Airline Employees Union: 'Calling Chamika's Partner a Flight Attendant Damages Our Professional Reputation'

The Sri Lanka Airline Employees Union has rejected media reports stating that the woman involved in the child custody case concerning leading Sri Lankan cricketer Chamika Karunaratne is a flight attendant.  Issuing a special statement regarding this, the union emphasized that,

the woman involved in the incident is not a 'flight attendant' working for any airline. However, no pilots' association or other organization has denied that she is not a pilot.

The union points out that misidentifying the woman as a flight attendant is misleading to the public and baseless, and unfairly discredits their members. They further stated that propagating such untrue facts severely tarnishes the reputation of the entire profession.
Although initially reported as a flight attendant, it was later confirmed via social media that she is a pilot, not a flight attendant.
When this woman was identified as a flight attendant, there was widespread criticism on social media, implying 'this is how flight attendants are.'

Media reports on the 21st stated that a flight attendant had filed a lawsuit against national team cricketer Chamika Karunaratne, demanding that he marry her or, failing that, pay child support for their child.

She informed the court in her complaint that she had maintained a relationship with cricketer Chamika Karunaratne with the expectation of marriage, and as a result, she has a child fathered by him.

 However, when the case was called, Chamika Karunaratne, the defendant in the incident, did not appear before the court, and the court has ordered the case to be recalled on December 8th.