Features

Fun flying in Sri Lanka

Published

3 years ago

2021/11/8

Thank you for publishing my dear friend Capt. Elmo Jayawardena’s article on ‘Fun Flying’ in The Island of 1 Nov. I totally agree with him. May I be permitted to reproduce the following article with the full story, which was aimed at the golfing community in Sri Lanka? It was published in your esteemed newspaper some time ago.

RECREATIONAL FLYING AND GOLF

“When once you have tasted flight, you will forever walk the earth with your eyes turned upward, for there you have been, and there you will always long to return.”

– Leonardo da Vinci (1452-1519), painter, artist, engineer & Renaissance genius from Florence, Italy.

The art as well as science of flight is indeed very interesting to learn and practise. Like golf, it takes a little time to accomplish, depending on your instructor’s ability to teach and your ability to learn. One does not need to have special skills except a passion for flight. Sacrifices have to be made, like waking up early to get to the airport. Everyone can fly. Like riding a bicycle. The prospective pilot is taught to fly, navigate and communicate up to a required level of proficiency, and then the sky’s the limit.

For most people, the sky may be the limit, but as someone once said, for those who love aviation, the sky is their home. One thing is for sure: once the bug bites, it is forever. The most memorable day in a fledgling pilot’s life is the day he/she is allowed (cleared) to fly solo. That is, all by oneself, without the benefit of an instructor in the next seat to give guidance. This also means that the instructor is confident that the trainee is a safe pilot and ready to learn more by himself or herself. A milestone that will usually be celebrated among like-minded friends in the fraternity. In fact, in flying, as in golf, you are always learning and you are so focused, you leave your problems behind (on ground).

“I fly because it releases my mind from the tyranny of petty things …” – Antoine de Saint-Exupéry

There are 16 airports approved by the Civil Aviation Authority of Sri Lanka (CAASL) at locations across Sri Lanka: KKS (Jaffna), Iranamadu, Vavuniya, Thalladi (Mannar), China Bay (Trincomalee), Anuradhapura, Sigiriya, Minneriya, Batticaloa, Ampara, BIA/Katunayake, Ratmalana, Katukurunda, Koggala, Weerawila and Mattala. Light aircraft could land at any of these airports. At the moment, although manned by the Sri Lanka Airports and Aviation Ltd., and the Sri Lanka Air Force, some of them are rarely used.

Flying schools in Sri Lanka

There are many CAASL-approved flying schools at Ratmalana and Katukurunda. They will be only too happy to provide an aircraft and an instructor to teach anyone interested in taking up this wonderful hobby. Imagine, after you are trained and qualified you could fly from Ratmalana to Sigiriya, Anuradhapura, Trincomalee, Koggala or KKS in the morning, have lunch there, and get back to Ratmalana by evening.

“You haven’t seen a tree until you’ve seen its shadow from the sky.” – Amelia Earhart (1897-1937).

When one acquires the skill to fly with reference solely to instruments one could obtain an Instrument Rating (IR). This will allow the pilot to confidently fly through and above the clouds without being always restricted to be in sight of ground or water. The trainee pilot could also learn to fly in the night and get a ‘Night Rating’. This will provide more flexibility by not being restricted to daylight flying hours between dawn and dusk. Initially, the trainees start practising early in the morning, at a time when the winds are usually calm and the air is smooth. When they gather more experience (counted in hours of flying), they will be allowed to fly later in the day when the air is more turbulent, due to heating of the ground by the sun. The winds also usually build up by then. They will also reach competency in landing and taking off in crosswind conditions, at their home airport, before they are allowed to fly in command on cross-country flights to other airports. Being the ‘Pilot in Command’ of the light aircraft builds up the new pilot’s confidence and develops a healthy respect for weather in the tropics. Checklists will also be introduced, so that the pilot will ‘do things right and do the right things’!

