__NOTOC__ Teesha is a

Sri Lanka Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, also known historically as Ceylon, is an island country in South Asia. It lies in the Indian Ocean, southwest of the Bay of Bengal, separated from the Indian subcontinent, ...

n military dog belonging to the country's Commando Regiment K-9 unit. She is a golden retriever, and was the first Sri Lankan dog to complete a high-altitude

parachute jump The Parachute Jump is a defunct amusement ride and a landmark in the New York City borough of Brooklyn, along the Riegelmann Boardwalk at Coney Island. Situated in Steeplechase Plaza near the B&B Carousell, the structure consists of a , open ...

on 21 November 2015, with

Major Major most commonly refers to: * Major (rank), a military rank * Academic major, an academic discipline to which an undergraduate student formally commits * People named Major, including given names, surnames, nicknames * Major and minor in musi ...

Sujith Siranjeewa of the same regiment. Her record was made simultaneously with Siranjeewa's establishment of an Asian record for high-altitude parachuting, diving from an altitude of over the Uva-Kudaoya Commando Training Camp grounds.

Military career

Teesha performed her duties as an explosive search dog for the 4th Commando Regiment during the country's

civil war A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same Sovereign state, state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies.J ...

, helping track down enemy troops and explosives. She was, at a time, handled by Major Sujith Siranjeewa when he was Chief Instructor, Paratrooper Wing.

Parachuting record

Teesha's jump was first mooted by Major Siranjeewa, a veteran Sri Lankan parachutist and part of the Commando Regiment's

paratrooper A paratrooper or military parachutist is a soldier trained to conduct military operations by parachuting directly into an area of operations, usually as part of a large airborne forces unit. Traditionally paratroopers fight only as light infa ...

complement. The request was initially considered for denial by the

Army An army, ground force or land force is an armed force that fights primarily on land. In the broadest sense, it is the land-based military branch, service branch or armed service of a nation or country. It may also include aviation assets by ...

and Defence establishment over concerns that the dog's life was being put in danger, with possible injuries resulting from such action. Permission was eventually granted, and Siranjeewa and Teesha performed a rehearsal jump sometime before 21 November 2015 with no problems. The actual jump was performed on 21 November at the Uva-Kudaoya Commando Training Camp grounds, as part of a

tattoo A tattoo is a form of body modification made by inserting tattoo ink, dyes, or pigments, either indelible or temporary, into the dermis layer of the skin to form a design. Tattoo artists create these designs using several tattooing processes ...

in the

passing out parade Passing out is the official graduation ceremony following the completion of a course by military or other uniformed service personnel at their respective training school, college, or military academy, largely in Commonwealth nations. Soldiers, s ...

of 396 fresh Commando officers and troops. The pair were taken to on a

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 ...

Mi-17 transport piloted by Flight Lieutenant Rajive Jayawickrama, and completed the jump successfully several minutes later, landing on the grounds of the training camp to applause from the audience. The jump also earned Siranjeewa an Asian parachuting record.

References

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External links

Images and video footage of the parachute jump
Detection dogs Dogs in warfare Individual dogs Military animals Sri Lankan military animals

Military career

Parachuting record

See also

References

External links