Though the media had publicized that former President Mahinda Rajapaksa had ordered for an aircraft for his personal use, the highest sources within the civil aviation sector revealed to www.adaderanabiz.lk that such a separate aircraft has never been ordered.

A VIP Kit was attached only as an offer when SriLankan Airlines purchased several aircraft for its fleet from the Airbus Group recently. The allegation of having ordered a separate aircraft may have been based on this VIP Kit. However, while this VIP Kit is not an aircraft it is only a facility where several seats within the plane could be removed and this cubicle with special facilities could be installed within this space.

Airbus has valued this VIP Kit at USD 15 million only to indicate the added financial value of this free offer when these aircraft are purchased. However, this financial value cannot be obtained or deducted from the value of the aircraft by refusing this VIP Kit. Instead, only some other item/s could be requested from the Airbus Group to offset this value.

Even the new government’s interim budget has stated thus on this VIP Kit which is not an aircraft:

“The recent Airbus purchases made by the loss making national airline brings out another wanton exercise of utter waste where a VIP kit had been attached valued at US$ 15 million offered free of charge. Whereas a question could be asked as to why the cost had not been renegotiated without including luxury equipment or is it another episode under the mega deal category.”

On this basis, while accepting this VIP Kit has been stopped on the advice of a very high SriLanka Airlines official, www.adaderanabiz.lk learns that SriLanka Airlines is examining whether any other Airbus Group product instead of this package.

According to the information provided on the Airbus Group website, this VIP Kit is not a separate aircraft. It is only a separate cubicle with extra facilities which could be fixed inside an aircraft within around eight hours.

There could be around six twin seats with facilities within this cubicle, states Airbus.

Below is the information on this particular VIP Kit as seen on the Airbus website: