Thursday, August 28, 2008

True figures of 'TAF' bombing

The true figures of the casualties in Tuesday's Zlin-143 bombing stands at 10 Naval Ratings killed and around 40 others wounded. Altogether 4 bombs were dropped, each weighing around 25kilos.

One bomb fell straight into a 15x30 Billet and the other fell inside an Officers' Quarters. However, no officers were killed in the explosion. One of the four bombs failed to detonate. The Zlin-143s had taken off from Mulaithivu and had traveled over the sea and entered the Trincomalee Bay from the east.

The target of the bombers had not been the Jetliner as originally thought, but an act to demonstrate to the Tamil Diaspora that the LTTE is still alive and well.

Meanwhile Special Forces LRRP teams struck twice again this evening deep inside LTTE controlled Nedunkerny. Two LTTE cadres, considered to be local area leaders were killed in the attacks. Both were riding motorcycles at the time.

184 comments:

perein said...

DW-
Thank you for the update.
In your openion what can we do to get the Takaram airlines?

koombiya said...

This is realy poor performance by the SLDF. with all the high tech and firepower, still get defeated by musquitos.
It seems they dont take it serious enough, overconfidence??????????
That's not a very good thing,
Always keep the eyes wide open, especially now as the tiger cage shrinks. they will throw the leftovers at SLDF.

May the Brave soldiers who sacrificed their lives attain Nibbana.

Defencewire said...

perein,

On a casual note I would say;
This can be dealt with the day we enroll the sons of Bandayya and Punchibanda from Polonnaruwa and Anuradhapura in the Air Force and turn them into better mission-oriented pilots who hit the targets HUMINT gives you.

On a more immediate situation, I would say;
Get pilots daring enough to do dive bombings, find the F source and hit them when they take-off, land or hide the planes.

chamal said...

Defencewire,

There was nothing wrong with the setup of the air defences? Were our people prepared for this when it happened? I hope they weren't having a nap somewhere or it has been 'deactivated for maintenance' as happened before. And no SLAF aircraft has been sent to intercept either it seems. Was it too late for that?

chamal said...

"Get pilots daring enough to do dive bombings, find the F source and hit them when they take-off, land or hide the planes."

But will the SLAF go for such an option, with the very limited number of fighters we have?

Unknown said...

DW,

Can a SAM sucessfully destroy this kind of low flying object?

Defencewire said...

chamal,

There was no early warning. The defences were prepared enough. The patches not covered by RADAR have to be covered immediately. This includes sea area over major airbases and spotters both near the source and at the target location.

Defencewire said...

chamal,

The danger to the jets is grossly exaggerated.

samantha,

I doubt if a SAM could takeout something that fly very low.

abilin said...

Palamoddai town is captured!!!

Observer said...

Defenncewire..

"This can be dealt with the day we enroll the sons of Bandayya and Punchibanda from Polonnaruwa and Anuradhapura in the Air Force and turn them into better mission-oriented pilots who hit the targets HUMINT gives you."

couldnt agree with you more on the quote. And thank you very much for spending your valuable time in the regularly updating the blog.

Long live SLDF !!

Observer said...

Defencewire,

Have you got any info regarding the food poisoning ?

Is there anything "fishy" ?

perein said...

DW-

On a more immediate situation, I would say;
Get pilots daring enough to do dive bombings, find the F source and hit them when they take-off, land or hide the planes.

It's a shame that we do not have any idea where these Takaram airlines getting launched or hidden.
Still not sure why intelligence cannot get near the LTTE Takram Airforce units? (These days LRRP get group leaders to top guys details, how comes there is a gap about this?)

chamal said...

Thanks DW.

Samantha, I think the problem is to get it locked on. If you're launching it from a high place where you can see the target clearly and long to get it locked on, then it can easily take out a piston engined plane without any defences pretty easily. But when you're on the ground, it would be gone before you can get it locked on. No problem if you're using radar guided SAM's I guess. But we are not using any kind of SAM on a large scale.

PHANTOM-X said...

even Prabhakaran can take wing and escape...!!! we must take steps to prevent such things before it's too late...!!!

we musn't let that f.....g b.....d get away...!!! we must up our defences without delay...!!!

at this stage, diversion acts to prevent such an escape is possible...

අහිංසක said...

Thing happend has happend !

We salute to the slain soldiers of SLN. May them rest in peace !

It'll not far away the day we see these primitive flying machines going to get thrashed by our advancing forces !

Let crabs dance till the water get boiled enough !

SL RealEstate said...

Was it a sea plane? Some eye witnesses said they have seen the TAF planes that bombed the navy base came from the sea side and also it is a sea plane. This raised alarm bells in the SL defense circle as they were under the assumption that TAF is using single engine flights and using runways some where in Vanni.
Now, The SL security establishment is re visiting the previous LTTE Air force attacks and trying to verify If it was a sea plans. Reliable sources confirmed that there are more evidence to suggest that it was a sea plane as most of the attacks came from sea side. SL Air Force also believes this was the reason why the radars were not detecting on time as it’s not covering the sea levels. Some analyst commented that SL military says that only 11km is to reach to Kilinochi and in the other side, they are still trying to figure out what kind of plane is bombing them and where they are coming from.
TamilNewsWorld.com

perein said...

Chamal-
I do see your point, however we cannnot afford to loose the AA guns by moving them around with out proper security mate.

Achi said...

I can't be satisfied with the airforce role here.They might have done something.But I think when we consider the amount of money we have spent on airforce they are doing very less than whaat they are capable of.
When I saw Thunukkai video i realized, they are not doing as they are boasting bcz the LTTE leaders hideout (quite a big house) was unharmed.When we consider the fact that Thunukkai is a small village and there are only handfull of houses it shouldn't be a imposssible task.Sametime don't think in that area untill u are a LTTE member u can afford that type of house(entrance gate was nicely decorated using some colorfull bricks).If SLAF had a better brain they could have easily identified, after a better research.Bcz eventhough there were trees above the house it's not fully covered and from the sides easily visible if they have observed clearly.
Adding to that there was a huge mount of bottles in the backyard of leaders house,looks like he was running a liquor businness.So there might hve been frequent vehicle moments also around that house.

sldf said...

Defencewire,

Why unnecessarily risk our air assets and pilots to chase the zilns. Time will come for the zilns.

Mango said...

We should not have released the news that one bomb did not explode.

This gives valuable feedback to the LTTE to improve their detonation mechanism.

During the Falklands War, the stupid BBC mentioned that some Argentinian bombs had hit ships and not detonated. The Argentinians promptly amended their fuzing/detonation mechanisms.

Gringo said...

