Question 1

How long does it take to ship a container from London to Colombo by sea?

Accepted Answer

The shortest shipping time by sea between London and Colombo is 20 days 12h. Ships depart from London Gateway Port (GBLGP) and arrive at Colombo (LKCMB) with scheduled departures 2-4 times a week.

Question 2

How regularly do container ships travel between London and Colombo?

Accepted Answer

There are scheduled container ships that depart 2-4 times a week from London Gateway Port (GBLGP) and arrive into Colombo (LKCMB) around 20 days 12h later. These services are operated by MSC, MSC, MSC and Maersk.

Question 3

How long does it take to send cargo from London to Colombo by air freight?

Accepted Answer

The quickest flight from London to Colombo takes around 10h 20m. Flights depart from London Heathrow Airport (LHR) and arrive at Bandaranaike International Colombo Airport (CMB).

Question 4

How often do planes fly between London and Colombo?

Accepted Answer

Scheduled flights between London Heathrow Airport (LHR) and Bandaranaike International Colombo Airport (CMB) depart daily. These flights are serviced by SriLankan Airlines, Emirates, Etihad Airways, Air India, Air India, Thai Airways and Gulf Air and the typical transit time is around 10h 20m.

Question 5

Do dedicated cargo planes (freighters) fly between London and Colombo?

Accepted Answer

No, it doesn't look like there are dedicated Cargo planes flying between London and Colombo. There are regular passenger aircraft however and they might be able to accommodate your cargo depending on its dimensions and weight.

Question 6

What is the distance between London to Colombo by ship?

Accepted Answer

The distance between London and Colombo by cargo ship is 11,016 Nautical Miles (20,401 Kilometres / 12,677 Miles). This distance is measured by sea between Tilbury (GBTIL) and Colombo (LKCMB).

Question 7

What is the distance between London to Colombo by air?

Accepted Answer

The distance between London and Colombo by air is around 8,725 Kilometres (5,422 Miles). This distance is measured following typical flight paths between London Heathrow Airport (LHR) and Bandaranaike International Colombo Airport (CMB).

Question 8

How much CO2 is produced when transporting a shipping container from London to Colombo by sea?

Accepted Answer

741kg CO₂e (per TEU) is the estimated emissions output (CO2e) when transporting a typical shipping container (1 TEU) from London to Colombo. This is calculated using the overall historical emissions of the average container ship on this trade lane and dividing it by the total projected capacity.

Question 9

How much CO2 is produced when sending cargo by air from London to Colombo?

Accepted Answer

639kg CO₂e (per 100kg) is the estimated emissions output (CO2e) when sending cargo by air from London to Colombo. This is calculated by determining the total fuel burn output of various aircraft that typically fly this route and dividing it by the total available cargo capacity in KGs.

Operating carriers	Departure frequency	Aircraft types
SriLankan Airlines	Daily	Airbus A330-300
Emirates	2-4 times a day	Airbus A380-800+2 others
Etihad Airways	2-4 times a day	Airbus A380-800+2 others
Air India	Every 1-2 days	Boeing 777-300ER+1 others
Air India	Every 1-2 days	Airbus A350-900+2 others
Thai Airways	Every 1-2 days	Boeing 777-300ER+1 others
Gulf Air	Every 1-2 days	Boeing 787-9+1 others

More Details	See carrier information, flight schedules and estimated emissions

Operating carriers	Departure frequency	Aircraft types
Qatar Airways	1-2 times a day	Airbus A350-900+4 others
More Details	See carrier information, flight schedules and estimated emissions

Service Lines	Service Type	Departure frequency	Servicing Carriers
Britannia	Direct	N/A	MSC
Swan-Sentosa	Direct	1-2 times a week	MSC
IPAK / NWC-KAP/DJI	Direct	Every 1-2 weeks	MSC, Hapag-Lloyd, SCI, WEC
IEX / ME2	Direct	Every 1-2 weeks	Maersk, Hapag-Lloyd

More Details	See carrier information, sailing schedules and estimated emissions

Service Lines	Service Type	Departure frequency	Servicing Carriers
EUROMAR → FAL6	Transshipment	Every 2-4 weeks	CMA CGM
BALT2 → FAL6	Transshipment	Every 1-2 weeks	CMA CGM
More Details	See carrier information, sailing schedules and estimated emissions

Service Lines	Service Type	Departure frequency	Servicing Carriers
EPIC / EPIC3 / IP1 → FAL6 / AEU5 / LL6	Transshipment	Every 1-2 weeks	COSCO, CMA CGM, OOCL
VICTORY / EAG / EUG / ATG → FAL6 / AEU5 / CEM / LL6	Transshipment	1-2 times a week	CMA CGM, OOCL, COSCO, Evergreen
TAE3 → CEM	Transshipment	Every 1-2 weeks	Evergreen
FE3 → AA7	Transshipment	Every 1-2 weeks	Hapag-Lloyd
FE3 → EC3	Transshipment	Every 1-2 weeks	ONE, HMM, Yang Ming
FE3 → EC3	Transshipment	Every 1-2 weeks	HMM, ONE, Yang Ming
Condor → Ingwe	Transshipment	N/A	MSC
Condor → Carioca	Transshipment	Every 2-4 weeks	MSC
CALFB → FAL6	Transshipment	1-2 times a week	CMA CGM
CALFB / ELSA / ATW → FAL6 / AEU5 / LL6	Transshipment	Every 1-2 weeks	CMA CGM, COSCO, OOCL
LIBERTY / TAE / ATE1 → FAL6 / AEU5 / CEM / LL6	Transshipment	Every 1-2 weeks	COSCO, OOCL, CMA CGM, Evergreen
FAL1 / AEU2 / LL4 → FAL6 / AEU5 / CEM / LL6	Transshipment	Every 1-2 weeks	CMA CGM, COSCO, Evergreen, OOCL

More Details	See carrier information, sailing schedules and estimated emissions

London to Colombo By Air freight, Container ship or Road

Map / Route overview

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Air Freight

Container Ship

About Fluent Cargo

London to Colombo by Air freight

Quickest air route

London Heathrow Airport to Bandaranaike International Colombo Airport

Most frequent

London Gatwick Airport to Bandaranaike International Colombo Airport

London to Colombo by Container ship

Quickest ocean route

London Gateway Port to Colombo

Closest seaports

Tilbury to Colombo

Cargo flights

Southampton to Colombo

More about shipping cargo and freight from London to Colombo by Air, Ocean and Road

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Shipping to Colombo