SriLankan Airlines (UL, Colombo International) has acceded to a recommendation by a Sri Lankan parliamentary committee that it delay plans to lease up to 21 aircraft by three months, Chairman Ashok Pathirage told The Sunday Times (Sri Lanka) newspaper.

Pathirage clarified that the state-owned carrier needed to procure nine aircraft by the end of 2023 simply to replace those coming off lease. In total, the airline plans to replace eleven aircraft, while the remainder will be for growth.

"Roughly 60% of the planned aircraft will be fleet replacement, and the remainder will be to support the airline’s expansion strategy and meet the growing demand for air travel between Sri Lanka and the world," the airline clarified.

Pathirage said the recently issued an RFP for the dry-lease of 21 aircraft was exploratory in nature. The airline is trying to assess the market for various aircraft - both current and new-generation, and both narrow- and widebody.

"It all depends on the pricing and what’s on offer. [The deliveries are] 'til 2025. We are not taking all at once. And these are not new, they are used, second-hand. This whole exercise is to understand what’s out there and pricing," Pathirage said.

Following the issuance of the RFP, the Committee on Public Enterprises (COPE) advised the airline to pause the process for three months to subject the plans to more scrutiny. The COPE can only issue non-binding recommendations to the airline.

Separately, Pathirage said talks had opened with Airbus over damages related to corruption during previous SriLankan Airlines' orders. Last year, after Airbus entered into a Deferred Prosecution Agreement with the United Kingdom's Serious Fraud Office, the carrier sued the manufacturer for USD1 billion.

"The Airbus negotiations are taking place at a high level. At the moment, Airbus has agreed to sit and talk with us, so probably we feel there’s a settlement, but we don’t know what it is. We are handling that in a very professional manner," Pathirage said.

Besides the damages, SriLankan Airlines is also seeking a penalty-free cancellation of its order for four A350-900s.