[Some analyst commented that SL military says that only 11km is to reach to Kilinochi and in the other side, they are still trying to figure out what kind of plane is bombing them and where they are coming from.
]

True... true...

Some analysts also say that SLDF still 100 km from Trinco and Batti... and Neil Armstrong's landing on the moon was a fake drama!

Unknown said...

Mango, you are thinking smart like a Sinhalese boy :D

don't you think if the LTTE got enough intelligence to get the target and accurately attack, that they will not be able to find out if their bomb denoted or not?

you guys make me laugh so loud!

you fools!

Achi said...

[Was it a sea plane?]
May be they are having zing+sea planes.Remember once Bala and Adala landed to Iranamadu tank.I think those were Maldivine planes.

Ruwani said...

This looks like a very informative web site. I would like to thank the writers here for sharing this wealth of knowledge. I created an account just to participate here.

Thanks
Ruwani D.G

kaatikuddupaan said...

Reason why the Vaan pulligal brigade is so hard to find is because everything about them is top secret.

Those guys won't be allowed out of their bases and are basically circus monkeys only let out to do a mission then put back into a base.


I highly doubt its a sea plane which takes off from the sea as most of the training flights are going on at night and around the forests of south of Puthukudiruppu area.

I think it would be a really good idea to mount a good radar system on a beechcraft and it may be able to pickup where the planes are taking off and landing at nights.

America uses this and its called AWACS

Gringo said...

[http://www.army.lk/morenews.php?id=15621]

Good catch.... plus a friendly reminder to all seriously proud Sri Lankans not to rest until we 'account' for all LTTE terrorists.

Let's make sure that the Elaam day-dream contunues remain a day-dream... until the end of time.

Mango said...

Kavalan - of course Trinco's crawling with LTTE spies, probably of all ethnicities. This is not a secret and is not the point.

There are many ways of letting information leak to determine the source of the leak.

In any case, this'll be decided on the battlefield and not by propaganda raids by the LTTE's Zlins. The Germans and Japanese fought bitterly and resisted until the end, to no avail. A similar fate awaits your racist supremacist ideologue. As the Yanks say 'Payback's a bitch ain't it?'

As for my ethnicity, its completely irrelevant. I may be Sinhalese or Tamil or Burgher or Malay or English or all or none of those things.

The fact that you feel the need to include it in your comments only serves to highlight your own inner racism. My condolences that you have to suffer with this unfortunate illness. If you can afford it, you should seek professional help.

Kaatikuddupaan on the other hand always has something interesting to add. A question to you, Kaati, if you don't mind:

How will the veteran LTTE fighters face the inevitable? They, even more than VP, will know the battlefield realities they face on a daily basis. Will they melt away or fight to the bitter end?

Unknown said...

@Kaatikuddupaan, we had a Beechcraft with US equipped surveillance systems (our very own AWACS), it was destroyed in the AAB attack (by suicide bombers, not TAF), I believe we are equipping the remaining Beechcraft with new US equipment, it should become operational soon (it may already be in operation). This will be used mainly for marine surveillance.

Also, where were these Tiger pilots trained, do they have multi engine licenses (to fly jets)?

Renegade! said...

Defencewire

SHAME ON THE SLAF!!.why can;t they go in for dive bombings??,,i mean the Mig-27's flown by ukrainian pilots are lo-level attack aircraft rite so why can;t the local boys ridin Kfirs get lo as well??

LKDOOD said...

Blogger Ruwani said...

This looks like a very informative web site. I would like to thank the writers here for sharing this wealth of knowledge. I created an account just to participate here.

Thanks
Ruwani D.G

August 28, 2008 11:38 PM

_______________________

Hi Ruwani

welcome to DW

its good to see new people here

Jambudipa said...

What is missing here is an act of chivalry where the Air Force meets the LTTE aircraft on similar machinery. A duel on a level playing field, mano-o-mano fight until death on air. The aircraft I am thinking here is a modified Cessna-152 or Piper Warrior with suitable weaponry. It seems the Kfir and Migs and their chiefs are very good at attacking something as long as it’s on the ground and not moving. They had their chance and blew it. I am thinking the air-force chief needs replacing soon.

It looks as if they fly low towards the ocean where radar coverage is weak then turn towards land close to the target. The delay between identification and scrambling aircraft from Minneria was 15 mins. How far can they go in 15 mins that they are totally untraceable? How fast can these aircraft fly? It’s a mystery to me.

Amma Gahai/Gahawi said...

Defencewire :

“ On a casual note I would say;
This can be dealt with the day we enroll the sons of Bandayya and Punchibanda from Polonnaruwa and Anuradhapura ….”

Best Quote from u so far! My hats off to u! And thank u for the regular info and for not loosing ur temper when fairdinkum idiots make phony/poncy comments.

I think we need local knowledge and thinking to figure-out an easy and less expensive way to get rid of these Tuk Tuk plains!

I lost my pilot license on my virgin flight from Koggala to Rathmalana trying to pic up a chick on my way! : ))

If I were to go through the whole process then all u have to give me is the coordinates where Dwaraka is and I’ll dive-bomb the shit out of VP!

Kaati: Thanks and as always very useful !

Mango: Well said mate!

Kaavalan: u fairdinkum D#ck Head!

Jambudipa said...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zlin_Z-143

"The Z-143 has a maximum speed of 260 kilometres (162 miles) and as such it makes it a relatively difficult target to detect and intercept by a force that lacks airborne early warning or an extensive defence radar network when the aircraft is flown at low level. To date the Sri Lanka Air Force has not been successful in intercepting any of the Air Tigers fixed wing aircraft.[1]"


The incompetence of the airforce made it to the WikiPedia too.

< Z 43 - Max speed 235km/h >

That means, in 15 mins these things can fly almost 65 km. Whats in the 65km radius from Trinco? The runway must be close to the sea along the coast.

Unknown said...

The LTTE is not weak neither is it on its last leg. Stop believing SLFP propaganda. The LTTE has clearly demonstrated that they still can strike where they want and at will.

This is the problem that people always believe the news dished out by the goverment machinery. Its for that reason that defence blogs have sprung up. Anyone with Inteligence in the Navy would have known that the LTTE was not targeting the Jetliner. A Jetliner at Sea would be more valuable to take out then at land.

I think the camp comandant and his duty officer should be suspended in Amaparai over the food poising incident and charged if necessary. Its horrible that the food served is contaminated. The chief cook and his team should be court martialed. There is no excuse for such an incident and on large scale.

As it is army food taste bad, how can they make the soldiers live more miserable by doing so.

Mango said...

