Sri Lanka’s new int’l airport named after the President opens to business in Mattala

Sri Lankan traditional dancers stand next to the inaugural flight that arrived carrying Sri Lankan president Mahinda Rajapaksa to the Mattala Rajapaksa International Air Port in Mattala, Sri Lanka, Monday, March 18, 2013. Mattala Rajapaksa International Airport, named after Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa, was officially opened Monday in his native district of Hambantota, 165 kilometers (102 miles) southeast of the capital, Colombo.

Sri Lankan Buddhist monks wait to welcome Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa at the Mattala Rajapaksa International Air Port in Mattala, Sri Lanka, Monday, March 18, 2013. <AP Photo/Sanka Gayashan>