Thrill of flying

Once you are competent and comfortable with the type of aircraft you were trained on, you may even want to buy your own aircraft which could be parked at and maintained by one of the many flying organisations/schools. On the other hand, if you don’t plan to fly too often, hiring may be a cheaper option. When you experience the thrill of almost ‘two hundred horses’ hauling you down the runway and the acceleration in the seat of your pants, you never forget it and will come back for more. Come to think of it, pilots are connected to the aircraft only by the seat of their pants! The nerves, muscles and skin in the pilot’s posterior, how it reacts to gravity and acceleration/deceleration, is collectively known as the ‘somatosensory feel’. Along with what you see with your eyes and experience through the balance organs in your ears, it helps in orientation. Age is no barrier as long as you are medically fit (this writer is now past his 72^nd birthday!). So, as one gets older, it will be necessary to do regular medical check-ups to ensure that everything is in order. In one way, it helps one keep fit. Bear in mind that the CAASL does not require your health to be that of an astronaut. You can fly with corrective lenses (spectacles), and even if you are slightly deaf in one or both ears, for there is a volume control in the radio receiver to help! You could fly after heart surgery, even a by-pass. Diabetes need not keep you grounded. There are many waivers in the medical regulations for the Private Pilots’ licence category.

“Can the magic of flight ever be carried by words? I think not.” — Michael Parfit, Smithsonian magazine, May 2000

During training, one will acquire ‘stick and rudder’ skills. One will also acquire a working knowledge of Air Navigation Regulations (ANR), engines and airframes, aircraft and human performance limitations, flight planning, weight and balance theory, GPS navigation, meteorology (weather), map reading, the use of the slide rule, protractor and compass. Every minute of flight is exciting, but how safe is it? It is certainly safer than crossing a road in Sri Lanka or riding in a three-wheeler. From the first day, you are taught to be safe and think safety.

Hardly any emergency landing

Modern aircraft engines are very reliable and run smoothly, like proverbial sewing machines. Although fledgling pilots are trained extensively to competently handle emergencies, one hardly hears of an emergency landing due to engine failure nowadays. Engines don’t usually fail suddenly. They usually give some indication of a pending problem in the form of noise, vibration, fluctuations of oil pressure, oil temperature, cylinder head temperatures, coolant temperature, power produced, etc. The pilot could safely reach ‘terra firma’ as soon as possible and have the problem attended to, if necessary. Statistics from around the world show that most engine failures in small aircraft have been due to bad fuel management. resulting in fuel starvation.

“The engine is the heart of an aeroplane, but the pilot is its soul.” — Sir Walter Alexander Raleigh (RAF)

To fly over our Fair Isle with your family or friends, spending quality time and watching the places familiar to you as they unravel from the air, makes one appreciate our country. For example, flying over the cities of Kandy, Kurunegala, Jaffna, Bible Rock, Sigiriya, Castlereigh, Victoria, Kothmale, Senanayake Samudra, Lunugamwehera and the Bolgoda Lake. To spot elephants after takeoff from Mattala or Weerawila, see Adam’s Peak in the distance, or the Mahaweli meandering northwards towards Trincomalee from Kandy, and the Mahiyangana Stupa shining in the morning sun. Flying to Anuradhapura and navigating by Ruwanwelisaya to locate the airport. Following roads, rivers and railway lines. Flying over Iranamadu, Fort Hammenhiel guarding the entrance to Jaffna Lagoon, and much more with your newly acquired skill. Flying an Instrument Landing System (ILS), as if on rails, in between the big jets at Bandaranaike International Airport, down to 400 feet followed by a ‘greased landing’, where the tyres kiss the runway.

There are two other fun categories that are practised in other parts of the world, requiring qualifications other than the Private Pilots’ Licence (PPL): ‘sport aviation’ and ultralight flying licences, where the aircraft are smaller, simpler and, in the case of the latter category, allow one to fly with no certification. Unfortunately, such freedoms are still to be implemented in our part of the world.

Here’s a quick comparison of the restrictions and privileges in each category in the USA, as quoted by Experimental Aircraft Association (EAA): (see table)

Unfortunately, at this point in time the CAASL can only provide a Private Pilot’s Licence Category for recreational (leisure) pilots.