Identifying the LTTE pilots

Their faces are quite visible. It can't be that difficult using a Police photofit artist & Photoshop to fill in the missing details. I'm amazed that the LTTE have been so cavalier about displaying their faces.

How did they arrive in SL? Probably via India, by boat - although knowing the LTTE's modus operandi, they probably flew 1st class on Sri Lankan Airways to CMB :)

Where were they trained? Probably in the West or the usual suspect countries of Africa and SE Asia. Then engage in painstaking police work, with the help of overseas agencies to determine where they were trained. In Western Europe, Asian trainee pilots would be remembered. The UK PPL training set up is very regulated and strict on paperwork. Instructors will certainly remember dark skinned pupils with strong accents.

Who knows, this search may uncover a larger network of helpers and agents in Sri Lanka.

On another matter, I don't understand the fuss over dive bombing. Most modern combat aircraft no longer need to dive to gain accurate hits, do they? I thought that we used laser target designators for high value targets?

Unknown said...

http://www.defence.lk/new.asp?fname=20080827_08
Foreign Minister acknowledges Russian support in the fight against terrorism

How about Georgia and thier terrorist now called as freedom fighters. Really Disappointed. Tommorrow if Sri Lanka has a problem with India, then LTTE becomes freedom fighters for India?

Guess one other guy shares my views. Gomin Dayasri - Defence.lk , looks like he should also do the defence reporting to make it more credible.

"the series of blunders made by J.R.Jayawardane who can be described as the father of terrorism in the North and the South with Prabhakaran and Wijeweera as the offsprings."

Naturally politicians will seek devolution for their own enhancement of power. However if grievances are eliminated or reduced, the minorities as individuals, will be satisfied their needs have received attention and leaves less room for another Prabhakaran to emerge.

Moshe Dyan said...

navindran,

that is not the solution bcos that is not how the problem should be defined in the first place.

there is no (ethnic) minority-majority division. as you said in a previous post, all are sri lankans (as all are malaysians). that is the solution.

there is NO need to satisfy (ethnic) minoritites as such as long as the POLITICAL majority which ESSENTIALLY includes all ethnic groups is satisfied. after all you CANNOT satisfy everyone.

lets not go back to racial divisions after anwar ibrahim's historical example.

TropicalStorm said...

I agree with Navindran's comments that the LTTE still retains siginificant strike ability.
Nevertheless the attrition war has already taken its toll and that ability is withering by the day.

This is the reason why the tgers have to move fast against an important target and debilitate the SLDF's plans at least for a short period to enable re-grouping.
Knowing this, the SLA military planners are bound to have led counter strategies and fall back options on each frontline.

The inability to take on the fast mobility and multiple strategic thrust of the SLA seems to be the LTTe's Achiles heel. Even though tehy were capable of taking on and fighting slow moving columns of yester-year, the present game as is played by the SLA has out-classed the LTTE's ability to hold ground and fight for long.

As more of regular troops of the SLA gain experience and are inducted into small hit team ops that are conducted behind enemy lines, the LTTE will find it increasingly more difficult to face upto the resourcefulness of the SLDF.
For the SLDF, the future success lies definitely in unconventional and assymetric warfare and our boys are becoming expert at it.

Moshe Dyan said...

how weak is the LTTE compared to august 2006? (guesstimates)

landmass = 15k-11k = 73% weakened

total cadres = 23k-9k+9k = 0% weakened (or close to it)

regular cadres = 8k-1k+1k = 0% weakened (or close to it)

elites = 3k-0.5k+0.5k = 0% weakened (or close to it)

new weapons purchases = may be 75% weakened

international support = 50% weakened

victory or defeat in war is based on ANNIHILATION of the LTTE. TF LTTE is 0% weakened cadres wise (or close to it) although it is 50%-75% weakened w.r.t. land/new weapons purchases/international support.

admin said...

‘Saving Jetliner’ - Daily Mirror- 2008/08/29
Another look from another angle at the same incident

Achi said...

I think we have two Ruwanis here.Check out last article there is one more Ruwani.

Jambudipa said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Jambudipa said...

*------*

When the Aussie cricket team takes on Bangalidesh or Zambia, they never belittle their opponents. They play with the same intensity with cricket minnows with the same level they play with the best. Their captain at the press conference never say it will be an easy game.

There is a good reason why they never belittle their opponent. As soon as the captain makes a statement its an easy game, the foot solders under him gets complacent.

How weak LTTE is irrelevant, what matters is the defense establishment never make statements such as we will finish them this year or we are ready for any takarang air attack. The soldiers and naval ratings gets complacent and loosen up. When they realise the challenge is gone, they may even get demoralised.

LTTE must be taken on at the same intensity without ANY UNDERESTIMATION until their last carder swallows cyanide or surrender.

*------*

Bhairav said...

Paalamodai was stronghold of LTTE before, now it is gone. I would say the chances of Kili falls to SLA in the favor of 70/30 now. If SLA reaches Kili, Tamils, especially diaspora, won't trust LTTE anymore since they have used the tactical withdrawal one too many times whenever it was convenient.

Moshe Dyan said...

i think it is important to assess how weak the LTTE is and MoD is doing it. obviously they are not weak going by criteria that matter MOST.

while it's present weakpoints MUST be kept that way, its STRONG points need to be weakened.

propoganda statements have nothing to do with real assessments and there is no let up whatsoever. in fact there is gradual intensification of war in its individual componenets (# air strikes, # fronts, # SLDFs, # equipment, etc.) clearly defence top brass has NOT fooled itself!!!

Jambudipa said...

Heylo there Moshe,

/*
propoganda statements have nothing to do with real assessments and there is no let up whatsoever.
*/

I believe the Air Force chief said he was ready for any eventuality. Clearly he wasn't. Now he must feel like a fool because his opponent beat him for the 7th time with civilian light planes. If he is cocky, then his action must match up to his cockiness. Propaganda is needed but not like this. This is silly and embarrassing.

Unknown said...

Moshe agreed but you cannot use a magic wand to remove a feeling of minority majority straight away. However it the goverment that should not use race as a tool to govern.

A handicapped person is a minority. Likewise widows etc. Hence once you start to trangress race, then politicians should see that solving problems is most important.

Moshe Dyan said...

panhinda,

yes, mate. that came within a week!! but his MiG29 gadgets are on their way although things won't change with them. if i remember right he had SOME reservations on the air defence system.

i like your distance/speed calculations; will try to do a simulation when i get to a computer. i know there is a HUGE lack of data, but at least a CSI approach for the fun of it.

