Service sky’s the limit

By Shaun Inguanzo
DANDENONG travel agent Sundar Ramachandran has been flying high for more than 30 years.
His business, Fly Wings, has been operating since 1994, and is the result of Mr Ramachandran’s rich knowledge of, and participation in, the Sri Lankan aviation industry.
Mr Ramachandran and his staff were recently rewarded for their efforts, which often include out-of-hours and emergency bookings to accommodate people who need to attend funerals and other urgent functions.
Sri Lankan Airlines presented an award for service at Hotel Sofatel in Melbourne on 22 November to Fly Wings for its strong performance in selling the airline’s flights to customers over the past year.
Mr Ramachandran said the airline chose its winner from every agent in Victoria, and relied on volume sales for the main part of its decision.
It was a logical victory for Fly Wings which has placed third and second in the award over the past two years.
Mr Ramachandran said his link with the Sri Lankan aviation industry dated back to 1970, when he worked for Sri Lankan Airlines.
“After that I worked in Oman International Airport for nine years in departure control, from 1982 to 1991,” he said.
“Then I moved in 1991 to Australia with my family because my kids were growing up and I had a brother and sister in Australia.
“Not having a job at the time, I got in contact with (local MPs) John Pandazopoulos and Dale Wilson, and they helped put me on a social worker basis with the Dandenong City Council.”
Mr Ramachandran then moved to the access and equity committee with the former Berwick City Council, to ‘implement various projects such as community health centres’.
But soon Mr Ramachandran returned to his roots and joined a Dandenong travel agency to resume his career within the aviation industry before opening Fly Wings in 1994 in the Dandenong Arcade.
He said Dandenong’s strong multicultural community meant his travel agency was always kept busy with family members flying back overseas to visit relatives.
Mr Ramachandran said he worked up to nine and 10 hours per day, and was on-call for emergencies. “If someone has to go to a funeral I will come in on the weekend and open up for them,” he said.
“In case of any emergency, they have my mobile number and can always call and I will come in.
“I do that as part of my service to the community.”