Striving for perfection

Flying, like golf, is striving for perfection. You can play golf against yourself. The mathematics involved in flying is perhaps a little more complicated. It is challenging, but not competitive. At the end of the day you have the satisfaction of pitting yourself with nature and doing a good job of it. As in golf, flying has its own jargon.

As one golfer says: “For me, it’s largely that sensation of raw power that comes from hitting a little white ball 250+ yards, sky high, and in all sorts of shapes and sexily curved flights. As others have mentioned, the feel of striking the ball purely and watching it pierce the air like a bullet – or, at the other end of the shot-making spectrum, float on the wind, balloon-like – is, very arguably, a euphoria unmatched in any other sport. “It’s incredibly satisfying when you hit the ball just perfectly.

Another golfer says: “I love taking all of the variables into account: wind speed, wind direction, fairway slope, club limitations, ball placement, and more. Then the whole analysis comes down to one simple swing that’s over in seconds. It’s fun (or sometimes not so much) to see the results immediately, where in business it may take weeks, months, or years to see the results of a strategic decision.”

It is the same with flying. The strategic use of your knowledge and experience in a more acute sense as your decisions will affect you directly. You don’t need to watch anymore. Now you can be a part of it. Although there are many common elements in flying and golf such as self-improvement, determination, concentration and enjoying fresh air, flying must obviously be more fascinating and personal as I have yet to see poems, such as the one below, written about golf.

High Flight

Oh! I have slipped the surly bonds of earth,

And danced the skies on laughter-silvered wings;

Sunward I’ve climbed, and joined the tumbling mirth

Of sun-split clouds –and done a hundred things

You have not dreamed of — wheeled and soared and swung

High in the sunlit silence. Hov’ring there

I’ve chased the shouting wind along, and flung

My eager craft through footless halls of air…

Up, up the long, delirious, burning blue

I’ve topped the wind-swept heights with easy grace

Where never lark or even eagle flew –

And, while with silent lifting mind I’ve trod

The high untrespassed sanctity of space,

Put out my hand, and touched the face of God.

John Gillespie Magee, Jr

Fun fliers harassed

There is a small community of ‘fun flyers’ who are harassed by the authorities who drive them from pillar to post as they have to work with bureaucrats who don’t know how an aircraft flies. Above all, they don’t have a passion for aviation. There is a National Aviation Policy (NAP), which has now been issued as a Government Gazette (No 2214/54 of 10^th Feb 2021). Encouraging the formation of flying clubs is one of the declared objectives of this policy.

Instead of facilitating ‘Fun Flying’ (officially known as General Flying), these ‘seat warmers’ tend to obstruct their activities by attempting to enforce the archaic Administrative and Financial Regulations (ARs and FRs). The two frontline entities in charge, i. e. the Civil Aviation Authority Sri Lanka and the Airport and Aviation Sri Lanka, were formed to eliminate ‘red tape’ in the 1970s. Since then, red tape has crept in through the backdoor, and things have moved back to square one or are even worse in the ‘permanent administration’. To add insult to injury, after the 30-year war the Sri Lanka Air Force (SLAF) behaves like aviation’s self-appointed ‘Dr. No’.

Security clearance

Prospective pilots have to wait for over six months to obtain security clearance from the SIS, NIB, CAASL, SLAF and what have you. In fact, the Aircraft Owners and Operators Association (AOAOA) asked the authorities for a quicker IT-based system more than two years ago, and are still waiting. Capt. Elmo’s suggestion of the practical and profitable possibility of flying training for tourists could be achieved only if and when the security system is revamped and put on a fast track, especially when the country is short of valuable foreign exchange.

As we are not at war anymore, the planning of air space and airports in the country is the sole responsibility of the Civil Aviation Authority Sri Lanka (CAASL) as mentioned in the said government Gazette. Instead of coordination with the CAASL, the SLAF still seems to want absolute control of civil airspace over our fair isle. To illustrate the point, a few days ago there was the funeral at the General Cemetery, Borella, of a lady who was a well-known anti-cancer activist who died of cancer herself. In her last will, there was a handwritten request for a ‘flower drop’ at her funeral. After her death, the Ministry of Defence and CAASL were duly contacted and permission granted to carry out a flower drop from a civil helicopter. Flowers worth thousands of rupees were bought, but at the eleventh-hour permission was refused by the SLAF for no apparent reason. However, a week later when a scholar monk died, the SLAF sprinkled flowers at his funeral – demonstrating the existence of two different laws in one country. The tail seems to wag the dog!

