By Duruthu Edirimuni Chandrasekera
Colombo, June 4 (UNI) Russian flagship carrier, Aeroflot suspended commercial flights and the sale of tickets to Colombo over controversy that arose after Sri Lankan civil aviation authority prevented an Aeroflot flight to depart the Colombo airport on an order by the Commercial High Court of Colombo on June 2.
Russia's Foreign Ministry demanded Sri Lanka to resolve the situation, warning it could hurt bilateral relations.
A Sri Lanka court will hold a hearing in the case on June 8.
The 191 passengers and 13 crew members have been put up at a hotel by Aeroflot, pending resolution of the matter.
A statement from the Sri Lankan Airport and Aviation Services said the Sri Lankan government has no involvement in the issue with regard to the detained Russian 'Aeroflot' aircraft.
It said the issue was raised due to a dispute over a commercial transaction between Aeroflot Russian Airlines and Celestial Aviation Trading Limited.
Owner of the airport, Celestial Aviation of Ireland, has filed an action against Aeroflot, pending arbitration on the lease of Airbus A330 aircraft in London.
"It was also noted during the hearing that the dispute between the Aeroflot and Celestial Aviation was purely a commercial nature, which should be dealt between the said two parties and no involvement of the state was emphasised," the statement said.
Russia is a major tourist market for Sri Lanka.
A local tour operator said that he had received a booking for two rooms for 12 nights, which was the only booking received up to now for the next six months from a Russian family.
"Will they arrive due to an Aeroflot flight being restrained from leaving the country? It's an 890 dollar down the drain," he added.
UNI DRU RJ