I know some readers have booked the good business class fares from Male to US destinations on Cathay Pacific Business Class.

I just wanted to describe my transfer experience in case it helps anyone.

Arrival
I arrived on the BA flight from Columbo. Once you exit the plane you have to get in to a bus to be ferried to the Immigration Hall. Stand on the left side if you have a tight connection.
As you enter the hall there is a sign to the left which says ‘Transfers’. There is usually a couple of people there and they were incredibly helpful to me. Knowing that Cathay doesn’t open until 3 hours before I fully expected a long wait.

Immigration Hall
The Immigration hall is large and the seating area affords a view of passengers clearing immigration.

Departure Lounge
However, after some phone calls were made a Cathay rep came to see me, told me what was happening and then took care of it. About 20 minutes after I landed, I had boarding passes to New York.

Departures
You then go through a security checkpoint on the lower level before popping up in the lift to the main part of the terminal. I was escorted by a Cathay rep for all of this which made it much easier. As we arrived at the lounge, the BA return flight was leaving and it emptied so that for about 20 minutes I was the only person there.

Overall, a good experience for an airport that doesn’t have many connecting passengers international to international.