News
SLAF revives maritime squadron
The Sri Lanka Air Force (SLAF) this week revived its maritime squadron which was disbanded 25 years ago due to fleet depletion.
The No3 Squadron was stood up originally in 1971 at SLAF China Bay and equipped with De Havilland Doves. It was tasked with dawn-to-dusk patrols of the eastern coast, from Point Pedro to Galle, to deter arms smuggling during the 1971 insurgency.
The squadron is now back with Y-12 and Beechcraft 200 making up the inventory. Wing Commander Vidura Premasinghe is the new Commanding Officer. The re-formation of the squadron comes in the wake of Sri Lanka’s ambitions to become a maritime hub in the Indian Ocean region.
Beechcraft 200 is the sole manned specialised intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) asset in the Air Force order of battle. While there have been continuous efforts since 2009 to acquire more modern robust airborne maritime surveillance capability to monitor territorial waters, the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) and vital lanes of communications, none has been acquired up to-date.