News
Russia strongly protests over Aeroflot incident
The prevention of an Aeroflot flight from leaving the Bandaranaike International Airport (BIA) based on an enjoining order granted by the Commercial High Court of Colombo while hearing a legal dispute between two private companies has turned into a diplomatic issue between Sri Lanka and Russia.
In Moscow, Sri Lanka’s Ambassador Janitha A. Liyanage was summoned to the Russian Foreign Ministry on Friday. The Ministry protested “over the groundless decision by Sri Lanka’s judicial authorities to detain a regular Aeroflot flight preparing to depart for Moscow at the Bandaranaike International Airport on June 2,” as quoted by TASS, the State-owned news agency.
“We urged the Sri Lankan side to settle this problem as soon as possible to avoid its negative impact on traditionally friendly bilateral relations,” it said. The contentious aircraft is still on the ground at BIA.
Sri Lanka’s Foreign Affairs Ministry issued a brief statement yesterday night. It said: “On 2 June 2022, the Commercial High Court of the Western Province issued an enjoining order on the Aeroflot flight restraining it from taking off from the Bandaranaike International Airport. The case relates to a commercial dispute between the plaintiff, Celestial Aviation Trading 10 Limited, an Irish company, against the first defendant, the Public Joint Stock Company ‘Aeroflot’, and the second defendant, Mr N C Abeywardena/Acting Head of Air Navigation/Airport and Aviation Services of Sri Lanka (AASL), Katunayake.”
The Aviation Ministry is scheduled to hold a news conference on this today.
Separately, Aeroflot–the Russian flag carrier–announced yesterday it was suspending commercial flights to Colombo “for the immediate period due to an unreliable situation in terms of the airline’s unobstructed flights to Sri Lanka”. The sale of tickets for flights to Colombo was suspended.
The dispute being heard before the Commercial High Court is related to the purported non-payment of lease rentals by Aeroflot to Celestial Aviation Trading Ltd resulting in Celestial terminating its agreement and attempting to repossess the contentious Airbus A330-300 aircraft.
On Thursday, the Court granted an enjoining order “restraining and preventing the 1st Defendant [Aeroflot-Russian Airlines] and/or its servants, agents, assigns from removing any aircraft documentation (including certificates, aircraft log, records, books or manuals)or any parts, equipment components, systems or modules from the Aircraft described in the Schedule hereto…”
The second defendant named in the enjoining order was N C Abeywardena, Acting Head of Air Navigation Services of the Airport and Aviation Services (Sri Lanka) (Private) Ltd (AASL). He is also the second defendant in the petition filed by Celestial Aviation in the Commercial High Court of Colombo on May 31, 2022.
At a hearing on Thursday, it was revealed to Court how the aircraft happened to be obstructed. Additional Solicitor General Sumathi Dharmawardhena, PC, told court that Mr Abeywardena had brought to the Attorney General’s notice that on June 2 a fiscal officer of the High Court accompanied by an attorney-at-law walked into BIA and submitted a copy of the enjoining order.
Mr Abeywardena was told he should “immediately take steps not to permit the Flight SU 289 to take off from the Bandaranaike International Airport”. Mr Abeywardena is an employee of AASL, a straightforward company which manages the airport, Mr Dharmawardhena said.
“We wish to bring to Your Honour’s notice the said enjoining order is not against the Director-General of Civil Aviation who is authorised to issue directions in terms of the Act No 12 of 2000,” he maintained, according to a copy of court proceedings. “Anyhow, in terms of Section 24 of the Interpretation Ordinance with utmost respect to Your Honour’s Court, Your Honour’s Court is prohibited from issuing any orders for specific performance at this stage which includes the Director-General of Civil Aviation Authority.”
The Court held that there is no enjoining order issued on Mr Abeywardena, the second defendant. The AASL subsequently issued a statement confirming it was clarified in Court that “there was no effective enjoining order issued on the 2nd Defendant [Airport and Aviation Services (Sri Lanka) (Private) (Limited)] or State.”
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