Sudarshana Pathirana
Air Chief Marshal Sudarshana Karagoda Pathirana WWV, RSP & four Bars, VSV, USP is a former senior Sri Lanka Air Force officer, who had served as the Commander of the Sri Lanka Air Force.
Early life
Born on 30 December 1965, Sudarshana Pathirana was educated at Dharmaraja College, Kandy.Air force career
Having joined the Sri Lanka Air Force as an Officer Cadet on the 2nd of July 1985, he completed his Basic Ground Training at Diyatalawa, securing the award for the Best Cadet of the 14th Officer Cadets Course. Pathirana was among a batch of pilots who were sent to the Pakistan Air Force Academy in Risalpur for advanced flying training, where he won the award for the "Best Allied Flight Cadet" from the PAF. Pathirana was commissioned in the rank of Pilot Officer on 2 January 1987 at the Pakistan Air Force Academy, Risalpur, Pakistan.Flying
Initially commencing his career in the Sri Lanka Air Force as a Reconnaissance pilot, he subsequently transited to Light Transport flying prior to moving into fast jets as a member of the first batch of pilots to fly supersonic aircraft in Sri Lanka. He commanded No 5 Fighter Squadron and subsequently No 10 Fighter Squadron flying the Kfir C 2 / C 7 extensively. Pathirana is a qualified flying instructor and a flying examiner. In addition to Kfir and F-7 fighters he is qualified in over 10 types of aircraft earning him over 3,500 flying hours. In addition, he holds a Commercial Pilots License and is a Flying Examiner for the Civil Aviation Authority of Sri Lanka.Pathirana followed his Junior Command and Staff Course at the Command and Staff and Training Institute, Bangladesh. In 1995, he became the first Sri Lankan pilot to complete the All-Purpose Qualified Flying Instructors Course in India. In 2002, he became the first Sri Lankan Air Force Officer to obtain the master's degree in Operational Art and Science from the Air University United States Air Force, Alabama in US. He pursued his second master's degree after completing master's degree in Management from the General Sir John Kotelawala Defence University.
He also served in as the first Defense Attaché at the Sri Lankan Embassy in Russia from 2007 to 2009. During his stint as defense attache in Russia, he obtained a diploma in the field of air field management from the University of Ukraine. He also served as the deputy military liaison officer at the Ministry of Defense for a short stint between 2009 and 2011. In January 2011, he attended the National Defense College gaining ndc qualification. He was also awarded the Master in Philosophy from the University of Chennai in 2012.