The national carrier of Sri Lanka; cargo is branded SriLankan Cargo.
SriLankan Airlines is the national airline of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, headquartered in Colombo and hubbed at Colombo Bandaranaike International Airport (CMB). Cargo is marketed as SriLankan Cargo and carried in passenger belly holds across the network; the airline website is srilankan.com and the cargo site is srilankancargo.com. For shippers in China the value is the position of the Colombo hub: cargo from China connects there to the Indian subcontinent, the Gulf and major European cities, forming a China-Colombo-third country transit channel.
The airline flies an all-Airbus fleet of about 21 aircraft, widebodies mainly A330 series and narrowbodies covering the A320 and A321 series. Widebodies fly the medium and long-haul trunk routes from China to Colombo and from Colombo to Europe and the Middle East, narrowbodies fly the Indian subcontinent, South Asian neighbours and Southeast Asia, and belly capacity is released with the passenger schedule. The cargo division holds several regional firsts: in 2025 it became the first airline cargo division in South Asia to obtain IATA CEIV lithium battery certification, and in 2026 it added South Asia's first CEIV live animals certification, which underpins special cargo.
Key milestones since the airline was founded in 1979.
The Sri Lankan government announces a new national airline, Air Lanka, set up with management assistance from Singapore Airlines; it starts operations in September that year with leased Boeing aircraft to Asian and European points, establishing the country's air transport base.
Fleet and destinations grow, building scheduled corridors between South Asia, the Middle East and Southeast Asia; Colombo takes shape as an Indian Ocean transit point and belly cargo serves regional trade alongside the passenger schedule.
Under a management agreement with Emirates the company is renamed SriLankan Airlines, the fleet is renewed as an all-Airbus operation and service and operating standards are brought in line with major international carriers, with cargo products developed alongside.
The airline joins the oneworld alliance, widening code-share coverage and strengthening connections at Colombo with partner carriers in Europe, the Middle East and South Asia, so belly cargo products extend to more cities through the alliance.
The airline completes fleet simplification and lease restructuring, keeps about 21 Airbus aircraft in service, and restores scheduled flights to Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou after the pandemic, with Guangzhou to Colombo running four nonstop flights a week.
SriLankan Cargo is certified by IATA's CEIV lithium battery independent validation centre, the first airline cargo division in South Asia to hold it, with standardised handling for lithium-ion batteries, sodium-ion batteries and battery-powered equipment.
SriLankan Cargo obtains IATA CEIV live animals logistics certification, again the first in South Asia, giving pets, breeding stock, protected species and ornamental animals and plants standardised handling and temperature-controlled space throughout.
Widebodies fly the China trunk and European and Middle Eastern routes; narrowbodies cover the South Asian regional network.
The fleet is all Airbus. Widebodies centre on the A330 series, with seven A330-300s as the long-haul mainstay and A330-200s on medium and long-haul routes; narrowbodies are A320, A320neo and A321neo aircraft covering the Indian subcontinent, Bangladesh, short Middle Eastern sectors and Southeast Asia. Cargo is carried in passenger belly holds, no freighter schedule to China is published, and belly tonnage varies with load factor and sector length.
| Aircraft type | Approximate count | Belly capacity reference | Suitable cargo and route use |
|---|---|---|---|
| Airbus A330-300 | 7 aircraft | About 15 tonnes on medium sectors; about 10 tonnes on long sectors | Flown on long-haul trunk routes such as China to Colombo and Colombo to London; suits belly consolidation of general cargo, cross-border e-commerce parcels, textiles and high-value goods. |
| Airbus A330-200 | About 3 aircraft | About 13 tonnes on medium sectors; about 9 tonnes on long sectors | Flown on Colombo to the Middle East and Europe and as supplementary China trunk sectors; suits volume general cargo and consolidated transit freight. |
| Airbus A320 / A320neo | About 9 aircraft | Narrowbody belly about 2 to 3 tonnes | Flown on India, Bangladesh, short Middle Eastern and Southeast Asian routes; suits small onward transit cargo beyond the Colombo hub. |
| Airbus A321neo | About 4 aircraft | Narrowbody belly about 2.5 to 3.5 tonnes | Flown on denser South Asian points; suits time-critical express and special cargo feeder traffic. |
Actual belly payload depends on passenger numbers, baggage, fuel and weight and balance limits on the day; the carrier's allocation at booking governs. Widebody bellies take standard ULDs and support both pallet and bulk loading, and general cargo, textiles, electronic parts and cross-border e-commerce parcels can all be declared against belly space.