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Features

High govt. revenue and low foreign exchange reserves High foreign exchange reserves and low govt. revenue!

Published

2 days ago

2025/03/21

Thilina Walpola

First shipment of vehicles imported to Sir Lank after the lifting the ban on automobile imports

Government has permitted, after several years, the import of motor cars. Imports, including cars, were cut off because the government then wisely prioritised importing other commodities vital to the everyday life of the general public. It is fair to expect that some pent-up demand for motor vehicles has developed. But at what prices? Government seems to have expected that consumers would pay much higher prices than had prevailed earlier.

The rupee price of foreign exchange had risen by about half from Rs.200 per US$ to Rs.300. In those years, the cost of production of cars also had risen. The government dearly wanted more revenue to meet increasing government expenditure. Usually, motor cars are bought by those with higher incomes or larger amounts of wealth. Taxes on the purchase of cars probably promote equity in the distribution of incomes. The collection of tax on motor cars is convenient. What better commodity to tax?

The announced price of a Toyota Camry is about Rs.34 million. Among us, a Camry is usually bought by those with a substantially higher income than the average middle-income earner. It is not a luxury car like a Mercedes Benz 500/ BMW 700i. Yes, there are some Ferrari drivers. When converted into US dollars, the market price of a Camry 2025 in Sri Lankan amounts to about $110,000. The market price of a Camry in US is about $34,000, where it is usually bought by income earners in the middle-middle class: typically assistant professors in state universities or young executives. Who in Lanka will buy a Camry at Rs.34 million or $110,000 a piece?

How did Treasury experts expect high revenue from the import of motor cars? The price of a Toyota Camry in US markets is about $34,000. GDP per person, a rough measure of income per person in US, was about $ 88,000 in 2024. That mythical ‘average person’ in US in 2024, could spend about 2.5 month’s income and buy a Toyota Camry. Income per person, in Lanka in 2024, was about $ 4,000. The market price of a Camry in Lanka is about $ 133,000. A person in Lanka must pay 33 years of annual income to buy a Toyota Camry in 2025.

Whoever imagined that with those incomes and prices, there would be any sales of Camry in Lanka? After making necessary adjustments (mutatis mutandis), Toyota Camry’s example applies to all import dues increases. Higher import duties will yield some additional revenue to government. How much they will yield cannot be answered without much more work. High import duties will deter people from buying imported goods. There will be no large drawdown of foreign exchange; nor will there be additional government revenue: result, high government foreign exchange reserves and low government revenue.

For people to buy cars at such higher prices in 2025, their incomes must rise substantially (unlikely) or they must shift their preferences for motor cars and drop their demand for other goods and services. There is no reason to believe that any of those changes have taken place. In the 2025 budget, government has an ambitious programme of expenditure. For government to implement that programme, they need high government revenue. If the high rates of duties on imports do not yield higher government revenue as hypothesised earlier, government must borrow in the domestic market. The economy is not worthy of raising funds in international capital markets yet.

If government sells large amounts of bonds, the price of all bonds will fall, i.e. interest rates will rise, with two consequences. First, expenditure on interest payments by government will rise for which they would need more revenue. Second, high interest rates may send money to banks rather than to industry. Finding out how these complexities will work out needs careful, methodically satisfactory work. It is probable that if government borrows heavily to pay for budgetary allocations, the fundamental problem arising out of heavy public debt will not be solved.

The congratulatory comments made by the Manager of IMF applied to the recent limited exercise of handling the severity of balance of payments and public debt problems. The fundamental problem of paying back debt can be solved only when the economy grows fast enough (perhaps 7.5 % annually) for several years. Of that growth, perhaps, half (say 4 % points) need to be paid back for many years to reduce the burden of external debt.

