Airline Merge: Capt. Druvi Perera Are We Heading For Disaster?

By Marlon Dale Ferreira -March 7, 2015

Marlon Dale Ferreira

The current Chief Operations Officer and Head of Flight Operations Capt.Druvi Perera of Sri Lankan Airlines has been granted the enviable task of now running the identical functions of Mihin Lanka the low cost budget airline too as now both airlines are being ordered to run under one Chairman but under two separate AOCs issued by the Director General of the Civil Aviation Authority of Sri Lanka.

Among many blatant decisions taken in the recent past by the former Sri Lankan Airlines Chairman Nishantha Wickramasinghe and the soon to be out going CEO Kapila Chandrasena, is the controversial appointment of Capt. Druvi Perera to the post he currently holds.

It is important to point out that there is ‘NO’ such post as per the legality and as laid down in the Air Operator Certificate (AOC) manual (ref SLCAP 4100 Appendix I dated 16/05/2011 rev 1). The instructions attached here should have been crystal clear especially to those within the aviation sector and of the national carrier.

His post of Chief Operating Officer never existed before and was created and advertised in manner that ensured he was the sole applicant for the post. Strangely even the maximum age for this post was highlighted at 50 preventing other suitable candidates from applying.

COO Capt. Druvi Perera’s letter served to Capt. Charles Sirimanne the Safety Manager of Mihin Lanka

What further shocked aviation professionals in the Flight Operations was firstly here was a Pilot who had only his Australian Ordinary Level qualifications besides his flying credentials and further his ability and skills were questionable after his famous approach and landing incident in Chennai and more famously his push back without obtaining Air Traffic Control clearance with a VVIP on board in late 2014.

Since these two incidents were reported by Colombo Telegraph on the 9th and 14th of February 2015respectively, the national carrier is yet to refute both allegations.

Worthy questions been asked now is as to how a person with such track record could be granted more responsibilities when it was commonly known that his controversial appointment and many other dealings is been probed at present at a personal level by Lawyer J.C. Weliamuna and his team.
Read More