Air Vice Marshal (AVM) (Retd) Sampath Thuyacontha has been appointed as the new Defence Secretary.
He joined the Sri Lanka Air Force (SLAF) on May 17, 1988 in the 19th Intake as an Officer Cadet and was commissioned as a Pilot Officer in the General Duties Pilot Branch in 1990.
After completion of training in 1990, he was deployed for flying duties as an operational pilot on Bell 212/412 helicopters.
In 2001, he was posted to No. 9 Attack Helicopter Squadron, Sri Lanka Air Force Base Hingurakgoda, as the Second in Command and later was appointed as Commanding Officer in 2005.
During his long tenure, he actively participated in all major operations which included the Humanitarian War to liberate North and East and he managed to log more than 7,000 flying hours as an Operations/VIP and Attack Helicopter Pilot of the SLAF.
Air Vice Marshal Thuyacontha also served as the Defence Advisor to the High Commission of Sri Lanka in Islamabad, Pakistan, for two years and as the Chief Instructor of the Defence Services Command and Staff College in 2014.
For his individual acts of gallantry and bravery during the Humanitarian Operations he was decorated with the Weera Wickrama Vibhushanaya (WWV), Rana Wickrama Padakkama (RWP) and Rana Sura Padakkama (RSP) on several occasions.
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