The second international airport in Sri Lanka, Mattala Rajapakse International Airport (MRIA), was constructed in Hambantota District, located in the Southern region of the country. The airport was declared open on 18thMarch 2013.The airport has the capacity to handle 1 million passengers and 45,000 tonnes of cargo per annum. However, the airport was not able to utilise its facilities since the commencement of operations. The situation did not improve, but rather deteriorated with the stoppage of the operation of the national carriers to the airport. Therefore, though the airport is equipped with the necessary facilities for an international airport and operating for almost two years, the airport was unable to achieve its targeted objectives. This research aims at identifying the reasons for this gap and the solutions to improve it. The key purpose of this study is to identify “why the airport (MRIA) was unable to meet its target as indicated in the master plan”. Identifying the requirement for another international airport in Sri Lanka, reasons for the underutilisation of the airport, benefits of the airport and viable options are the objectives undertaken to achieve the purpose of the study.

Prasani, H.K.S., & Fernando, W.W.A.S. (2016). Evaluating the potential of Mattala Rajapaksa International Airport (MRIA) to have a competitive edge as the second international airport of Sri Lanka [Extended Abstract]. In T.L. Gunaruwan (Ed.), Proceedings of 1st International Conference on Research for Transport and Logistics Industry 2016 (pp. 109-111). Sri Lanka Society of Transport and Logistics. https://slstl.lk/r4tli-2016/