Domestic use of additional resources can increase annually by no more than 3.5 percent, even if the economy grows at 7.5 percent per year. Leaders in society, including scholars in the JJB government, university teachers and others must highlight the problems and seek solutions therefor, rather than repeat over and over again accounts of the problem itself.

Growth must not only be fast and sustained but also exports heavy. The reasoning is as follows. This economy is highly import-dependent. One percent growth in the economy required 0.31% percent increase in imports in 2012 and 0. 21 percent increase in 2024. The scarcity of imports cut down the rate of growth of the economy in 2024. Total GDP will not catch up with what it was in (say) 2017, until the ratio of imports to GDP rises above 30 percent.

The availability of imports is a binding constraint on the rate of growth of the economy. An economy that is free to grow will require much more imports (not only cement and structural steel but also intermediate imports of many kinds). I guess that the required ratio will exceed 35 percent. Import capacity is determined by the value of exports reduced by debt repayments to the rest of the world. The most important structural change in the economy is producing exports to provide adequate import capacity. (The constant chatter by IMF and the Treasury officials about another kind of structural change confuses the issue.) An annual 7.5 percent growth in the economy requires import capacity to grow by about 2.6 percent annually.

This economy needs, besides, resources to pay back accumulated foreign debt. If servicing that accumulation requires, takes 4% points of GDP, import capacity needs to grow by (about) 6.6 percent per year, for many years. Import capacity is created when the economy exports to earn foreign exchange and when persons working overseas remit substantial parts of their earnings to persons in Lanka. Both tourism and remittances from overseas have begun to grow robustly. They must continue to flow in persistently.

There are darkening clouds raised by fires in prominent markets for exports from all countries including those poor. This is a form of race to the bottom, which a prominent economist once called ‘a policy to beggar thy neighbour (even across the wide Pacific)’. Unlike the thirty years from 1995, the next 30 years now seem fraught with much danger to processes of growth aided by open international trade. East Asian economies grew phenomenally by selling in booming rich markets, using technology developed in rich countries.

Lanka weighed down with 2,500 years of high culture ignored that reality. The United States of America now is swinging with might and main a wrecking ball to destroy that structure which they had put up, one thought foolishly, with conviction. Among those storms, many container ships would rather be put to port than brave choppy seas. High rates of growth in export earnings seem a bleak prospect. There yet may be some room in the massive economies of China and India.

Consequently, it is fanciful to expect that living conditions will improve rapidly, beginning with the implementation of the 2025 budget. It will be a major achievement if the 2025 budget is fully implemented, as I have argued earlier. Remarkable efforts to cut down on extravagance, waste and the plunder of public funds will help, somewhat; but not enough. IMF or not, there is no way of paying back accumulated debt without running an export surplus sufficient to service debt obligations.

Exports are necessary to permit the economy to pay off accumulated debt and permit some increase in the standard of living. Austerity will be the order of the day for many years to come. It is most unlikely that the next five years will usher in prosperity.

By Usvatte-aratchi

Features

BLOSSOMS OF HOPE 2025

Published

2 days ago

2025/03/21

Thilina Walpola

An Ikebana exhibition in aid of pediatric cancer patients

This Ikebana exhibition by the members of Ikebana International Sri Lanka Chapter #262, brings this ancient art form to life in support of a deeply meaningful cause: aiding the Pediatric Cancer ward of the Apeksha Cancer Hospital, Maharagama and offering hope to young warriors in their fight against illness.

Graceful, delicate, and filled with meaning—Ikebana, the Japanese art of floral arrangement, is more than just an expression of beauty; it is a reflection of life’s resilience and harmony. “Blossoms of Hope”, is a special Ikebana exhibition, on 29th March from 11a.m. to 7p.m. and 30th March from 10a.m. to 6p.m. at the Ivy Room, Cinnamon Grand Hotel and demonstrations will be from 4p.m. to 5p.m. on both days.

Each floral arrangement in this exhibition is a tribute to strength, renewal, and love. Carefully crafted by skilled Ikebana artists, who are members of the Chapter. These breathtaking displays symbolize the courage of children battling cancer, reminding us that even in adversity, beauty can bloom. The graceful lines, vibrant hues, and thoughtful compositions of Ikebana echo the journey of resilience, inspiring both reflection and compassion.

