2020 SLAF Y-12 Crash

Last updated
SCL-857 Crash
SCL-857 (Y-12).jpg
SCL-857, the aircraft involved in the accident, at 2017 Independence Day flypast
Accident
Date3 January 2020 (2020-01-03)
SiteThambapillai area, Haputale, Sri Lanka
6°45′52.315″N80°57′6.782″E / 6.76453194°N 80.95188389°E / 6.76453194; 80.95188389 [1]
Aircraft
Aircraft type Harbin Y-12
OperatorAir Force Ensign of Sri Lanka.svg  Sri Lanka Air Force
Registration SCL-857
0021 (MSN) [2]
Flight origin Ratmalana Airport, Colombo, Sri Lanka
Stopover Weerawila Airport, Weerawila, Sri Lanka [1]
Destination Ratmalana Airport, Colombo, Sri Lanka
Crew4
Fatalities4
Survivors0
Ground casualties
Ground injuries1

On 03 January 2020, a Sri Lanka Air Force Harbin Y-12, flying from Weerawila to Colombo, crashed into a mountainous terrain near Haputale, during a surveillance mission, killing all 4 personnel on board.

Contents

A CCTV still of the aircraft flying low, seconds before the crash A CCTV still of the SCL-857 flying low.png
A CCTV still of the aircraft flying low, seconds before the crash

Background

Purpose of the flight

The flight was a routine surveillance mission conducted by the Air Force to support law enforcement by identifying cannabis plantations. [1] [3]

Aircraft and crew

The aircraft involved in the accident, manufactured in 1990, was a thirty-year-old twin-engine turboprop Harbin Y-12 registered as SCL-857. [2] The aircraft was operated by the No. 8 Squadron at SLAF Katunayake.

The crew consisted of the pilot-in-command, Squadron Leader Buddhi Weebedda, the co-pilot, Flight Lieutenant Lankapura Kulatunga, Sergeant Wasantha Kumara and Leading Aircraftman Nuwan Hettiarachchi. [4] [5] [6]

Accident

At 07:00 AM local time, the aircraft departed from Ratmalana Airport with only two pilots on board. At 08:00 AM, it landed at Weerawila Airport. The aircraft then departed Weerawila at 08:55 AM with two more airmen aboard, heading towards the upcountry region. [7]

The aircraft crashed at 09:15 local time (04:45 UTC) in the Haputale, Sri Lanka. The crash site was 65 kilometers (35 nmi) north of Weerawila, and near the village of Ayspeella. All four Air Force personnel who were onboard were killed. [6] [8] [9] One Person injured on the ground as consequence of the crash. [5]



See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Harbin Y-12</span> Utility transport aircraft

The Harbin Y-12 is a high wing twin-engine turboprop utility aircraft built by Harbin Aircraft Industry Group (HAIG).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bandaranaike International Airport</span> Main airport in Colombo, Sri Lanka

Bandaranaike International Airport (BIA) (Sinhala: බණ්ඩාරනායක ජාත්‍යන්තර ගුවන්තොටුපළ, romanized: Bandāranāyaka Jātyantara Guvantoṭupaḷa; Tamil: பண்டாரநாயக்க சர்வதேச விமான நிலையம், romanized: Paṇṭāranāyakka Carvatēca Vimāṉa Nilaiyam) (commonly known as Colombo International Airport, Colombo–Bandaranaike International Airport, and locally as Katunayake International Airport) (IATA: CMB, ICAO: VCBI) is the main international airport in Sri Lanka. It is named after former Prime Minister S. W. R. D. Bandaranaike (1899–1959) and is in the suburb of Negombo, 32.5 kilometres (20+1⁄4 miles) north of the nation's capital and commercial center, Colombo.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nanchang CJ-6</span> Chinese aircraft

The Nanchang CJ-6 is a Chinese basic trainer aircraft designed and built by the Nanchang Aircraft Factory for use by the People's Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF).

The Bandaranaike International Airport attack was a suicide raid Black Tigers of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) on 24 July 2001 on the Sri Lanka Air Force base SLAF Katunayake and the adjoining Bandaranaike International Airport in Katunayake, Sri Lanka. The attack was one of the boldest the LTTE mounted during its war with the Sri Lankan government, and had a profound impact on the country's military, economy, and airline industry.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sri Lanka Air Force</span> Air warfare branch of Sri Lankas military forces

The Sri Lanka Air Force is the air arm and the youngest of the Sri Lanka Armed Forces. It was founded in 1951 as the Royal Ceylon Air Force (RCyAF) with the assistance of the Royal Air Force (RAF). The SLAF played a major role throughout the Sri Lankan Civil War. The SLAF operates more than 160 aircraft.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Air Tigers</span> Air force of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam

The Tamil Eelam Air Force or Sky Tigers was the air service branch of the Divisions of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, who used it against the Government of Sri Lanka. They also called themselves the Tamileelam Air Force (TAF). Though the existence of the Sky Tigers had been the subject of speculation for many years, the existence of the wing was only revealed after an attack in March 2007, during Eelam War IV.

