minz56

I am looking at doing a positioning run KUL/CMB/KUL to take advantage of an MH special J class fare CMB/AKL/CMB.

KUL/CMB would be on Air Asia and CMB/KUL in J on MH with a 2 or 3 hour turnaround time.

I have never been through CMB airport so just wanted to check if I will find a MH transfer desk to get my boarding pass for CMB/KUL. I will check in online but may not be able to print the boarding pass.

Also, I am assuming that I will not need to go through customs and immigration, but confirmation of that would be good.

I will not have any checked luggage.

Any help would be very much appreciated.

wandering_fred

CMB is a very small airport with a centrally located airside transfer desk which is applicable to all airlines (staffed by UL). Coming in on AirAsia, I would be somewhat skeptical but allowing a bit of extra time (and w/o checked luggage) it is likely doable. With luggage, probably not possible.

I would attempt to get the MH check-in in AKL to print your CMB-KUL BP.

Let us know how it works out.

Just wandering

Fred

ashkale

Airside turnaround is not possible when arriving on OD, AK or UL as the itinerary (and the carrier, AK) doesnt qualify for twov, please get a visa online and save some money.
MH to MH turnaround is possible but involves calling MH in Colombo to meet at the gate with the BP, the transit desk will not issue you a BP on turnaround itineraries.

crackjack

Why would airside transit be affected by TWOV limitations? I don't remember being asked at the transit desk for a incoming boarding pass?

Would agree if AirAsia was the flight out of CMB (as they'd probably not want to pay the extra $ to have staff there check people in), but MH does allow check-in at the transit desk, IIRC.

(And UL is not on the TWOV list? At their home airport? )

sammyg901

I have done exactly this itinerary

Firstly if AK are still flying the A330 in there get a flat bed - hardly any extra cost and a very good product

Your challenge could be getting on the flight to CMB - for me as a Brit I just told them I was doing visa on arrival and they were happy, but I had also booked a refundable Y ticket CMB-MLE also so I could show my "onward" flight the next day without having to get into conversations with Air Asia about a same day - same destination turnaround, but they didn't ask.

Once in CMB I tried the lounge with my MH OCLI boarding pass but no dice, (so if you don't have that it won't be a problem). So I walked to the Sri Lankan transit desk. They couldn't reissue it, but she called the lounge so they knew to let me in. Once at the gate an actual boarding pass was waiting there for me (just tell the security guys your BP is at the gate)

So absolutely no problem, but if I had a passport that wasn't eligible for VOA then I would get the e-tourist visa - that is what Air Asia were checking for at the gate. This would also save a lot of hassle for you if there was an IRROP and you needed to go landside/to a hotel

ermen

How many turnarounds have you done at CMB?

Please check your facts right before posting.

Why would the transit desk not issue a BP for a turnaround itinerary (I have done this plenty of times on CX)?

What the transit counter typically does is take your passport and brings it landside to get everything done, before coming back again with the BP and passport etc. Never had to show an incoming BP.

ermen

It is true though that turnarounds do not quality for the free transit visa.

I almost learnt this the hard way (again on a CX turnaround). But the immigration guy did let me through into CMB on the transit visa but told me not to do it again

crackjack

Hmmm, hadn't thought of that. It seems VOA ETA-on-arrival (paid) is available to all except only citizens of 19 countries, so not broad-based in its exemptions, but a good point to highlight.

Interesting they couldn't reissue, good to hear they got you in w/o issue afterwards. I wonder, would you have had the same issue if you had OLCI, but said you'd pick up at the airport?


But, worst case you have to stand in line for a paid VOA ETA-on-arrival tho? Or was there something causing that to not be an option? (Unless you hold citizenship of one of the aforementioned 19 countries.)

Plus, wasn't TWOV (exiting and then re-entering secure area) originally meant for one-ticket transit only? Trying to do it on two separate tickets always gets some questions asked?

(Then again, this isn't something I think about much, my citizenship allows me free entry to LK...)

ermen

No I was just cheap and did not want to pay for a VOA. And the transit visa was free (and I erroneously thought that turnaround = transit)

I was actually going to go to the transit desk, but the queue seemed too long and I thought I would be clever to go landside to do the check in (bad mistake).

AFAIK, transit does not need to be on one ticket. BUT, it has to be A>CMB>B.

minz56

Thanks for all the great replies! I would never have thought that a 'turnaround' would not be considered a 'transit'.

I think I will give myself longer at CMB to allow time to go landside if necessary.

ashkale

I do several of these a year on MH, things have changed since you have last done your turnaround,suspect since cx no longer flies to bkk or sin for at least a year now . You will be asked for your incoming BP now and if found direct turnaround you will be directed to the visa booth. MH Colombo has no love for UL so they wont entertain your request for BP to be issued airside. Airasia doesnt pay the charges to enable its pax to do twov as is a point to point carrier and its A330 hasnt flown that route for a few years now. Hope it helps.

ermen

I do my CX turnaround from HKG. If I can't get BP HKG side, I go to transit desk. And voila - UL staff go away and come back with a BP.
Someone here just did this too a few months ago.

https://www.flyertalk.com/forum/28518551-post25.html


I guess MH is different then in that you can't get your return BP at the transit desk - could well be MH do not have an agreement with UL to handle transfer passengers.


I agree that if someone was doing a turnaround, they cannot go into CMB on a transit ETA visa.


But if someone was flying Air Asia (say from KUL) >> CMB >> UL (say to MLE), they would qualify for a free transit ETA visa (http://www.immigrationlanka.com/Info-2-14.html) and would be able to go landside on that visa should they wish.

ashkale

Yes correct but you cant do airside transit in CMB when arriving or departing on LCCs.

crackjack

Does someone check the arrival boarding pass to see if it's from an LCC and then deny you access to the transit desk or deny issuance of the boarding pass to depart CMB?
(I have never flown an LCC to CMB, so am curious on this.)

CMB is a mixed-departure-&-arrival style airport, so I would expect it is difficult to limit access. Further, the transit desk is right next to the ETA-on-arrival desk, so I'd expect herding LCC passengers away from that would be challenging?

I have done UL/MH -> ME3/EU airlines and ME3/EU airlines -> UL/MH before, and I don't remember any time being requested to show my incoming boarding pass to get the ex-CMB one?

crackjack

It's something that's not really explicit, and immigration officials have raised it as an issue from some cases I've read about.

E.g., this poster's experience is relevant:
https://www.flyertalk.com/forum/27190352-post6.html