Unknown said...

http://lkdefencecolumns.blogspot.com/2008/08/saving-jetliner-daily-mirror-20080829.html

This daily mirror article is the biggest joke article I have read. It continues to illustrate the kind of people who are writers for defence columns in Sri Lanka. I would not waste my time pointing out the stupidity in the article. Good that people like defencewire are around.

A thought to the Jetliner theorist, would the Jetliner be full of people when its about to leave or before. Does the Jetliner travel usually a night for LTTE to use their planes or during daylight. A loaded ship at sea is easier to destroy using suicide cadres or using planes that lack accuracy. Will it be easier or harder to save injured sailors at the dock or at the open sea.

Moshe Dyan said...

navindran,

exactly.

unemployment, development, schools, hospitals, ICT, fundamental rights, etc. are BETTER looked at as a WHOLE than based on race.

i'm sure the way things are moving ibrahim's precedence will be followed in the US too!!!

but knowing BN guys & their tricks, cannot rule out many more hurdles for AI.

Apino Dannachess said...

I don't know why some people are grumbling about DIVE BOMBING and having pilots with BALLS to do so. I'm no flyer but, know enough to say that dive bombing was used in the olden days to accurately deliver ordinance to small target in the absence of guidance systems. That's not case with SLAF MIGs &Kfirs and the ordinance used(as far as I know). Like somebody said they are guided munitions which can be released from far without exposing the air assets and trained pilots to LTTE anti aircraft fire. I'm more than happy to be corrected if this is not the case

Colomblogs said...

DW : well said about the "This can be dealt with the day we enroll the sons of Bandayya..."

In pure defence POV, I admire the tactics used by TAF.

1) They found a critical and valuable target (though missed it) to upset SLDF and Govt. at a critical juncture of the war
- previous e.g : BIA attack, Central Bank, Navy transit camp, A'pura Airbase...

2). used minimum/available resources

on the other hand:
a). SLAF cant protect its own assets with much availabe resources.Not once but many times. BIA and A'pura both due to lack and gross negligence of internal protection strategies.
(they shoud be embarassed to send SLA to protect SLAF)

b). Poor in decision making on selecting/purchasing strategic resources

c). Not making target precicoulsy even after pin-point ground Intel (as posted by DW too).

Altogether need some dramatic attitude changes and probably replacment of middle level officers simillar what SF doing to SLA. On one note SLAF commander trying hard...!

Next :
1). they might attack Jetliner (with 1000 boys)in the sea, MBRL, a Senior officer. May be this happens simultaneously. Hope we have plans and planes (not words) to counter this kind of simul-attack. Closer we come to LTTE terrotory, it will be easy for them.

2). It is highly likely that they use Sea planes (probably transported by specially made boats to the mid sea for take-off)

3). Dont get fooled by the pictures. They might be LTTE accountants):

4). Unless they are sure of accuracy and the value of target, they may not loose a plane and valuable pilot by a Kamikaze attack.

Rather than just hate thy enemey, by appreciating their strength and tactics, helps to find the weekness of them.

B#1 said...

Bhairav said,

[If SLA reaches Kili, Tamils, especially diaspora, won't trust LTTE anymore]

No. They never going to abandon their trust on LTTE since they are brainless people. Even though Army enter Kili and capture it, diaspora will be happy if VP managed to escape from the country by killing thousands of innocent tamils.

They will say "hu hu you couldn't capture our thalaivar, therefore we are the winners".

-----------------------------------

Guys don't think it is an easy task to handle a situation when LTTE Zlins are airborne. There can happen lot of friendly fire and LTTE might expect it too.

Apino Dannachess said...

By the way curious to know whether our high priority targets are protected by radar guided machine guns that can track and shoot approaching aircraft and even missiles? Unlike the SAMs these can engage the target over a longer period continuously delivering their lethal ammo. But I'm also aware they are used as the last line of defense (in Ships at least) after having used missiles at the approaching enemy missiles/ aircraft: short range I guess.

MrBrown said...

[[[Navindran said...
http://lkdefencecolumns.blogspot.com/2008/08/saving-jetliner-daily-mirror-20080829.html

This daily mirror article is the biggest joke article I have read. It continues to illustrate the kind of people who are writers for defence columns in Sri Lanka. I would not waste my time pointing out the stupidity in the article. Good that people like defencewire are around.

A thought to the Jetliner theorist, would the Jetliner be full of people when its about to leave or before. Does the Jetliner travel usually a night for LTTE to use their planes or during daylight. A loaded ship at sea is easier to destroy using suicide cadres or using planes that lack accuracy. Will it be easier or harder to save injured sailors at the dock or at the open sea.

August 29, 2008 10:58 AM
]]]
U reeally sound very knowlegable in military analysis. I would really appreciate if u can join with my forum www.lankanewspapers.com which lakcs knowledegable people. i have now bunch of stupid old fellas..now:-)

MrBrown said...

Guys I dont understand why this gov wants to hide the truth. Initially we weere told 4 SLN were injured and it was failed attempt. Now it seems 10 dead and 40 injured and unconfirmed report said 2 navy boats were damaged or destroyed. Why Gov is trying to fool around us with lot of false information. I still have a doubt about the news from wanni specially on the casualties of SLA and LTTEs

Sithsala said...

Its not necessarily be a sea plane.

One way to get airborne over the sea or a lake, is to use a straight and wide enough road that ends on the shoreline.

If theres enough cover on the top by trees, that would be even better.

There will be couple of obstacles like how to transport the planes to the desired location securely, without being detected, unless the zlins are stationed close by.

The question is, do they really need get air borne over the sea?

Can't they get airborne over m'tivu and follow a east-south-west flight path that has the minimum exposure to radar?

N said...

The same way DefenceWire refers a couple of ‘Tin Cans’ an Air Force, our President too claims an ethnic conflict in Sri Lanka. This is just LTTE propaganda; we don’t have an ethnic conflict but a terrorist conflict. Why are we ‘REACTING’ to LTTE propaganda blindy instead of ‘ACTING’? Usually the LTTE terrorists are one step ahead of us & always acting and we are blindly reacting. You can clearly see this ‘tin can’ bombing incident, now we have started to react just as other things.

We are lucky to have GR as the DS some great Army & Navy Commanders who have done exceptionally well to liberate the country. It is of my opinion that the AF Commander is the weak link. The Anuradapura AF Base was attacked and LTTE tin cans are still flying and dropping bombs at will even after one year. It may be advisable to have separate Air wings for both Army & Navy if the AF Commander cannot come up with a concrete solution.

