Sri Lanka: Lanka needs 4 months to replace lost planes
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Monday, 29 October 2007 |
Sri Lanka's military will need up to four months to replace aircraft lost in a suicide attack staged by Tamil Tiger rebels, a top official said yesterday. Eight aircraft, including a twin-turbo prop Beechcraft surveillance plane were destroyed when a crack Tamil Tiger suicide squad struck a key air base in Anuradhapura, 210 kilometres (130 miles) north of Colombo, on Monday.
"We estimate our loss at about 15 million dollars," air force chief Roshan Goonetileke told reporters here.
"The Beechcraft alone costs about three to four million dollars, other ancillary equipment another six million dollars or so.... It should take about three to four months to replace our fleet," Goonetileke said.
He said the air force's attack capabilities "have not been reduced in any way" and the fleet of Russian MiG-27 and Israeli Kfir jets remained intact.
"The aircraft were hit by LTTE (Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam) ground attacks and not by their planes. There were many more aircraft at the camp and they were not damaged," he said.
Goonetileke said the island's Indian-installed radar system had given an early warning.
"However, the air defence system has not been installed throughout the country yet... about 70 percent is covered.... Some areas are vulnerable, some not. We can't protect the whole of Sri Lanka right now," he said.
Goonetileke said sophisticated air defence systems usually took about five to six years to install, but Sri Lankan authorities are hoping to complete the process within a year.
Meanwhile, Tamil Tiger rebels Thursday said they killed six navy personnel near a Sri Lankan wildlife sanctuary, but officials denied the claim and said there were no injuries.
The rebel Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) in a statement said they opened fire at a bus carrying the sailors in Tissamaharama on Thursday afternoon.
"The LTTE commando squad, a peripheral unit of Ampara regional command, confirms that six Sri Lanka navy personnel were killed and more than 12 others were wounded in the incident," Tiger spokesman Rasiah Ilanthiriyan said.
Tens of thousands of people have died since the LTTE launched a military campaign for autonomy in the island's north and east.
Sri Lanka on Friday ordered the closure of a Colombo radio station, charging that it had sparked panic with a false report of a rebel attack against civilians, officials said.
The ABC radio station was ordered off the air following an investigation into a report broadcast Wednesday, media ministry officials said.
"They reported a rebel attack and caused panic among residents in the area," an official said. "There was no attack at all. But the news report caused a scare."
The Daily Star
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