SriLankan Airlines faces outrage after a Cabin Manager was captured watching a movie on duty while public funds keep the airline alive.
Is the public being taxed to fund cabin crew to watch movies on board while SriLankan Airlines continues to bleed money and survive on Treasury support?
That is the uncomfortable question now being asked after an image circulating among airline sources appeared to show a SriLankan Airlines Cabin Manager seated on a cabin crew jump seat, watching a movie on a mobile phone mounted on a tripod, while using Bluetooth enabled earpieces during flight duty.
The controversy comes at a time when SriLankan Airlines remains a heavy financial burden on the country, with ordinary Sri Lankans forced to carry the cost of keeping the loss-making national carrier alive.
Even as the airline struggles under years of debt, political interference, weak management, and public frustration, this latest incident has now raised fresh concerns over discipline, service standards, and accountability inside the aircraft cabin.
The person in the image is alleged to be Elseworth Weerasinghe, a Cabin Manager and a known strong ally of the airline’s Flight Attendants Union.
The incident has triggered anger among airline insiders, who say it reflects a deeper collapse in discipline, accountability, and in-flight service standards at the national carrier.
The most disturbing question is no longer simply whether one senior cabin crew member watched a movie while on duty.
It is whether Sri Lankan taxpayers are being forced to fund an airline where some employees allegedly treat flight duty like personal leisure time while passengers expect service and safety.
SriLankan Airlines, despite being a continuous financial burden on the public, has long projected itself as a carrier with strong operational standards and professional cabin service.
But this latest allegation paints a troubling picture of what some insiders describe as a culture in which certain union-backed employees believe they are untouchable.
Over the years, unions within the airline have become powerful pressure groups, at times appearing to influence, pressure, or even control management decisions.
Many staff perks and protections have reportedly been secured through agreements signed between airline management and unions, creating an internal culture where discipline is often difficult to enforce.
This latest incident now raises serious questions about whether management has the courage and independence to act when alleged misconduct involves individuals with strong union backing.
According to airline sources, the Cabin Manager seen in the image was allegedly keeping himself entertained during flight duty, while other crew members were left to carry a heavier workload.
One crew member who reportedly witnessed the incident is said to have complained that the Cabin Manager “hardly lifts a finger” to assist on board, leaving others to perform duties that should have been shared.
If true, this is not merely a matter of poor service.
Cabin crew are not passengers.
They are safety personnel.
Their responsibilities extend far beyond serving meals and smiling at passengers.
They are trained to respond to medical emergencies, fires, evacuations, unruly passengers, decompression, turbulence-related injuries, and other serious in-flight situations.
The national carrier once enjoyed a proud reputation for world-class cabin service.
In the 1980s and 1990s, SriLankan Airlines and its predecessor Air Lanka were known for warmth, discipline, elegance, and professionalism in the cabin.
Many passengers still remember an era when Sri Lankan cabin crew were considered among the best in the region.
But insiders now say those standards have declined sharply.
Part of the reason, according to aviation observers, is that many of the airline’s most polished and highly trained flight attendants were recruited over the years by major Middle Eastern carriers, which actively targeted Sri Lankan cabin crew for their professionalism and service quality.
What remains today, critics say, is an airline struggling not only with finances, but also with morale, discipline, internal politics, and uneven service standards.
For the travelling public, this latest allegation is especially insulting because SriLankan Airlines is not a private company surviving on its own profits.
It is an airline repeatedly rescued, supported, and kept afloat through public money.
Every loss carried by the airline eventually becomes part of the national burden.
Every management failure becomes a taxpayer problem.
Every act of indiscipline on board damages the reputation of a country that can least afford further embarrassment in aviation.
The issue is therefore bigger than one image or one Cabin Manager.
It raises a wider question about what level of discipline exists inside SriLankan Airlines today, whether union influence has weakened accountability, and whether management is willing to enforce rules equally against all employees, regardless of seniority, influence, or internal connections.
SriLankan Airlines must now explain whether an inquiry has been launched into the image, whether the person shown was on active duty at the time, whether the use of personal entertainment devices while seated on a crew jump seat is permitted, and whether such conduct complies with airline safety and service procedures.
The airline must also clarify whether passengers on that flight received the full level of service expected from a senior cabin crew member, or whether the rest of the crew had to compensate for one individual’s alleged failure to perform.
For an airline surviving on public money, silence is not an option.
Sri Lankan taxpayers deserve to know whether their money is being used to maintain a disciplined national carrier or to protect a culture where some employees believe they can do as they please at 35,000 feet.
At a time when the airline continues to burden the Treasury, the public should not be expected to fund in-flight movie sessions for staff who are paid to work, serve, and safeguard passengers.
SriLankan Airlines has always asked the public to believe in its safety, service, and national value.
But incidents like this make that belief harder to defend.
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