The Sri Lanka Air Force formally inducted a newly acquired Beechcraft King Air 360ER today (10 October 2024) at a ceremony headed by the Secretary to the Ministry of Defence, Air Vice Marshal Sampath Thuyacontha (Retd) as the Chief Guest. The event was further honoured by the presence of the Ambassador of the United States of America to Sri Lanka, Her Excellency Julie Chung and the Commander of the US Pacific Fleet, Admiral Stephen Koehler, as Guests of Honour. This aircraft will be assigned to No. 03 Maritime Squadron at SLAF Academy China Bay, marking a major step forward in Sri Lanka’s maritime surveillance operations.
The acquisition resulted from extensive discussions between the governments of Sri Lanka and the United States, focused on enhancing Sri Lanka’s maritime surveillance capabilities. Since 2019, several rounds of dialogue have taken place to secure a suitable aircraft. The United States, through the Department of Defence’s Building Partner Capacity programme, agreed to provide the Beechcraft King Air 360ER to the SLAF on a gratis basis, thereby strengthening the country’s capacity to secure its Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) and maintain maritime security within Sri Lanka’s Flight Information Region (FIR).
The ceremony commenced with the arrival of the Chief Guest, Secretary to the Ministry of Defence, Air Vice Marshal Sampath Thuyacontha (Retd), who was received by the Commander of the Air Force, Air Marshal Udeni Rajapaksa. Following the arrival of the dignitaries, the newly inducted Beechcraft King Air 360ER performed its maiden salute to the Chief Guest and made its way to the apron at the No. 02 Squadron in SLAF Base Katunayake, where it was greeted with a water cannon salute, creating a graceful arc of water as the aircraft passed beneath.
The ceremony proceeded with the formal signing of documents symbolizing the transfer of the Beechcraft King Air 360ER to the Sri Lanka Air Force. This significant moment was chaired by the Commander of the US Pacific Fleet, Admiral Stephen Koehler and the Commander of the Air Force, Air Marshal Udeni Rajapaksa marking the official handing over and taking over.
The Beechcraft King Air 360ER, a twin-engine turboprop aircraft funded by the US Department of Defence Building Partner Capacity Programme, manufactured by Beechcraft Textron Aviation, is certified by both the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA). This Multirole Light Transport Aircraft is a modern surveillance platform with the capability to travel 1,450 nautical miles. The SLAF has a long history of operating the earlier Beechcraft B-200, which has provided the Air Force with substantial operational and maintenance experience. This expertise will greatly benefit the future operation of the new 360ER model.
The Beechcraft King Air 360ER, equipped with next-generation technology and state-of-the-art surveillance systems and contributes millions of dollars in value at no cost to Sri Lanka. This aircraft will be deployed for maritime surveillance operations, a critical requirement in the current context, particularly in responding to maritime disasters (such as the MT New Diamond and X-Press Pearl incidents), conducting deep-sea rescue missions/Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) operations/Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief (HADR) operations, monitoring Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated (IUU) fishing and supporting the Sri Lanka Navy (SLN) in countering transnational crimes like human smuggling and drug trafficking.
A team comprising pilots, observers, flight engineers and technicians from the SLAF has received a specialized training in the United States of America on the Beechcraft King Air 360ER, which is capable of performing various multi-purpose missions.
SLAF STRENGTHENS MARITIME SURVEILLANCE WITH ACQUISITION OF BEECHCRAFT KING AIR 360ER