The Raid on Anuradhapura Air Force Base, code-named Operation Ellaalan, was a commando raid conducted on SLAF Anuradhapura an Air Force Base in Anuradhapura, Sri Lanka by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam. The attack happened on 22 October 2007.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">No. 6 Squadron SLAF</span> Military unit

No. 6 Helicopter Squadron is a squadron of the Sri Lanka Air Force. It currently operates Mil Mi-17s from SLAF Anuradhapura for troop transport.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sri Lanka Air Force Museum</span> Aviation museum in Ratmalana, Dehiwala-Mount Lavinia

The Sri Lanka Air Force Museum is the museum of the Sri Lanka Air Force, and its predecessor, the Royal Ceylon Air Force. Open to the public, the museum is at the SLAF Ratmalana and is maintained by the Sri Lanka Air Force.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">No. 3 Squadron SLAF</span> Military unit

No. 3 Maritime Squadron is a maritime patrol squadron of the Sri Lanka Air Force. It was disbanded in 1993 and its aircraft taken over by the No. 8 Light Transport Squadron. It was reestablished in 2019.

Air Chief Marshal Andibuduge Walter Fernando, VSV, ndc, psc was a senior Sri Lanka Air Force officer, who served as the 7th Commander of the Sri Lankan Air Force and thereafter Permanent Secretary to the Ministry of Defence.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1995 Sri Lanka Air Force Avro 748 shootdown</span>

Sri Lanka Air Force Avro 748 CR835 was shot down on 28 April 1995 by a SA-7 missile fired by the LTTE. The plane, an Avro 748-334 Srs. 2A airliner, was en route to Ratmalana Airport and was shot down soon after take-off from SLAF Palaly. All 51 crew and passengers were killed.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sumangala Dias</span> Former Commander of the Sri Lanka Air Force

Air Chief Marshal Dambure Liyanage Sumangala Dias, RWP, RSP, VSV, USP is a retired Sri Lanka Air Force officer and pilot who served as Commander of the Air Force from 29 May 2019 to 2 November 2020. He retired from his position as the Commander of the Sri Lanka Air Force on 2 November 2020 and was replaced by Air Marshal Sudarshana Pathirana.

The Sri Lankan Armed Forces have established numerous academies and staff colleges across Sri Lanka for the purpose of training professional soldiers in military sciences, warfare command and strategy, and associated technologies.

Air Marshal R. A. Udeni P. Rajapaksa RSP & two Bars, VSV, USP is a senior Sri Lanka Air Force officer and pilot currently serving as Commander of the Sri Lanka Air Force since June 2023. Previously, he served as Chief of Staff of the Sri Lanka Air Force, Director Air Operations, Base Commander SLAF Katunayake and Commandant of the Air Force Academy China Bay.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2011 Sri Lanka Kfir mid-air collision</span>

On 01 March 2011, two IAI Kfirs belonging to the No. 10 Squadron at SLAF Katunayake, collided near Yakkala, Gampaha approximately 19 kilometres (11.8 mi) south-east of SLAF Katunayake, during a formation fight rehearsal.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2000 SLAF Mi-17 Crash</span>

On 16 September 2000, a Mil Mi-17 transport helicopter operated by the Sri Lanka Air Force crashed on Urakanda mountain range in the Aranayaka area in Kegalle District, after departing Bambalapitiya Police Grounds. The helicopter was carrying Minister of Shipping, Ports and Rehabilitation M. H. M. Ashraff and 14 others. Everyone on board was killed.

References

  1. 1 2 3 Kamalendran, Chris (5 January 2020). "SLAF aircraft crash: Magistrate calls for reports from SLAF and Govt. bodies". The Sunday Times . Retrieved 6 December 2024.
  2. 1 2 "Accident Harbin Y-12-II SCL-857, Friday 3 January 2020". Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved 3 December 2024.
  3. ↑ "Air Force Y-12 crashes, four killed | Daily FT". ft.lk. 4 January 2020. Retrieved 8 December 2024.
  4. ↑ "Postmortem of SLAF personnel killed in Haputale crash to be conducted today". Ada Derana. 4 January 2020. Retrieved 4 December 2024.
  5. 1 2 "SLAF plane crash : Bandarawela Magistrate's Court orders Government Analyst to submit findings". Ministry of Defence. Retrieved 4 December 2024.
  6. 1 2 "Court of Inquiry probes aircraft crash". news.lk. 5 January 2020. Retrieved 3 December 2024.
  7. ↑ "SLAF aircraft crashes, four airmen killed - Front Page | Daily Mirror". Daily Mirror . Wijeya Newspapers. 4 January 2020. Retrieved 8 December 2024.
  8. ↑ "UPDATE : 4 dead in Haputale Plane crash". Newsfirst. 3 January 2020. Retrieved 3 December 2024.
  9. ↑ "Four air force personnel killed in aircraft crash at Haputale". Ada Derana. 3 January 2020. Retrieved 3 December 2024.



This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.