Sudarshana Pathirana

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Air Chief Marshal

Sudarshana Pathirana
BornKandy
Allegiance Sri Lanka
Service/branch Air Force Ensign of Sri Lanka.svg Sri Lanka Air Force
Years of service1985 - 2023
Rank Air Marshal [1]
Commands held18th Commander of the Sri Lanka Air Force
Chief of Staff
Commandant Air Force Academy China Bay
Base Commander SLAF Base Katunayake
Base Commander SLAF Base Ratmalana
No 5 Fighter Squadron
No 10 Fighter Squadron
No 12 Fighter Squadron
Battles/wars Sri Lankan Civil War
Awards Weera wickrama vibhushanaya.svg Weera Wickrama Vibhushanaya (twice)
Rana wickrama medal.svg Rana Wickrama Padakkama (twice)
Rana Sura Padakkama bar.GIF Rana Sura Padakkama (four times)
Vishista Seva Vibhushanaya medal bar.svg Vishista Seva Vibhushanaya
Uttama Seva ribbon bar.svg Uththama Seva Padakkama
Sri Lanka Air Force 50th Anniversary Medal ribbon bar.svg Sri Lanka Air Force 50th Anniversary Medal
50th Annivesary Commemoration Medal.jpg 50th Independence Anniversary Commemoration Medal
North East Medal Bar.jpg North and East Operations Medal
Purna Bhumi Padakkama ribbon bar.svg Purna Bhumi Padakkama
Riviresa Ribbon.gif Riviresa Campaign Services Medal
Northern Humanitarian Medal Bar.jpg Northern Humanitarian Operations Medal
Eastern Humanitarian Medal Bar.jpg Eastern Humanitarian Operations Medal
Other workSri Lankan Ambassador to Nepal

Air Chief Marshal Sudarshana Karagoda Pathirana WWV, RSP & four Bars, VSV, USP is a former senior Sri Lanka Air Force officer, who had served as the Commander of the Sri Lanka Air Force.

Contents

Education

Born on 30 December 1965, Sudarshana Pathirana was educated at Dharmaraja College, Kandy.

Air force career

Having joined the Sri Lanka Air Force as an Officer Cadet on the 2nd of July 1985, he completed his Basic Ground Training at Diyatalawa, securing the award for the Best Cadet of the 14th Officer Cadets Course. [2] Pathirana was among a batch of pilots who were sent to the Pakistan Air Force Academy in Risalpur for advanced flying training, where he won the award for the "Best Allied Flight Cadet" from the PAF. [3] Pathirana was commissioned in the rank of Pilot Officer on 2 January 1987 at the Pakistan Air Force Academy, Risalpur, Pakistan. [3] [2]

Flying

Initially commencing his career in the Sri Lanka Air Force as a Reconnaissance pilot, he subsequently transited to Light Transport flying prior to moving into fast jets as a member of the first batch of pilots to fly supersonic aircraft in Sri Lanka. He commanded No 5 Fighter Squadron and subsequently No 10 Fighter Squadron flying the Kfir C 2 / C 7 extensively. Pathirana is a qualified flying instructor and a flying examiner. In addition to Kfir and F-7 fighters he is qualified in over 10 types of aircraft earning him over 3,500 flying hours. In addition, he holds a Commercial Pilots License and is a Flying Examiner for the Civil Aviation Authority of Sri Lanka. [2]

Pathirana followed his Junior Command and Staff Course at the Command and Staff and Training Institute, Bangladesh. In 1995, he became the first Sri Lankan pilot to complete the All-Purpose Qualified Flying Instructors Course in India.[ citation needed ] In 2002, he became the first Sri Lankan Air Force Officer to obtain the master's degree in Operational Art and Science from the Air University United States Air Force, Alabama in US. [4] He pursued his second master's degree after completing master's degree (Defence Studies) in Management from the General Sir John Kotelawala Defence University.[ citation needed ]