Visitors will not only experience the tranquility and elegance of Japanese floral art but will also have the opportunity to make a difference. Proceeds from “Blossoms of Hope” will go towards enhancing medical care, providing essential resources, and creating a more comforting environment for young patients and their families.

This exhibition is more than an artistic showcase—it is a gesture of kindness, a symbol of solidarity, and a reminder that hope, like a flower, can grow even in the most unexpected places. By attending and supporting “Blossoms of Hope”, you become a part of this journey, helping to bring light and joy into the lives of children who need it most.

Join in celebrating art, compassion, and the Power of Hope—one flower at a time.

Features

St. Anthony’s Church feast at Kachchativu island

Published

2 days ago

2025/03/21

Thilina Walpola

Fort Hammenhiel

The famous St. Anthony’s Church feast this year was held on 14 and 15 March. St. Anthony, as per Catholic belief, gives protection and looks after fishermen and seafarers like me. Many Buddhist seafarers are believers in St. Anthony and they usually keep a statue of the saint in their cabins in the ship or craft.

St. Anthony died on 13th June 1231 at age of 35 years, at Padua in Holy Roman Empire and was canonized on 30 May 1232 by Pope Gregory IX.

I was unable to attend last year’s feast as I was away in Pakistan as Sri Lanka’s High Commissioner. I was more than happy to learn that Indians were also attending the feast this year and there would be 4,000 devotees.

I decided to travel to Kankesanturai (KKS) Jaffna by train and stay at my usual resting place, Fort Hammenhiel Resort, a Navy-run boutique hotel, which was once a prison, where JVP leaders, including Rohana Wijeweera were held during the 1971 insurrection. I was fortunate to turn this fort on a tiny islet in Kytes lagoon into a four-star boutique hotel and preserve Wijeweera’s handwriting in 2012, when I was the Commander Northern Naval Area.

I invite you to visit Fort Hammenhiel during your next trip to Jaffna and see Wijeweera’s handwriting.

The train left Colombo Fort Railway Station on time (0530 hrs/14th) and reached KKS at 1410 hrs. I was highly impressed with the cleanliness and quality of railway compartments and toilets. When I sent a photograph of my railway compartment to my son, he texted me asking “Dad, are you in an aircraft or in a train compartment? “

Well done Sri Lanka Railways! Please keep up your good work. No wonder foreign tourists love train rides, including the famous Ella Odyssey.

Travelling on board a train is comfortable, relaxed and stress free! As a frequent traveller on A 9 road to Jaffna, which is stressful due to oncoming heavy vehicles on. This was a new experience and I enjoyed the ride, sitting comfortably and reading a book received from my friend in New York- Senaka Senaviratne—’Hillbilly Elegy’ by US Vice President JD Vance. The book is an international best seller.

My buddy, Commodore (E) Dissanayake (Dissa), a brilliant engineer who built Reverse Osmosis Water Purification Plants for North, North Central and North Western provinces to help prevent chronic kidney disease is the Commodore Superintendent Engineering in the Northern Naval Area. He was waiting at the KKS railway station to receive me.

I enjoyed a cup of tea at Dissa’s chalet at our Northern Naval Command Headquarters in KKS and proceeded to Fort Hammenhiel at Karainagar, a 35-minute drive from KKS.

The acting Commanding Officer of Karainagar Naval Base (SLNS ELARA) Commander Jayawardena (Jaye) was there at Fort Hammenhiel Restaurant to have late lunch with me.

Jaye was a cadet at Naval and Maritime Academy, (NMA) Trincomalee, when I was Commandant in 2006, NMA was under artillery fire from LTTE twice, when those officers were cadets and until we destroyed enemy gun positions, and the army occupied Sampoor south of the Trincomalee harbour. I feel very proud of Jaye, who is a Commander now (equal to Army rank Lieutenant Colonel) and Commanding a very important Naval Base in Jaffna.