Three nonstop points, Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou, with onward connections to third countries through Colombo.
| China destinations | Airport code | Direction | Schedules and notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Guangzhou | CAN | Guangzhou to and from Colombo | Currently about four nonstop flights a week, flight time about five and a half hours, the only scheduled nonstop between Guangzhou and Colombo; belly space opens with the passenger flight and times are local. |
| Shanghai Pudong | PVG | Shanghai Pudong to and from Colombo | Scheduled passenger service with widebodies; belly space takes bookings for general and special cargo from east China, times are local. |
| Beijing Capital | PEK | Beijing Capital to and from Colombo | Seasonal scheduled nonstop service, about three to four flights a week in season, operated by widebodies, times local. |
SriLankan Airlines previously also flew Hong Kong to Colombo; the current China points are Guangzhou, Shanghai Pudong and Beijing Capital. The frequencies above are passenger schedules and belly cargo space is released with them; actual schedules change with the season and are subject to carrier confirmation on the day of booking. Shippers in Shenzhen can use Guangzhou Baiyun, shippers in east China Shanghai Pudong and shippers in north China Beijing Capital, and cargo can also be consolidated to any of these points on domestic mainline flights before connecting to SriLankan.
From China via Colombo, connecting to South Asia, the Middle East and Europe.
The diagram is schematic: gold dashed lines mark the trans-Indian Ocean channel from the three Chinese points to Colombo, blue solid lines the routes from Colombo to the Indian subcontinent, Bangladesh, the Maldives, the Gulf coast and Southeast Asian cities, and gold solid lines the Colombo to Europe trunk route. Colombo sits on the core Indian Ocean sea lane and is a major South Asian transit point, so cargo handed over in Guangzhou, Shanghai or Beijing can connect at Colombo to those third-country cities.
Reach through the Colombo hub, from a shipper's point of view.
Colombo connects to Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Kochi and other Indian cities as well as Dhaka in Bangladesh, Malé in the Maldives and points toward Nepal. Chinese exports of electronic parts, machinery, textile raw materials and cross-border e-commerce goods connect from Guangzhou or Shanghai to Colombo and onto narrowbody belly space, giving transit delivery to the main cities of the subcontinent.
The network covers Gulf cities including Dubai, Doha, Kuwait, Bahrain, Muscat, Riyadh, Jeddah and Dammam. Chinese exports of consumer electronics, building materials, general merchandise and auto parts connect at Colombo to these Gulf markets, with widebody belly capacity for volume consolidation.
The scheduled Colombo to London Heathrow widebody service is the European trunk, so cargo from China can enter the UK market through Colombo and extend to other European cities on partner networks. Sri Lankan garments and textiles exported to Europe use the same channel, which gives two-way flows.
Routes from Colombo to Singapore, Bangkok, Kuala Lumpur and other Southeast Asian cities and to Malé and other Indian Ocean islands give cargo multiple connection points along the Indian Ocean rim. Sri Lankan exports of Ceylon tea, gems and jewellery, rubber products, coconut products and garments also move back to China in the opposite direction.
Colombo's cargo value as a South Asian and Indian Ocean transit point.
A typical routing is: cargo is received and screened at Guangzhou Baiyun, Shanghai Pudong or Beijing Capital and flies nonstop to Colombo in a UL belly hold; after clearance or transfer it connects to narrowbody belly space for the Indian subcontinent, the Gulf or Southeast Asian cities, or to a widebody for London. Against the traditional single connection at a Middle East hub, Colombo differs in three ways: the sector is short, about five and a half hours from Guangzhou with same-day arrival at the hub; South Asian connections are dense, with narrowbody flights to the main cities of north and south India; and the two-way flows complement each other, with Chinese industrial exports balanced by Sri Lankan imports of tea, gems and textiles, which helps keep space available.
For importers in China the belly holds also carry return cargo such as Ceylon tea, natural rubber products, coconut products, cut and semi-finished gems and garment samples, flying from Colombo to Guangzhou or Shanghai and into the domestic distribution network. Tea is sensitive to humidity and odour and gemstones need tight security and space control, and SriLankan has ground cargo facilities at Colombo that support segregated storage and transfer of special cargo.
Shippers in Shenzhen and the Pearl River Delta are well placed: Guangzhou Baiyun is a short road trip from the Delta manufacturing belt, so electronics, consumer accessories and cross-border e-commerce cargo can be picked up from the factory, warehoused and handed over the same day and leave on the evening flight to Colombo. Cargo handed over at Shanghai Pudong in east China reaches Colombo overnight for same-day narrowbody connections to southern Indian cities. Shippers in north China can use Beijing Capital in season and otherwise consolidate to Guangzhou or Shanghai on domestic flights before connecting to SriLankan.
Nonstop widebody flights from Guangzhou, Shanghai and Beijing reach Colombo the same day, so third-country connections need no detour through the Middle East and overall transit is better than the traditional single channel.
Narrowbody flights radiate from Colombo to India, Bangladesh and the Maldives, so Chinese cargo reaches the main cities of the subcontinent, covering India's industrial belts and consumer markets.
Holder of South Asia's first CEIV certifications for both lithium batteries and live animals, with standardised handling for battery products, pets and breeding stock and a clear booking path for special cargo.
