Only 70% completed country's Air Defence System-Air Chief

Certain areas of Sri Lankan air space are still vulnerable and it needs at least 06 to 07 months to complete the air defence system fully activated, Air Force chief Air Marshall Roshan Gunathilake said.

Air Force commander met the journalists at weekly press briefing today in Colombo just 04 days after the devastating attack on one of the country’s main air base, by the Black Tiger suicide squad of the LTTE with the help of Tiger air wing.
Gunathilake said that at least 70% of the installation of the air defence system is now in place covering all strategically important areas, with out identifying covered and uncovered areas.

He said that Air Force was able to protect the camp by killing all the infiltrated tiger suicide cadres in the Anuradhapura air base early on Monday 22.
Prime Minister Rathnasiri Wickremanayake admitted in the parliament after two days of the attack that the air force had lost 08 air craft in the attack, the number which LTTE claimed even before the attack ends.

Independent sources confirmed at least another dozen of air crafts have had considerable damages and are out of operation at the movement.
Air Force commander denied the media reports and said only US$ 15 million were lost due to the attack, but sources close to defence establishment confirmed that the amount is little shorter than three times of the official figure.
Government has made sudden changes in command and operational structure of the armed forces, after the Anuradhapura attack which is considered as the island’s biggest ever lost in a single incident in financial terms.

Outer parameter security of all the air bases in the country with airports, have been assigned to army and at least two of them will be protected by elite Special Forces regiment soldiers else where in the country.
Major General Santh Karunartne, has been appointed as the Overall Operation Commander for the District of Anuradhapura hours after the attack, undoubtedly the worst ever set back military had in the undeclared Eelam War IV.

(http://defencewire.blogspot.com/)