Guys, you are worried about VP escaping, right? But that will definitely happen as MR has already guaranteed a safe passage (or the Governorship in the North) to VP by NOT BANNING the LTTE in Sri Lanka, LTTE has always a few cards in their sleeve, they aren’t as foolish as our blind & deaf leaders ruling the country (incidentally I began to realize that there’s a big truth in calling us Modayas). The LTTE terrorists will hide most of their valuable arsenals and will agree to surrender weapons as a last resort. Once they have accepted the above and the SLDF will not be able eliminate the leadership but protect them instead.

Just imagine, what can MR do, go against his own words? Who do you think will rule the North then? It will definitely be LTTE? And what will happen once the 13th amendment being implemented and all Police and Juridical powers given to the (LTTE) province? And when do you thin the hidden arsenal will submerge? What can one legally do? NOTHING. What the f--- are our President & his so called advisors doing? When the rest of the world called a war against terrorism after the 9/11, VP got that weak spineless donkey Ranil Wickramasingha to offer the North & East on a silver platter. The history is going to be repeating in a different way I guess!

MrBrown said...

N said...
The same way DefenceWire refers a couple of ‘Tin Cans’ an Air Force, our President too claims an ethnic conflict in Sri Lanka. This is just LTTE propaganda; we don’t have an ethnic conflict but a terrorist conflict. Why are we ‘REACTING’ to LTTE propaganda blindy instead of ‘ACTING’? Usually the LTTE terrorists are one step ahead of us & always acting and we are blindly reacting. You can clearly see this ‘tin can’ bombing incident, now we have started to react just as other things. ]]]]]
I never saw these kind of stupid argument even in LNP..what stupid peerson u r. Yes u r right why we sometimes are called modayas..i guess its because of u people.:-)

N said...

The same way DefenceWire refers a couple of ‘Tin Cans’ an Air Force, our President too claims an ethnic conflict in Sri Lanka. This is just LTTE propaganda; we don’t have an ethnic conflict but a terrorist conflict. Why are we ‘REACTING’ to LTTE propaganda instead of ‘ACTING’? Usually the LTTE terrorists are one step ahead of us & always acting and we are blindly reacting. You can clearly see this ‘tin can’ bombing incident, now we started to react just as other things.

We are lucky to have GR as the DS some great Army & Navy Commanders who have done exceptionally well to liberate the country. It is of my opinion that the AF Commander is the weak link. The Anuradapura AF Base was attacked and LTTE tin cans are still flying and dropping bombs at will even after one year. It may be advisable to have separate Air wings for both Army & Navy if the AF Commander cannot come up with a concrete solution.

Guys, you are worried about VP escaping, right? But that will definitely happen as MR has already guaranteed a safe passage (or the Governorship in the North) to VP by NOT BANNING the LTTE in Sri Lanka, LTTE has always a few cards in their sleeves, they aren’t as foolish as our blind leaders ruling the country (incidentally I began to realize that there’s a big truth in calling us Modayas). The LTTE terrorists will hide most of their valuable arsenals and will agree to surrender weapons as a last resort. Once they have accepted the above and the SLDF will not be able eliminate the leadership but protect them instead.

Just imagine, what can MR do, go against his own words? Who do you think will rule the North then? It will definitely be LTTE? And what will happen once the 13th amendment being implemented and all Police and Juridical powers given to the (LTTE) province? And when do you thin the hidden arsenal will submerge? What can one legally do? NOTHING. What the f--- are our President & his so called advisors doing? When the rest of the world called a war against terrorism after the 9/11, VP got that weak spineless donkey Ranil Wickramasingha to offer the North & East on a silver platter. The history is going to be repeating in a different way ! IF MR WANTS TO SAVE THE COUNTRY FROM THE LTTE, HE MUST BAN THEM NOW, IT'S NOT STILL TOO LATE.

N said...

Mr. Brown,

Thanks for your comment. Can you be a bit specific??

Unknown said...

DW-

Thanks for the updates.

About detecting where this air-strip might be, shouldn't it almost certainly be lit for night landings? and if so, shouldn't it be fairly easy to detect this through any sensible air survailence going on at the time?

Just my 2 cents.

MrBrown said...

If I am right LTTE's night mission works with purely GPS cordinate. I guess even they can use that to Landing also may be with a brief lighting..few seconds.

padayar50 said...

hello.....newbie here

Achilles said...

DW
Do we have Igla?

Igla and Igla-1 SAMs are the best solution against TAF kites!

Link:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/9K38_Igla

Igla Is Russian for "Needle" the symbole of which is emblazoned on the weapon. no one can escape from :)

watch youtube:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p3CwiUflwcA


Foreign Minister acknowledges Russian support in the fight against terrorism!
Russia's support to Sri Lanka in combating terrorism:

So Give Us IGLA!!!! We Will Rock them!!

MrBrown said...

Hey Hajara50

welcome to DW..sorry I had to ban u there since u were too old for me to screw u up:)

padayar50 said...

MrBrown or whoever,

So that was why you banned my wife? What a load of crap. The story about banning her because she is not a woman is all a load of BS? Why don't we go one on one? You know me. Tell me who you are (if you have the guts to do so)

MrBrown said...
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
Dumindak said...

what I was thinking that SLDF doesnt want to destroy tin cans, just to keep the IC support for the war, specially Indian, at maximum level.

LTTE aircrafts are huge danger for the world, specially to south asia.So as long as they can fly GOSL can justify the war and they can ask for international support.

the IC is in one opinion now, that is LTTE should be destroyed. that is why even with thousands of displace people not a single country open their mouth.
LTTE further justify the ic stand just flying their tin cans.

MrBrown said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
MrBrown said...

[[[ Duminda said...
what I was thinking that SLDF doesnt want to destroy tin cans, just to keep the IC support for the war, specially Indian, at maximum level.

LTTE aircrafts are huge danger for the world, specially to south asia.So as long as they can fly GOSL can justify the war and they can ask for international support.

]]]
Yes its huge danger for the world..but not to Sri Lanka.. what a moronic argument.. i guess this is why some times our people let the LTTEs sucide carder to blow just to justify the war and carry on..what a bullshit u r talking..just accept the utter failure of SLDF and move on..
i guys LNP forum people are now smarter than here.

August 29, 2008 1:53 PM

shay said...

Achilles,

"DW
Do we have Igla?

Igla and Igla-1 SAMs are the best solution against TAF kites!"

Yes, we do have MANPADs, not sure which version. However, there is nothing special about this and won't neccesarily help to defeat the Zlin's. In the case of Trinco, if there was no warning or only a few minutes notice, it would not have been enough time to arm the MANPADs. Most probably they would be kept in storage as the seekers degrade when kept out.

Air defence is very expensive business and cant be done on the cheap, despite some people claiming we can use Cessna's etc (we have plenty of those, including in Trinco, Anuradhapura etc).

