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
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 ...
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