Bold and the beautiful

by Shanika SRIYANANDA

Major General Shavendra Silva (Right) pins a badge on a commando at a passing out parade. Commando skydivers boarding a helicopter

The seven Commandos decorated the sky as they experienced their first display while floating and rhythmically moving to the mild wind speed. The colourful P-D9 parachutes with a canopy of 270sf brought the fresh group of parachuters from 10,000 feet high to the ground safely. Amidst cheering of their kith and kin, they proved that they are well trained Commando sky divers of the Sri Lanka Army.

The happy moment that held spellbound all that morning was at the Commando Regimental School of Kuda Oya where over 42 fresh parachuters passed out from its Parashooting Wing.

The added speciality of the colourful event was that the Commandant of School Col. Jayantha Balasuriya, displaying the skills of the Parachuting Wing of Commando Regiment, jumped from 7,000 feet high as a mark of respect to the unit which has produced over 88 parachuters.

The parachuting unit with two courses - free fall (the basic training) and skydiving (the advanced training) commenced in 1980 and has a proud history where the skydivers of the Commando and Special Forces participated in several international meets.

The first set of instructors were trained under Pakistani instructors. Those parachuters, who had successfully completed five-day jumps and one-night jumps, were selected to get enrolled in the Advanced course - training to become skydivers.

"The basic training in which they jump from 1000 to 1200 feet is useful for the Commandos for a surprise mission into the battle fields where they camouflage the parachute and join the fighting teams in the battle front. The skydiving is used for them to do reconnaissance missions and they will jump a maximum of 14,000 feet and minimum of 6,000 feet", Col. Balasuriya explained.

According to Col. Balasuriya, the square type small parachute - the Match 3 Alpha- can be manipulated to get into the correct path and the canopy will be released automatically when it reached the set height. But the P-D 9 parachute which is used in skydiving needs to be controlled manually used only by qualified skydivers.

"Today, we have well trained parachuters for the Commando Regiment and Special Forces, thanks to Maj. Gen. Samantha Sooriyabandara.

He, the Lt. Col, who trained in India in parachuting wanted to train a soldier locally. He took the risk and trained Maj. Nilantha Sirimanne of the Commando Training School, but he was killed in the Jayasikuru Operation in 1997", he said.

Lt. Col. Sooriyabandara initiated the first course in parachuting in Sri Lanka giving training to Maj. Priyanatha Senaratne, Maj. Jayantha Balasuriya, Maj. Janaka Vitharana and Staff Sergeant Weerasinghe. "If not for his efforts, the Commando Regiment can not boast of qualified parachuters", Col. Balasuriya, who had jumped together with Regimental Sergeant Maj. Jayanthalal, said.

Col. Balasuriya, who was injured at the skydiving display held at the Foxhill Race in 1997, had his first skydiving jump after 10 years. "For a skydiver each and every jump is a new jump. The exit, fall and jump is novel from jump to jump. If the Parajumper is not stable he will lose control and start moving to a different direction", he said.

The dropping zone of the parachuters is at Ampara and it consists of good weather round the year.

The skydiving display was done by the school instructors - Maj. Sujith Siranjeeva, Warrant Officer Perera and Staff Sergeants Caldera and Manamperi.

Ending another passing out of the Parachuting Wing of the Regiment, the Senior Instructor Maj. Siranjeeva made the final sky diving jump from the MI 17 Helicopter carrying 42 'Parachuting Badges'.

Landing safely he handed them over to the chief guest Maj. Gen. Shavendra Silva, the Director Operations and the former Commander of the Commando Regiment, who pinned them on the uniforms of the Commandos who excelled in parachuting.

"First jump from a moving helicopter is a nightmare for each jumper.

With shivering legs it is scary for anyone when they look 3,000 feet down.

But once you get used to it, you will feel that you are a bird", Col. Balasuriya said.