We will only be able to defeat the Zlins when we have proper radar coverage, land + airborne (not sure if the current 2D, 3D radars work) which can give enough advance warning to get interceptors off the ground and help to guide to the target. Once you can do that, we have more than enough aircraft (jets, props and helicopters) which can knock out a Zlin.

Some dedicated integrated point-defence systems such as Tunguska which uses radar, AA and SAMS would also have worked in a situation like Trinco. These can only be deployed at strategic targets, so won't always help.

dhinuksha said...

"On a casual note I would say;
This can be dealt with the day we enroll the sons of Bandayya and Punchibanda from Polonnaruwa and Anuradhapura"


100% True. after the first day of attack from the Zlins. i met a high ranking SLAF personal at a gathering. i just pointed out that they (TAF) might use GPS devices to guide to targets. this fellow didn't believe it, he just blabber about they (TAF) are following lights to guide their planes etc.. he just simply didn't agree with me that they might use GPS devices. i mean, common guys any idiot could find target coordinates from Google earth or something and enter these cordinates to a GPS device (Let's say Simple Garmin). not all, but there are bad eggs among good ones!

Moshe Dyan said...

we don't have IGLA-1 (SA-18) missiles. a lesser version would do the job provided we deploy those in the right places.

AA guns are hopeless although good deterants..

MrBrown said...

LTTE bombing techniques..
they knew if they release the boomb at one cordinate which cordinate will be targetted. speed and the altitude are considereed for the mission. this is why they just come and drop the bomb and fly back..with out any delay in finding target.. this is bullshit way to switch off the power and keeping people and forces under panick sittuation. this is why 1 SLN was killed and 2 injured due to misfire.

Achilles said...

Shay Thanks for the information!

Unknown said...

Mr brown thanks for the offer. LTTE pilots will train using GPS coordinates and they would probabily do test runs to see at what coordinates they should release the bombs before it hits at the intended targets. Like in World War 2 they have a bomadier if its 2 pilots as their pictures shown. Else its not too difficult for a single pilot to get the timing right before releasing the payload. They probabily do alot of practice runs.

All rifles need to be zeroed. Each soldier needs to go to the range several times to zero the rifle to suit his style of shooting. Likewise all pilots SLAF or LTTE will probabily do their due deligence.

LTTE planes have an advantage that they fly lower and slower. However their disadvantage is using gravity bombs. Likewise SLAF pilots and thier planes have their Pro and Cons.

Jambudipa said...

Heylo shay,

Do you work for the Air Force by any chance? Here are some of the phrases you used in your post.

-not sure
-nothing special
-won't neccesarily help
-not have been enough
-cant be done on the cheap
-when we have proper radar coverage
-won't always help

You can't do this, that and the other. Im just curious, is there anything you can do? People like you in the airforce no wonder its in a pathetic state!

MrBrown said...

Panhinda..
I like ur sense of humour.
why dont u join to LNP. www.lankanewspapers.com

Jambudipa said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Jambudipa said...

Thank you Mr. Brown. Perhaps some day I will.

MrBrown said...
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
san said...

Nice Map http://www.army.lk/maps/map1.gif

kaatikuddupaan said...

I know that most of the LTTE pilots are extremely smart A level or uni students.

I will tell you about one of them,

his name is Lt.Col Maraichelvan

He came to SL from France'early during current ceasefire period.

After the 6 month training, he worked with the Kanini pirivu. After that LTTE sent him to some Russian country ( I think Ukraine ) to learn how to do piloting but not of the current planes but an even better version that was supposed to be smuggled in.

Maraichelvan was so brilliant he got the highest acaedemic acheivement in that former soviet country.

After he came back to Vanni, he was working again in Kannini pirivu since the more advanced plane he was supposed to be using had not arrived yet.

He was designing a new type of bomb when it accidentally detonated and he was killed.

Thought he was in LTTE for only 4 years, Prabhakaran gave him Lt. Col rank because of his dedication to organisation.

As to other question about veteran LTTE members.

Prabhakaran has issued that every last tamil has to die fighting with a gun in his or her hand.

The veterans have no other life apart from LTTE, many especially from East don't have any family to return to.

These guys may for a criminal gang, however they are not that criminal minded and are mostly order-carry out people.

It''s hard to say what will happen but I think they mstly wil fight to the death, but they are no good at fighting independantly without command and control.

The other white collar LTTE members are no good at fighting e.t.c and probably will end up in Boosa or thrown off a helicopter middle of sea.

Unknown said...

Trivia BG Wesley D'Aranjo setup the Rapier system in Singapore. I believe he is a Sri Lankan burgher http://www.singaporerapier.com/contact.html

Not sure.

Jambudipa said...

mrbrown,

You sound angry and scared. why are you this way? Please make sure your post here is defense related.

Jambudipa said...

kaatikuddupaan

/*
most of the training flights are going on at night and around the forests of south of Puthukudiruppu area.
*/

Yes, this sounds credible. This area is close to the sea and their Naval base in Chalai. Having looked at Google Earth, there are many dirt roads around the Puthukudiruppu jungles that seemingly end in nowhere.

Unknown said...

Mr. Katti...........

i can only laugh at your comments in this blog.

Unknown said...

@ Kaatikuddupaan:

Thanks for your comments, your input is always valued.

Can you tell us a little bit more about the TAF? i.e.

- What was the other type of aircraft they were planning to acquire?
- How did they smuggle the Zlins in?
- If the TAF pilots are highly educated, why are they so committed to the low educated Tiger hierarchy? How come they are brainwashed? Surely they can think objectively, were their families affected ?
- Do they train everyday, don't our UAVs come near where they train?
- What is in those bombs?

Thanks

PS, ignore negative comments about you.

shay said...

Hello Panhinda,

"Do you work for the Air Force by any chance?"

No I don't work for SLAF or the military.

"Here are some of the phrases you used in your post.
-not sure"

As far as I know the military has not publicly acknowledged what type of MANPADs they use, but its a good bet its Igla or Chinese HN type.

"-nothing special
-won't neccesarily help"

MANPADs are not very effective at all and requires many operational variables to be in place for it to work even against a Zlin type aircraft. Even a basic aircraft without any countermeasures can take precautions to overcome a MANPAD especially when they have the eliment of surprise.

"-not have been enough"

It takes a while to arm the MANPADs assuming the batteries, seekers and all the critical components are working. Even then it can easily fail to lock especially against a low flying target which is not in sight for long (if it was in sight at all).

For a more detailed explanation check out the postings by Mig29c on the first few pages of the Kfir thread on LNP.

