SriLankan Airlines (UL, Colombo International) received clearance from the Civil Aviation Authority of Sri Lanka (CAASL) to resume extended-range operations (ETOPS) of its five Airbus A320neo and A321neo aircraft on May 11, following an audit of the carrier's maintenance procedures which involved the representatives of the manufacturer, the Sunday Times has reported.

The carrier had earlier lost the ETOPS certification after a maintenance lapse led to a single-engine emergency landing of an A321neo 4R-ANE (msn 7891) in Bangkok Suvarnabhumi on January 22, 2018. Reportedly, the technicians had released the unit prior to the flight despite having detected debris in the oil monitoring system of the CFM International LEAP-1A32 engine.

The aircraft were subsequently limited to operating within a 60-minute range from a suitable diversion airport. The development posed an operational headache to the carrier, leading to significant delays on services out of Colombo International to the Middle East and South-East Asia, during which the aircraft were forced to take a longer route to avoid overflying the Arabian Sea and the Bay of Bengal, respectively.

According to Flightradar24 ADS-B data, as of May 20, 2018, only one A320neo 4R-ANB (msn 7535) and one A321neo 4R-ANC (msn 7663) have resumed ETOPS flights, while the remaining three aircraft continue to use routes remaining within the 60-minutes diversion range. SriLankan currently operates two A320neos and three A321neos, the ch-aviation fleets module shows.

Separately, the debt-ridden Sri Lankan flag carrier has launched a new restructuring programme developed in cooperation with Nyras Aviation Consultants. The programme includes, among others, network readjustment, renegotiation of aircraft leasing rates, as well as renegotiation of the interest rates on debts incurred the airline has with its banks.