Jane’s Navy International salutes the Sri Lanka Navy

As Tim Fish of Jane’s Navy International so eloquently put it, the Sri Lanka Navy, over the course of the protracted conflict with the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, the Sri Lanka Navy has been transformed from a simple constabulary service into a potent, counter-insurgency force, successfully countering the swarm tactics undertaken by the Sea Tigers.

From a force largely used as a ceremonial Navy in the past, Vice-Admiral Karannagoda reports that the Sri Lanka Navy has transformed themselves into a fighting Navy. From fighting the LTTE to ensuring the sea lines of communication, security of harbours and even escorting merchant vessels to and from the Jaffna Peninsula, the Sri Lanka Navy has truly evolved over the past few years.

The key to this turnaround has been the new technology driven into the Navy. With the backbone of the fleet being the Super Dvora FAC squadrons, they are ably supported by the hundred of indigenously produced fibreglass IPC, built in3 variants for operations in different sea states. As Vice-Admiral Karannagoda so aptly put it, the boats were manufactured day and night, because we needed them quickly.

And quickly they had them, a larger, faster force more equipped to deal with the varying sea states, these fast moving IPC’s would disguise their numbers by moving in single file and attacking in an arrowhead formation in order to maximise firepower.

Whilst the IPC’s and Dvora FAC’s were quite able to deal with the craft and floating warehouses of the Sea Tigers, an important improvement to the Naval defences were the use of the ‘Singapore Technologies Kinetics’ Automatic Grenade Launcher’, providing the inshore patrol craft with increased firepower, particularly useful againt the Sea cadres’ suicide boats.

Through this combination of this advanced technology and a vastly increased naval fleet – the Sri Lanka Navy has truly been able to deal with everything thrown at them by the LTTE and in fact, has tamed the Sea Tigers.