"-cant be done on the cheap"

Its definitely expensive and it has to be multi-layered, so you need radars (preferably both ground+airborne), SAM/AA systems and interceptors. Not sure about the radars, but an integrated point-defence system like Tunguska can cost about USD 8-10mn per single unit from what I can remember. Something like Israeli Spyder is over USD 20mn per system (1 command module + 4 firing modules).

You do realise I hope that small planes like Zlins are used to smuggle drugs etc into countries all over the world, many of which have much better air defences than SL.

"-when we have proper radar coverage"

Given that we haven't had enough advance warning on any of the attacks, its fair to assume that current radar coverage is insufficient.

"-won't always help"

Point defence systems have short/medium range (upto around 15km using SAM's), so it won't work unless the LTTE tries to attack a strategic location where a system is deployed. They won't do that if we get them, they will attack an unguarded target.

මොරටු සමන් - MoratuSaman said...

At this point what SLDF should do is, let LTTE keep their Tin Can Air Force, tell the whole world how bad ass they are..

And hammer on killinochie for good, get more harvesting as much as you can – but use your Heavy Duty Gear, don’t deploy any solders until you kick their ass…real good.

Then go after tin can.

මොරටු සමන් - MoratuSaman said...

"Let's make sure that the Elaam day-dream contunues remain a day-dream... until the end of time."

Well Said Sir,

+

Day or night don't let them sleep, so they can't Dream no more...

Unknown said...

Hello Mate Tharanga!

I feel very sorry for you bcoz of your last comment in this blog.

After all those years of experience and spendings and intels and sacrifices you are asking questions
depending on real idiot around such as “Katikudduppan” to find out about TAF. This guy, to be honest with you I don't think was part of LTTE at any point. If he was he must have left long time ago before the LTTE acquired any mechanism for flying. And again the would have kept it as top secret from other units.

And mate come on!

There is no such thing as “brainwash” in any out fits in this world any more, as you know.

So get real and come out of the fantasy world.

Rover said...

Kaati,

"Maraichelvan was so brilliant he got the highest acaedemic acheivement in that former soviet country."

"He was designing a new type of bomb when it accidentally detonated and he was killed."

The above two statements are contradictory.

Besides, just working for the LTTE at that point of time would make him a dumb wit.

Unknown said...

@Real: Even if Kaati is completely bulshitting, it is at least entertaining to hear real or fake stories, so let him speak.

Ruwani said...

lkdood,

That was so sweet of you. Btw, I see a Mr Brown here too. Who needs to stop wasting his time on internet blogs and seriously start thinking of finding a girl or getting married. His frustration here shows that should be his first priority.

LKDOOD said...

Blogger padayar50 said...

hello.....newbie here

August 29, 2008 1:01 PM

------------------------

welcome to DW

Rover said...

Dive bombing would increase the speed of the bomb. The speed is important when penetration of reinforced structures is needed.

For instance, the bomb can have a delayed fuse, and if the bomb has the neccessary inertia, the bomb would penetrate into conctrete for several feet or through several floors of a building before the actual explosion.

The "operation opera" which was carried out by Israeli security forces targeting the Osirak nuclear reactor of Iraq in 1970 was done using dive bombing to increase the inertia of the bomb. They used the Mark 84 bombs for this, which has the ability to penetrate concrete.

So if our fighters also dive bomb, the damage done can be much more devastating.

After the operation, there was a huge diplomatic row, mostly about the death of the French civilian scientists who was working at the plant and ten Iraqi guards (Moshe Dayan, - not our Moshe- did diplomatic manouvering with France before the Nuclear plant was targeted).

Interestingly, the Isralis claimed that the bombing itself did not kill those guys, but AA fire that was directed at the dive-bombers did. Could this be the case for some of the casualities in Sri Lanka as well? Because the density of SLDF guys in trinco is pretty high and the chance of random fire hitting someone is high.

Jambudipa said...

Dear Shay, I appreciate your explanation. What I was pointing out to you was there is so much negativity in your posts. Discussing so much of what cannot be archived is rather moot.

Ruwani said...

Dear DW,

Do you know if our STF is doing anything to the eelamists at Eastern University?

I am reffering to the incident that happened recently where a Sinhalese student was killed there. I am proposing that Pillaiyan (pole cat) be brought to the Temple trees and put a gun down his throat and ask him to do our dirty job of massacaring all eelamists at Eastern University.

Malin said...

@Ruwani

Why would you wanna ask something like that from Pillaiyan.. Remeber there are LTTE and there are normal civilians.. what ever we do we have to be careful.

Just a thought the sinhala student happend be killed extacly as there was protest asking trasfer's for them.. we dont know who did it or extacly why..

We are not going back to 80's again so. What ever we do we should do it for the benifit of all sri lankans..

tata said...

Nothing personal, but I have a feeling that Ruwani, mrbrown, et. al. are here with an agenda (specially wrt their comments not relevant to defence matters).

Then again, it's just what I feel... so I may be wrong.

Ruwani said...

tata,

Mata kisima agenda ekak neha honde. Mama mehtanta awilla inney methana thieyana posts kiya wanna. If you don't like my presence here say so, and I will stop coming to this site.

About the incident at Eastern Uni, what my point was that every member from the miniority should be taught a good lesson that they can't expect to escape after taking the life of a sinhalese student. They should be whipped and whipped hard, so that they will never forget this valuable lesson.

Anyway, got to go it's nearly mid night here in Colombo and I just logged onto the internet because my husband is having a drink with my Bro.

Good nite.

GroundZeroLanka said...

Ruwani -

We need to be careful in how this is handled. Pilliyan is now working with our forces, this is what is needed.

I don't think we need to put a gun to his head to kill LTTER's...he will do that for free. For now, he has a comfortable life, with a Pajero, security...meetings at Cinnamon Grand etc. He won't want to give that up for the LTTE....

GroundZeroLanka said...

The reason the Sinhala student was killed was to create a backlash...maybe they were expecting the Sinhala studends in the south to retaliate in a similar fashion. We didn't and we won't as us Lions are morally superior to the other animals in the jungle.

Lets concentrate on the bigger picture - the Vanni and Killinochchi and now get distracted by the enemies tactics...attacks on students...attacks in Yala etc.

Achi said...

[If you don't like my presence here say so, and I will stop coming to this site.]

Ruwani don't give up so easily look at my picture and take some courage.Otherwise u wont be able to post in any blog site.:)

phaedrus said...

I think most guys feel very negatively about TAF planes getting away, which seems to indicate an inadequacy of our air defences. However I think we need to keep in mind the larger picture of the war here.