Chinese industrial exports balance Sri Lankan tea, gems and textile return cargo, keeping utilisation steady and giving clients priority allocations from the carrier in high season.
Carrying the two high-threshold categories, lithium batteries and live animals.
SriLankan Cargo obtained IATA CEIV lithium battery certification in May 2025, the first airline cargo division in South Asia to do so, with standardised acceptance, storage, loading and handover of lithium-ion batteries, sodium-ion batteries and equipment with built-in batteries. For shippers in China's battery supply chain, packs, battery modules, e-bike batteries and energy storage equipment made in east and south China can be booked into belly space at Shanghai Pudong or Guangzhou Baiyun and connect at Colombo to South Asian, Middle Eastern and European markets, with the certification backing dangerous goods declarations and destination clearance.
In February 2026 SriLankan Cargo added IATA CEIV live animals certification, again the first in South Asia. It covers standards for pets, breeding stock, ornamental fish, birds and protected species and requires temperature-controlled space, watering and feeding, quarantine documents and handover with an attendant throughout. Shippers of ornamental fish, breeding poultry, laboratory animals and pets to South Asian and Middle Eastern markets can connect at Colombo, with space booked in advance to confirm temperature control and attendant conditions.
Beyond those two certified categories, the belly holds carry general cargo, textiles, cross-border e-commerce parcels, high-value goods and express shipments. Temperature-controlled cargo, fragile items and high-value jewellery must be declared separately at booking, and the carrier allocates space and loading positions under special cargo procedures.
Space requests and document handover through a forwarder.
SriLankan Airlines publishes no own cargo office in China. Contact its local agent in China or let Goodhope Logistics (China) Limited coordinate. We have long handled air freight from China to South Asia, the Middle East and Europe, know the SriLankan belly products and the Colombo transfer process, and accept instructions directly from shippers to handle space requests, air waybill preparation, screening handover and transit tracking.
The standard process: the shipper sends the cargo details (commodity, pieces, weight and dimensions, destination airport, transport requirements) and we apply to the carrier for an allocation; once space is confirmed the cargo is delivered to the airline receiving station for clearance and screening; after loading we track the air waybill by sector, with the Colombo ground agent handling the onward flight; on arrival at destination clearance and pickup follow the instruction. Lithium batteries, live animals and other special cargo require test reports, quarantine certificates and attendant documents at booking, which we declare to the carrier in advance and confirm the space conditions. Our website is https://goodhope86.com, where clients can review our services and contacts.
The questions shippers ask most about booking and transport.
Cargo can be delivered to the airline receiving station at Guangzhou Baiyun, Shanghai Pudong or Beijing Capital and a forwarder applies for UL belly space. Guangzhou runs about four nonstop flights a week, Shanghai and Beijing operate seasonal schedules, all with widebodies, and the belly holds take general cargo, textiles, cross-border e-commerce parcels and special cargo. Actual schedules change with the season and are subject to carrier confirmation on the day of booking.
Yes. SriLankan Cargo was the first airline cargo division in South Asia to obtain IATA CEIV lithium battery certification, with standardised handling for lithium-ion and sodium-ion batteries and battery-powered equipment. Battery cargo must be tested and packed under dangerous goods rules and declared at booking, and we help confirm space and loading conditions with the carrier.
Yes. SriLankan Cargo obtained South Asia's first CEIV live animals certification in February 2026, and pets, breeding stock, ornamental fish and protected species are handled to the full standard. Booking live animals requires temperature-controlled space, quarantine documents and attendant arrangements to be confirmed in advance, and the connection needs enough ground handling time.
Narrowbody belly flights radiate from Colombo to Indian, Bangladeshi and Maldivian cities and connect to Gulf cities including Dubai, Doha, Kuwait, Riyadh and Jeddah, as well as the London trunk and Southeast Asian routes to Singapore and Bangkok. Chinese cargo can be distributed to those third-country cities from Colombo, with transfers handled by the airline's ground cargo department.
The A330-300 carries about 15 tonnes of belly cargo on medium sectors and about 10 tonnes on long sectors, the A330-200 about 9 to 13 tonnes, and the A320 and A321 about 2 to 3.5 tonnes. Actual payload depends on load factor, baggage and fuel, and the allocation confirmed by the carrier at booking governs.
Yes. Return belly space from Colombo to Guangzhou and Shanghai carries Sri Lankan exports including Ceylon tea, rubber products, coconut products and semi-finished gems. Tea needs moisture-proof, odour-proof packing and gemstones need a declared high-value secure position; conditions are confirmed at booking.
No own cargo office in China is published. Contact its local agent in China or let Goodhope Logistics (China) Limited coordinate. We handle space requests, air waybill preparation and transit tracking, so a direct instruction to us covers booking from China to Colombo and third countries.