This is the second such instance when the national carrier was chosen by the Vatican to fly the Pope, having flown Pope John Paul II in 1995 from Colombo to Rome by SriLankan (Air Lanka).
To commemorate this occasion a special memento was presented to His Holiness on board the flight to Manila by SriLankan’s Chief Executive Officer Mr. Kapila Chandrasena and Chief Operating Officer Captain Druvi Perera.
This was also the third Papal visit to Sri Lanka with previous visits by the Pope Paul VI in 1970 and Pope John Paul II in 1995.