Italian airline Neos Air is planning to resume direct flights to Sri Lanka with three weekly scheduled flights between Colombo and Italy.

Italian Civil Aviation Authority (ENAC), via its official website, announced this week that it has approved Neos’ request to operate three weekly flights on the route, starting from the summer season this year.

Neos Air already has a Foreign Air Operator Certificates issued by the Director General of Civil Aviation to operate commercial flights in Sri Lanka’s airspace.

However, airport officials noted that Neos Air is yet to confirm the exact date for resumption of this route.

There are a large number of Sri Lankan expats in Italy and it remains one of the most popular foreign employment destinations for Sri Lankans. In addition, Sri Lanka’s tourism authorities have identified Italy as one of the top ten source markets for tourism.

In the first seven months of the year, 3,855 tourists from Italy visited the Sri Lanka, accounting for 0.8 percent of the total arrivals.