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LTTE artillery attack does not deter normal flights - SLAF
Thursday, 31 January 2008 - 12:11 AM SL Time
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Despite Monday morning`s LTTE artillery attack, on the Palaly Air Base, targeting the aircraft flying the Defence Secretary, Army Commander and Chief of Defence Staff, compelling it to return to base, both, civilian and military aircraft, resumed normal services from that afternoon itself, Air Force spokesman Wing Commander Andy Wijesuriya said.
The shells missed the Air Base.
LTTE directed 15 rounds of artillery fire on the Palaly Air Base forcing the pilot to divert the aircraft and return to Colombo without landing. However around 11.45 am on Monday Air Force jets located the LTTE artillery at Kalmunai Point in Pooneryn and destroyed the gun emplacements, Air Force sources said.
The Russian built AN-32 aircraft flew Defence Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa, Chief of Defence Staff Donald Perera and Army Commander Lt. Gen. Sarath Fonseka for the inauguration ceremony of the Mechanised Infantry Brigade at the Palaly Air Base on Monday morning.
Asked whether the Air Force pounded the same LTTE artillery gun position once earlier in Pooneryn, Andy Wijesuriya said that it cannot be confirmed since the LTTE keeps moving its gun positions from place to place.
Certain high ranking military officials, asked on Monday about the incident, denied any knowledge of the LTTE artillery attack on the Palaly Air Base and some even denied that the top military trio had left Colombo for Jaffna. When newspapers were groping in the dark to get confirmation on the incident it was Defence Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa himself who confirmed the incident and said that the aircraft was compelled to return to Colombo amidst intense artillery fire by the LTTE.
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