Sri Lankan LCC FitsAir will launch commercial passenger operations in October with flights to destinations in India, the Maldives and the United Arab Emirates.

The privately owned carrier, which previously specialized in cargo under the names ExpoAir and ExpoAviation, has opened reservations for routes from Colombo’s Bandaranaike International (CMB) to Dubai (DXB) and Male (MLE).

Service to Dubai will be three times per week from Oct. 5, while operations to Male will also be 3X-weekly from Oct. 10. Both routes will use Airbus A320 aircraft.

In addition, Trichy (TRZ) will form part of the airline’s launch network, although flights to the ancient city in India’s southern Tamil Nadu state are not available for booking at the present time. However, it is understood that service will begin on Oct. 28.

FitsAir can trace its roots back to 1997 as cargo airline ExpoAviation, later renamed ExpoAir. The carrier is backed by Aberdeen Holdings, a conglomerate headquartered in Colombo that has investments in a variety of industries including pharmaceuticals, farming and packaging.

Speaking at a press conference to announce the new passenger services, FitsAir’s VP of passenger services Peter Hill said the airline is “optimistic” about operating in Sri Lanka, despite an ongoing economic crisis in the country.

He explained that the carrier would offer affordable scheduled air travel, focusing on countries withing the south and southeast Asia region, as well as Gulf Council Countries. Hill added that frequencies on FitsAir’s initial three international passenger routes are expected to increase to daily.