China-Maldives airline market grows rapidly; MEGA Maldives, SIA, SriLankan & Chinese carriers win

The small but lucrative Maldives market continues to see rapid growth, driven by increasing demand from China. The Maldives has emerged in recent years as a popular top end tourism destination for the Chinese. Mainland Chinese carriers have responded by adding flights along with Singapore Airlines (SIA), which has doubled capacity to the Maldives over the last two years on the back of increasing China-Maldives traffic.

SriLankan Airlines, the largest carrier in the Maldives, also has cashed in on the booming China-Maldives market as its traditional Europe-Maldives business has been impacted by rapid expansion from the Gulf carriers. The huge opportunities in the China-Maldives market also precipitated the 2011 launch of long-haul leisure carrier MEGA Maldives Airlines, which allocates almost all of its capacity to greater China.