The present Navy Commander Vice Admiral Kanchana Banagoda had been in SLNS ELARA a few hours before me and he had left for the Delft Island on an inspection tour.

Commander Jaye was very happy because his Divisional Officer, when he was a cadet, was Vice Admiral Kanchana (then Lieutenant Commander). I had lunch and rested for a few hours before leaving Karainagar in an Inshore Patrol Craft heading to Kachchativu Island by1730 hrs.

The sea was very calm due to inter-monsoon weather and we reached Kachchativu Island by 1845 hrs. Devotees from both Sri Lanka and India had already reached the island. The Catholic Bishop of Sivagangai Diocese, Tamil Nadu India His Eminence Lourdu Anandam and Vicar General of Jaffna Diocese Very Rev Fr. PJ Jabaratnam were already there in Kachchativu together with more than 100 priests and nuns from Sri Lanka and India. It was a solid display of brotherhood of two neighbouring nations united together at this tiny island to worship God. They were joined by 8,000 devotees, with 4,000 from each country).

The church

All logistics—food, fresh water, medical facilities—were provided by the Sri Lanka Navy. Now, this festival has become a major annual amphibious operation for Navy’s Landing Craft fleet, led by SLNS Shakthi (Landing Ship tanks). The Navy establishes a temporary base in a remote island which does not have a drop of drinking water, and provides food and water to 8,000 persons. The event is planned and executed commendably well under Commander Northern Naval Area, Rear Admiral Thusara Karunathilake. The Sri Lankan government allocates Rs 30 million from the annual national budget for this festival, which is now considered a national religious festival.

The Indian devotees enjoy food provided by SLN. They have the highest regard for our Navy. The local devotees are from the Jaffna Diocese, mainly from the Delft Island and helped SLN. Delft Pradeshiya Sabha and AGA Delft Island. A very efficient lady supervised all administrative functions on the Island. Sri Lanka Police established a temporary police station with both male and female officers.

As usual, the Sinhalese devotees came from Negombo, Chilaw, Kurunegala and other areas, bringing food enough for them and their Catholic brothers and sisters from India! Children brought biscuits, milk toffee, kalu dodol and cakes to share with Indian and Jaffna devotees.

In his sermon on 22nd December 2016, when he declared open the new Church built by SLN from financial contributions from Navy officers and sailors, Jaffna Bishop Rt Rev Dr Justin Bernard Ganapragasam said that day “the new Church would be the Church of Reconciliation”.

The church was magnificent at night. Sitting on the beach and looking at the beautiful moon-lit sea, light breeze coming from the North East direction and listening to beautiful hymns sung by devotees praising Saint Anthony, I thanked God and remembered all my friends who patrolled those seas and were no more with us. Their dedication, and bravery out at sea brought lasting peace to our beloved country. But today WHO REMEMBERS THEM?

The rituals continued until midnight. Navy Commander and the Indian Consul General in Jaffna Sai Murali attended the Main Mass.

The following morning (15) the Main Mass was attended by Vice Admiral Kanchana Banagoda and his family. It was a great gesture by the Navy Commander to attend the feast with his family. I had a long discussion with Indian Consul General Jaffna Sai Mulari about frequent incidents of Indian trawlers engaging in bottom trawling in Sri Lankan waters and what we should do as diplomats to bring a lasting solution to this issue, as I was highly impressed with this young Indian diplomat.

The Vicar General of the Jaffna Diocese, my dear friend, Very Rev Father P J Jabarathnam also made an open appeal to all Indian and Sri Lankan fishermen to protect the environment. I was fortunate to attend yet another St. Anthony’s Church feast in Kachchativu.

By Admiral Ravindra C Wijegunaratne WV,

RWP& Bar, RSP, VSV, USP, NI (M) (Pakistan), ndc, psn,
Bsc (Hons) (War Studies) (Karachi) MPhil (Madras)
Former Navy Commander and Former Chief of Defense Staff
Former Chairman, Trincomalee Petroleum Terminals Ltd
Former Managing Director Ceylon Petroleum Corporation
Former High Commissioner to Pakistan