Air Chief Marshal Air chief marshal (Air Chf Mshl or ACM) is a high-ranking air officer rank used by some air forces, with origins from the Royal Air Force. The rank is used by air forces of many Commonwealth of Nations, countries that have historical British i ...

W.D. Harry Goonetileke USP, ndc, psc, SLAF (November 27, 1929 – April 11, 2008) was the fifth Commander of the Sri Lanka Air Force from November 1, 1976, to April 30, 1981.

Early life

Born 27 November 1929, as the only son of a family of five girls, his father was a booking clerk in the Railways Department and became an Assistant Transportation Superintendent at the time of retirement. Educated at the

Royal College, Colombo Royal College, Colombo also known as; Royal Colombo, Colombo Royal College or Colombo Royal) is a Single-sex education, boys' school located in Cinnamon Gardens, Cinnamon Gardens, Colombo, Sri Lanka. Started by Joseph Marsh (priest), Joseph Mar ...

and played of the college rugby team, he would continue to play and coach the air force team as well.

Career in the Air Force

Harry Goonetileke joined the Royal Ceylon Air Force as a

Flight Cadet A flight cadet or is a military or civilian occupational title that is held by someone who is in training to perform aircrew duties in an airplane. The trainee does not need to become a pilot, as flight cadets may also learn to serve as a bombard ...

in 1951 in the first batch of locally trained pilots. He received his flight training in the

Chipmunk Chipmunks are small, striped rodents of subtribe Tamiina. Chipmunks are found in North America, with the exception of the Siberian chipmunk which is found primarily in Asia. Taxonomy and systematics Chipmunks are classified as four genera: '' ...

and

Boulton Paul Balliol The Boulton Paul Balliol and Sea Balliol are monoplane advanced trainer aircraft designed and produced by the British aircraft manufacturer Boulton Paul Aircraft. On 17 May 1948, it became the world's first single-engined turboprop aircraft to ...

aircraft and earning his

Wings A wing is a type of fin that produces both lift and drag while moving through air. Wings are defined by two shape characteristics, an airfoil section and a planform. Wing efficiency is expressed as lift-to-drag ratio, which compares the bene ...

in 1954. Four years later in 1958, he was promoted to

Squadron Leader Squadron leader (Sqn Ldr or S/L) is a senior officer rank used by some air forces, with origins from the Royal Air Force. The rank is used by air forces of many countries that have historical British influence. Squadron leader is immediatel ...

. He was a member of the team that flew to UK and back ferrying the RCyAF's new

de Havilland Heron The de Havilland DH.114 Heron is a small Propeller (aircraft), propeller-driven British airliner that first flew on 10 May 1950. It was a development of the twin-engine de Havilland Dove, with a stretched fuselage and two more Reciprocating e ...

aircraft to Ceylon. His commands included Commanding Officer No. 2 (Transport) Squadron, RCyAF and Commanding Officer of RCyAF China Bay, with responsibility for the Cadet training there. In 1962 he became Station Commander and after further training at Staff College, Wellington he was appointed Director of Operations with responsibility for all flying and ground operations in the RCyAF. In this capacity he played a major role during the 1971 Insurrection. He also began the archival process that led in later years to the formation of the SLAF Museum and contributed greatly to SLAF sports particularly Rugby Football. He was the Chief of Air Staff before being promoted as Commander of the Sri Lanka Air Force on November 1, 1976, a post he held till his retirement on April 30, 1981. In 2007 he was promoted to the rank of

along with 9 other former service commanders.

Personal life

In 1955 he married Marian Perera and had two sons and two daughters. Both his sons joined the

Sri Lanka Air Force The Sri Lanka Air Force (SLAF; ; ) is the air force, 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 r ...

, his eldest son

Marshal of the Sri Lanka Air Force Marshal is a term used in several official titles in various branches of society. As marshals became trusted members of the courts of Medieval Europe, the title grew in reputation. During the last few centuries, it has been used for elevated of ...

Roshan Goonatilake Marshal of the Air Force W. D. M. J. Roshan Goonetileke, RWP and bar, VSV, USP is a Sri Lankan senior air force officer. He was a former Governor of the Western Province of Sri Lanka. Born to Air Chief Marshal Harry Goonatilake, he joine ...

served as Commander of the Sri Lanka Air Force and Chief of the Defence Staff, his younger son

Air Commodore Air commodore (Air Cdre or Air Cmde) is an air officer rank used by some air forces, with origins from the Royal Air Force. The rank is also used by the air forces of many countries which have historical British influence and it is sometimes ...

Shirantha Goonatilake was killed in 1995 when the plane he was piloting was shot down by a SAM, to date is the most senior air force officer killed in action.

Death

He died on 11 April 2008. His funeral was held at the General Cemetery Borella, Colombo on 12 April with military honors.

References

External links

Official Website of Sri Lanka Air Force
{{DEFAULTSORT:Goonetileke, W.D. Harry 1929 births 2008 deaths Commanders of the Sri Lanka Air Force Sri Lankan Air Chief Marshals Sinhalese military personnel Sri Lankan aviators Alumni of Royal College, Colombo National Defence College, India alumni