For Immediate Release

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Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority, U.S. and British Authorities warn in response to terror attacks

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The Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority in a statement released urges hotels in Sri Lanka to take maximum measures to strengthen security as Hotels have been one of the main targets. Please assist us in spreading the word and let us not forget to help tourists who are currently in Sri Lanka.”

The Sri Lanka travel industry is bracing for the impact of the horrific attack Easter Sunday in the nation’s capital Colombo and in Negombo, where the airport is located.

Sri Lanka received 2.1 million tourists in 2017 and had set a target to double that number this year. Free visas to visitors from 30 countries including the U.S.,UK, EU and Thailand are part of this strategy.

Currently, Sri Lanka is quiet. It’s a curfew and all roads are closed.

The U.S. embassy raised the level of travel advisory for Sri Lanka to level 2: The embassy warned terrorist groups to continue plotting possible attacks in Sri Lanka. Terrorists may attack with little or no warning, targeting tourist locations, transportation hubs, markets/shopping malls, local government facilities, hotels, clubs, restaurants, places of worship, parks, major sporting and cultural events, educational institutions, airports, and other public areas.

The White House issued a statement, that the United States condemns in the strongest terms the outrageous terrorist attacks in Sri Lanka that have claimed so many precious lives on this Easter Sunday. Our heartfelt condolences go out to the families of the more than 200 killed and hundreds of others wounded. We stand with the Sri Lankan government and people as they bring to justice the perpetrators of these despicable and senseless acts.

In the meantime, Sri Lanka arrested 13 alleged suspects. Another attack on the airport was prevented. 215 people including foreign tourists were killed, more than 500 injured in a series of planned and coordinated attacks on Easter Sunday.

The UK Foreign Department is telling British Citizens:

On 21 April 2019 bombs were used to attack three churches and three hotels in Sri Lanka, in central Colombo; in the northern suburb of Colombo Kochchikade, and in Negombo roughly twenty miles north of Colombo; and in the east of the country in Batticaloa. There have been significant casualties. If you are in Sri Lanka and you are safe, we advise that you contact family and friends to let them know that you are safe.

If you are in Sri Lanka and have been directly affected by the attacks, please call the British High Commission in Colombo: +94 11 5390639, and select the emergency option from where you will be connected to one of our consular staff. If you’re in the UK and worried about British friends or family in Sri Lanka caught up in the incidents, please call the FCO switchboard number: 020 7008 1500 and follow the same steps.

Security has been stepped up across the island and there are reports of ongoing security operations. if you are in Sri Lanka, please follow the advice of local security authorities, hotel security staff or your tour company. The airport is operating, but with increased security checks. Some airlines are advising their passengers to arrive early for check-in, in light of increased security screening.

The Sri Lankan authorities have declared a nationwide curfew. You should limit movements until this has been lifted, following the instructions of the local authorities and your hotel/tour operator.

The Sri Lankan authorities have confirmed that, if you need to catch a flight from Colombo airport, you are able to travel to the airport provided you have both passport and ticket valid for travel that day. They have also confirmed that arrangements have been put in place for arriving passengers.

Travel News | eTurboNews

Notre Dame cathedral inferno: Paris iconic tourist attraction on fire

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Smoke and fire is seen leaping from the top of Notre Dame, the iconic Paris cathedral. Videos shot by people show the blaze engulfing the spire between its bell towers.

The fire broke out in the cathedral on Monday afternoon, a Paris fire department confirmed, adding that a major operation to tackle the fire is underway.

The causes of the incident remain unknown so far.

The Medieval cathedral is one of the main attractions of the French capital, seeing 12 million tourists a year.

The incident took place as the jewel of the Gothic architecture was undergoing a major overhaul costing € 11 million ($ 12.43 million), with the renovation works being expected to be finished around 2022.

Last week, 16 bronze statues representing 12 apostles and four evangelists from the New Testament were lifted off the spire of the cathedral by crane. Some scaffolding can now be seen close to the flames leaping out near the cathedral’s spire.

