Admiral Wasantha Karannagoda (Retd) to become first Sri Lankan Admiral of the Fleet: investiture ceremony to be held in Colombo on 19^th September

The state investiture ceremony to confer the Admiral of the Fleet rank to former Commander of the Navy, Admiral Wasantha Karannagoda (Retd) is scheduled to be held under the auspices of Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, the President of Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, His Excellency Maithripala Sirisena at the harbour premises of Colombo tomorrow (19^th September).

In recognition of the charismatic military leadership given to the Sri Lanka Navy by Admiral Wasantha Karannagoda (Retd) for the culmination of the three-decade long ruthless terrorism, this five-star rank is conferred to the former Navy chief by the President of Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, His Excellency Maithripala Sirisena.

Admiral Wasantha Karannagoda (Retd) joined the Sri Lanka Navy on 01^st August 1971 as an Officer Cadet and was commissioned as a Sub Lieutenant on 01^st February 1974, upon successful completion of his basic training received from the Naval and Maritime Academy in Trincomalee and Indian Navy. The senior officer served at various naval establishments and onboard ships and progressed in his naval career being promoted to subsequent ranks. Further, he honed his professional skills over the years through experience and by following local and overseas courses.

He has achieved many firsts in his distinguished, decorative and unblemished naval career. Incidentally, the senior officer has successfully completed the Sub Lieutenant Technical Course, with a First Class honours at the Indian Naval Academy in 1974. He is also a Navigation specialist who completed that course with a First Class honours in India in 1979. Further, as a Lieutenant Commander he completed the Command and Staff Course in the United Kingdom in 1987. Besides, as a Captain he obtained the Master of Business Administration from the University of Colombo. Also, the former Navy chief has successfully followed courses on International Relations and International Maritime Law in USA in 1997. In 1999 – 2000 he followed the National Defence Course at the Pakistan Defence University and graduated from the Quaid-i-Azam University during the same period. The senior officer is the first Naval Officer to be conferred with two Masters Degrees. Further, he is a distinguished alumni of the Asia Pacific Center for Security Studies in Hawaii as well as the Near East-South Asia Center for Strategic Studies at the National Defence University in Washington D.C in 2002. Apart from that, Admiral Wasantha Karannagoda (Retd) was conferred an honorary doctorate by the University of Kelaniya in 2009.

He has commanded the four Operational Naval Commands on seven occasions - Northern, Eastern and Western Commands twice each and North Central once. The senior officer was the first ever Director General (Operations) at Naval Headquarters and he assumed Command of the Sri Lanka Navy on 1^st September 2005, having being promoted to the rank of Vice Admiral.

Admiral Wasantha Karannagoda (Retd), soon after assuming office as Commander of the Navy introduced a range of warfare tactics to the Navy and commenced chasing and destruction of enemy ships and craft. As a result, the Navy was able to destroy 08 LTTE floating armouries in high seas, nullifying the might of the LTTE. Further it sent out a clear message to the international arena that the Sri Lanka Navy is equally capable of fighting in international waters. On the other hand, he managed to build the spirit of camaraderie with foreign counterparts and maintained a strong network of intelligence with them to locate floating armouries of the enemy.

Following an idea mooted by Admiral Wasantha Karannagoda (Retd), the Navy increased its arsenal with Navy-made over 200 Arrow Boats. These Arrows played a pivotal role in destroying the power of LTTE Sea Tigers in littoral waters. The senior officer also made good use of the research and development to augment the combat readiness of the Navy. He also paid careful attention to the welfare of naval personnel in a bid to uplift the morale of them. Also, he made sure that the Navy stood ready to protect the key economic centres such as Colombo and rest of the harbours in the country. Besides, he acquired the ship Jet Liner to the Navy and the move paved the way to transfer over 3,000 armed force personnel to the Jaffna peninsula and back. As a result, the Army troops in particular benefited immensely as the continuous sea transportation provided essential supplies and arms to boost the morale of them. With the culmination of the Humanitarian Operation on 18^th May 2009 the senior officer was promoted to the present rank of Admiral and he became the first ever Commander of the Sri Lanka Navy to hold the prestigious four star rank while in the active Naval service.