He also served in as the first Defense Attaché at the Sri Lankan Embassy in Russia from 2007 to 2009. During his stint as defense attache in Russia, he obtained a diploma in the field of air field management from the University of Ukraine. He also served as the deputy military liaison officer at the Ministry of Defense for a short stint between 2009 and 2011. In January 2011, he attended the National Defense College gaining ndc qualification. He was also awarded the Master in Philosophy from the University of Chennai in 2012. [5]

Command

Pathirana later went on to command three Air Bases, which includes a tenure as the Commandant of the Air Force Academy. He was appointed to the Air Force Board of Management in 2017 as the Director Air Operations prior to being appointed as the Commander, he served as the Chief of Staff from 2019 onwards.[ citation needed ]

Commander of the Sri Lanka Air Force

On 2 November 2020, he was appointed as the 18th Commander of the Air Force by President Gotabaya Rajapaksa and was also promoted to the three star rank of Air Marshal. [6] He replaced Air Chief Marshal Sumangala Dias who retired. [7] [8] [2] He went into retirement on 29 June, 2023. [9]

Awards

Pathirana has been awarded with the “Vishista Seva Vibhushanaya” and the “Uththama Seva Padakkama”. For his contribution during the humanitarian operations, Pathirana has awarded with gallantry medals on 8 occasions. Namely, “Weera Wickrama Vibhushanaya” twice, “Rana Wickrama Padakkama” twice, and “Rana Sura Padakkama” on four occasions.

Later work

Air Chief Marshal Pathiran was designated as Sri Lankan Ambassador to Nepal by President Ranil Wickremesinghe in October 2023. [10]

Personal life

Pathiran is married to Mrs. Charmini Pathirana and the couple is blessed with a daughter and a son namely Bhashini and Vinura Pathirana [11]

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References

  1. ↑ Air Marshal Sudarshana Pathirana Appointed as the 18th Commander of the Sri Lanka Air Force http://www.airforce.lk/news.php?news=4763
  2. 1 2 3 4 "Chief of Staff | Sri Lanka Air Force". www.airforce.lk. Retrieved 30 October 2020.
  3. 1 2 "Air Marshal Sudarshana Pathirana appointed as the 18th commander of the Sri Lanka Air Force". Sri Lanka Air Force. 2 November 2020. Archived from the original on 2 November 2020. Retrieved 8 November 2020. He was a member of the first batch of pilots who were selected for advance flying training in the Pakistan Air Force and secured the award for the Best Allied Flight Cadet by the Pakistan Air Force. Air Marshal Pathirana was commissioned in the rank of Pilot Officer on 2nd January 1987 at the PAF Academy, Risalpur, Pakistan.
  4. ↑ "AVM Sudarshana new SLAF Commander". Daily News. Retrieved 30 October 2020.
  5. ↑ admin (30 October 2020). "Air Vice Marshal Sudarshana Pathirana appointed new Air Force Commander | Colombo Gazette" . Retrieved 30 October 2020.
  6. ↑ "Sri Lanka : Air Vice Marshal Sudarshana Pathirana appointed new Commander of Sri Lanka Air Force". www.colombopage.com. Retrieved 30 October 2020.
  7. ↑ "Air Vice Marshal Sudarshana Pathirana - New Air Force Commander". Sri Lanka News - Newsfirst. 30 October 2020. Retrieved 30 October 2020.
  8. ↑ "Sudarshana Pathirana new Air Force Commander". www.dailymirror.lk. Retrieved 30 October 2020.
  9. ↑ "AIR CHIEF MARSHAL SUDARSHANA PATHIRANA BIDS ADIEU TO THE SRI LANKA AIR FORCE | Sri Lanka Air Force". www.airforce.lk. Retrieved 25 July 2023.
  10. ↑ "Orientation program held for 10 new SL foreign envoys". newswire.lk. Retrieved 2 November 2023.
  11. ↑ "Seva Vanitha | Sri Lanka Air Force". 220.247.224.43. Retrieved 8 June 2022.
Military offices
Preceded by Commander of the Air Force
2 November 2020 - 29 June 2023		Succeeded by
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