The spire itself was made of wood and covered with lead has long been in a bad shape as the elements of the construction dating back to the mid-nineteenth century have been damaged by weather, pollution and time.

The cathedral was being built from 13th to 15th century.

Travel News | eTurboNews

1989-2019: Baptized by Thai monks KLM Boeing 747 landed at Amsterdam Schiphol Hotel garden

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A Boeing 747 has arrived in the garden of the Corendon Village Hotel this morning. There the plane will be converted into a 5D-experience about the 747 and the history of aviation later this year. After a five-day mega transport from Amsterdam Airport Schiphol to Badhoevedorp, the  Boeing 747 has arrived.

A Boeing 747 Jumbo Jet began its last journey from Schiphol Airport on Tuesday night. The dismantled aircraft was placed on a trailer of specialized transport company Mammoet to cover the 12.5 kilometers to the hotel. During that, the aircraft had to cross 17 ditches, highway A9 and one provincial road. The A9 was successfully crossed in the night from Friday to Saturday. In the night from Saturday to Sunday, the transport crossed the Schipholweg after which it was parked backward into the hotel garden, requiring 57 movements. The spectacular transport attracted worldwide attention and was covered by national en international media.

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The Boeing 747 is the former KLM aircraft ‘City of Bangkok’ that will be given a new final destination in the hotel garden after 30 years of reliable service. The plane is 64 meters wide, 71 meters long and weighs 160 tons. To keep it safe and steady, the aircraft has been lifted on 1.5 meters high steel bases, totalling 15 tons of steel. These are built on heavy concrete slabs, strong enough to carry the enormous weight.

5D experience

De Boeing will be converted into a 5D experience later this year. Visitors will be able to walk on, over or under the plane and visit places that are normally not accessible to the public. They can visit the cargo area where the luggage is loaded, learn about the fuelling of the plane, take a look in the kitchen of the business class and the cockpit on the upper deck. They can even do a wing walk over the thirty-meter-long wings. Visitors also make a journey through the history of aviation. That begins with the ancient human desire to fly and leads them from the first serious flight attempts around 1900 to the development of the Boeing 747. The highlight of the trip is the 5D experience, in which they can experience flying in all its facets. The garden where the Boeing is placed is partly an ecozone, open to hotel guests, and can be used as a festival site.

Organizer Atilay Uslu had booked a room in the hotel. Exactly on the spot where – if everything went well – the nose of the Boeing would be placed in front of the window.  “When I opened the curtains this morning, I saw her in full glory. I realized that after months of preparation we really succeeded in getting the plane to its final place with a lot of fitting and measuring. That kind of takes your breath away”,  he says.

Iconic plane

The transport of the aircraft this weekend coincided with the celebration of the first test flight of the Boeing 747 on February 9th, 1969, exactly fifty years ago. The 747 is an iconic plane and was the largest aircraft in the world until 2007. It could transport 2.5 times more passengers than other conventional types. It was also the first wide-body aircraft, with two aisles. Characteristic is also the upper deck, where the cockpit is located. KLM introduced the first Boeing 747 in its fleet in 1971. The ‘City of Bangkok’, which was added to the fleet in 1989, was then baptized by nine Thai monks. After almost thirty years of loyal service, the repainted aircraft now decorates the Corendon hotel garden.

The transport in figures

The last five-day trip of the Boeing was an impressive operation. The plane first had to be transported 8 kilometers over the Schiphol airport area and then another 4.5 kilometers through the fields. Heavy transport specialist Mammoet transported the 160-tons aircraft on a trailer that weighed even more: over 200 tons. The trailer divided the weight of the Boeing over 192 wheels. To make sure the trailer would not sink into the marshy land, a special road was constructed of approximately 2.100 metal road plates weighing 1.500 kilos each. Special bridges were built over the 17 ditches. The trailer was traveling at a speed of 5 kilometers per hour and was controlled remotely by people from Mammoet, who walked beside it. It was powered by two so-called power packs, each with a capacity of 390kW, generating more than 1000 hp. A total of 18 turns had to be taken during transport, of which the first 7 were on the airport.