFE but I think this needs improvement. Breakfast was 5 course luxury again served with style and charm by crew who I feel sell this airline. Flights on time. I am sold as booking next flight to CMB in J class. It is an outstanding product for the price paid.

You'll see earlier a post from me from SIN to CDG via CMB. My return flight from Paris to CMB was quite different. We had an old seat A330 (creole recliner style) which disappointed me. The seats are pretty bad but for the price one cannot complain and its pot luck whether you get the new or old version at this stage. The IFE is continuous loop so bring an iPad full of stuff to watch as the UL offering is terrible (and I'm being polite). However the food and service from CDG was markedly different. The cabin crew were on the ball and were polite prompt helpful and caring. The food quality was excellent even though I ate very little due to the timing (desert was a let down as the advertised offering and what came were strangely different). My partner and a friend all ate more and enjoyed theirs as well as the flowing wines including Australian quality wines. Now if only the product and service was consistent UL J class would be a force to reckon with. But then again the price would skyrocket I'm sure. We'll be doing this again later this year so clearly we're sold.

Dec 2013 flight between Bangkok and Hambantota was cancelled with only 3 days notice from Sri Lankan Airlines. All future flights between these cities also cancelled. No explanation given. My family were re-booked onto a flight between Bangkok and Colombo 15 hours after the intended departure time requiring an overnight stay in Colombo and then a 5.5 hour car drive the following morning to get my family to our Pre-booked accommodation in the South East of Sri Lanka near Yala. We had 3 other flights pre-booked with Sri Lankan Airlines as part of our holiday (which was partly ruined by our forced itinerary changes). In summary our flight experience was as follows: Food and beverage seemed slightly better than many other airlines we've travelled with. Flight attendants were friendly courteous and professional. In-flight entertainment may as well have been non-existent. I don't recall it being that bad 30 years ago. The age of the plane it's seats screens and entertainment consoles must be approximately 30 years old. Flight times were consistently changed by 10-20 minutes (early and late) without any notification. The staff at airports were grossly under-staffed and consequently appeared irritable cranky and unprofessional. We will never fly with them again.

Recently had return flights BKK-CMB. Our flights were at civilised hours in the morning and afternoon. 2 weeks before departure I had an email to say that the flights had been changed - to late in the evening and the early hours of the morning - very inconvenient for us. Flight to CMB was on time the plane was a bit old and the in- flight entertainment units were very dated and did not work properly. The food was poor. Return flight to BKK was a poor experience and Bandaranaike airport was dreadful. Arrived 3 hours before our flight at 1.30am. The airport was packed and chaotic. There was no system at the few and inefficient check in desks open and passengers were very confused. No staff to help or guide people. We queued for 2 hours and checked in with 15 minutes to go before our flight left. No fast track system for people in a hurry and minimal information the very few announcements were too quiet and unintelligible. We managed to get on the plane but it was then delayed for over an hour. It was the middle of the night and people were trying to sleep but as soon as we were airborne the air hostesses went around waking people up to give them a drink and meal. The lights were not dimmed for sleeping. It was a very stressful and tiring experience. We will not fly with this airline again.

Flew after several years from SIN-CMB return. A320 aircraft small but the cabin crew was good and attentive to passengers. This was a change from the last time I flew where the crew was very unprofessional and lazy. Food was ok and entertainment was generally fine.

Flew with my family SIN-CMB 2 day stopover then CMB-LHR just before Christmas and then FCO-CMB-SIN in January on the way home. All in business and A320 to/from SIN A330 to LHR and A340 from FCO. Boarding on all flights orderly interestingly business was boarded last to avoid economy crush but economy boarding appeared to be very smooth. Silk Route service at CMB was great like first class on other airlines dedicated check in entrance all paperwork sorted out while waiting in a lounge then escorted through customs. Small service company lounge in SIN nice enough lounge in CMB but no Singapore Airlines or Qatar equivalent though food offering was good and nice view over the airport. All flights left on time except FCO which was 30-40 minutes late due to customs debacle but time made up en route. Large short haul business class seats in grey leather on the short (3.5 hours) SIN flights. Very nice catering tray based with 4 main choices. Functional on demand entertainment system with some good movies. Long haul flights both featured full flat beds in attractive terracotta colour leather fine seats and good for sleeping. Two pillows and nice wool blanket supplied along with small but very nice Bulgari amenities bag. A330 entertainment system was loop based some ok movies but mainly slept on this sector. A340 entertainment system was much more modern on demand system with good movie choice. Maybe they have not finished upgrading the A330 fleet with new entertainment systems. Catering on long haul flights out of Colombo and Rome was outstanding full table cloth and china metal cutlery quality glassware. Served with pre meal drink and cashews appetisers mains cheese and fruit dessert coffee/tea/liqueurs etc. 4 main choices restaurant quality food comparable to first on some other airlines I have travelled on. Wines were pleasant enough but not of the same standard as the cuisine but fine nevertheless. I don't think I have ever flown on an airline with so many hot towels being offered! Overall cabin service was amongst the best I have encountered very professional but also very friendly and personal. The crew had a wide age range and were all charming and a credit to the airline. Pilot announcements were clear and informative. All aircraft cabins were clean and we'll maintained and fare prices were incredibly competitive. My first impression of flying on Sri Lankan was very good indeed.

My email to the airline regarding a seat request was never answered my special meal request was not taken into account. Flight BKK to FRA via CMB was a disaster: have never seen such an old and run down aircraft (A330 dating from the early 90's) dirty seats torn seat covers non working entertainment facilities dirty screens and windows overhead lockers opened at take off. Cabin crew not trained extremely unfriendly and unmotivated. Food was cold and inedible only water available during night. Never again will I will with this airline.