We are not trying to defend our country against a major war by a foreign power. It seems that the TAF will unlikely to be nothing more than a distraction from the real battle. What we need to see is whether it is worth trying to cover the entire country with high tech radars and air defences or whether we can use that money to equip the army to properly wipe out the LTTE members to create the ground for a final solution.

Ofcourse it's important to protect our key individuals and the infrastructure. But this is war. We can't protect each and every individual and building from the TAF any more than we can protect it from the suicide bombers.

Something DefenceWire wrote that is (to me) more important but hasn't been commented on (due to the TAF distraction) is the one on the training of Army personnel at various camps. Even though 3000 individuals are said to join the army every month, it seems that the the rate of training doesn't match that. If that's the case, increasing the facilities to train the soldiers that actually fight the war seems to me a much more worthwhile investment.

Guys, TAF will be finished when there isn't an inch on Sri Lanka to land their planes. And that should be our goals. Let them fly while they still have a place to land. We will protect the key assets, make sacrifices where necessary and make sure the only land the LTTE have is six feet underground. (And I don't mean the bunkers.)

On another note, why on earth are we training commandos for the Maldivian army? Can't they wait for 6 more months? What are they fighting? Sea monsters???

Achi said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Mango said...

Ruwani said: "every member from the miniority should be taught a good lesson that they can't expect to escape after taking the life of a sinhalese student. They should be whipped and whipped hard,"

What a brilliant idea! Collective punishment on an entire group rather than finding the culprits. (I'm being sarcastic in case you don't understand).

I didn't realise that day-release inmates at Angoda were given access to the internet. Please keep your sadomasochistic fantasies to yourself. Like the poster above said, this blog is for defence-related matters not an outlet for nutters.

phaedrus said...

groundzerolanka,
I published my comment before I saw your one, but we seem to thinking along the same lines. The real war is the one in Wanni, and we need to focus on that.

ruwani,
Crime and punishment is not such a simple affair. It is important to be certain that a the punishment does not become another crime. And that the punishment is received by the people who committed the crime. Otherwise the laws of justice and moral would cease to exist and we would be just like animals. I don't think that is the outcome any of us are hoping for at the end of this war.

lankanews said...

Guys read this,
SLA soldiers were given "pittu" for dinner by a LTTE carder in mistake and more interesting facts about LTTE's air raid.
Rivira Ranabima

kaatikuddupaan said...

i don't know how these planes were brought in or from where.

All I have is secondary info, from conversations with people in the know.

I think you all misunderstand the LTTE leaders. Maybe some of them did not go through school or college. School will only give you book knowledge most of which is useless in a militant movement.

I would have to say that all the top level LTTE are extremely smart people.

I'm not sure about why the TAF pilots follow LTTE orders but they have different personal histories and are definitely highly disciplined and motivated people.

Perhaps if the country was not at war, then these people would have become big business leaders or politicians

Thats why they've made the most advanced insurgency in the world against ovewhelming odds.

NOLTTE=Peace said...

Mango,

LOL

"I didn't realise that day-release inmates at Angoda were given access to the internet. "

Good one mate!

This Ruwani is another LTTE scum, as it seems!

Bhairav said...

[This Ruwani is another LTTE scum, as it seems!]

Ruwani is just another desperate housewife here who does not know what's the water she is in as more men who are in mid-age crisis here will prove the point with her. Certainly she can handle 10 soft woods at one time.

Ruwani should be careful with the most notorious half-breed,Sam Perera.

Bhairav said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Bhairav said...

[Perhaps if the country was not at war, then these people would have become big business leaders or politicians

Thats why they've made the most advanced insurgency in the world against ovewhelming odds.]

Kaatikuduppan,

Your posts contradict time to time. Before you mentioned that LTTErs are mostly forced conscripts,mentally retards,folks from love failures, handicaps etc. Now you claim other way around. Whatever transition you made from LTTE life to civilized world haven't fully made the cycle yet as you are still confused person. I believe that you suffer PTS from the war and until you receive the medial help, you will be human grenade for you and the folks around you.

Srilankan said...

kaatikuddupaan,
The bottom line here is that the only reason the LTTE became the "most formidable terrorist group" was that they were "molecoddled" like kids by most countries starting with the U.K...very long story there Kaati.and also very weak SLankan politicians not to mention some kussiammas who should have limied their activites to cooking other than going into politics.

Rover said...

Another point to consider in taking down the Zlins is the point of vulnerability for them.

It is fairly apparent from the previous attacks that these planes fly low and then ascend before the attack (this is when the radar signature is more apparent).

These planes are not F22s (or for that matter Kfirs), and hence would climb very slowly. And this is the area from the HSZ, where there should be some AA installations installed to take them down. As we have found out, it is hard to get a diving or high flying plane.

In the case of Trinco, they must have made this slow ascent somewhere over the sea. This is a good place for us to use a heat seeking missile, launched from a coastal battery or perhaps even a boat.

Rover said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
මොරටු සමන් - MoratuSaman said...

"I would have to say that all the top level LTTE are extremely smart people."

INDEED they are....
click here to watch How Pundae Smarts

Unknown said...

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/
world/south_asia
/7587586.stm

Ha ha ha, much has been said about lack of air defences at SLN Trinco and how the foreman was asleep, looks like our helis can fly in the dead of night over Kili and drop leaflets and not have a single shot fired at, where are the LTTE air defences, looks like the whole town was asleep!

Ohoma yung, ohoma yung, thawa tikai!

Mango said...

Kaatik: Thanks for the insight on the LTTE's possible strategy. I'm quite surprised by your description of them being rigidly controlled. From their past performance, I presumed that properly trained cadre were taught how to think for themselves (in a combat situation) and not necessarily rely on rigid orders. In fact most modern militaries follow this method of leadership, copied from the Germans (Auftragstaktik, or 'Mission Command'). http://tinyurl.co.uk/p8k2

An interesting point is that none of the LTTE are paid, so their motivation must presumed to be high, even allowing for forced conscription. High motivation and belief in a cause is of course not sufficient to stave off military defeat!

I also agree that the top level leadership of the LTTE are highly competent, if only by the fact of their survival through combat. i.e. the stupid ones are dead. They're tactically competent, but strategically not so clever as shown by their decision to re-start a war in the post-9/11 era.

Does VP command everything or is there a 'General Staff' type decision making council for military affairs? If it is the latter, that must mean discussion, debate and argument. How does VP deal with that, given that he appears to think of himself as being almost infallible.

Historically, the best analogy I can give is Hitler vs. Stalin. Both were genocidal tyrants, but one listened to his Generals, especially after early defeats where he decided strategy, and emerged victorious.

Finally if VP is looking for a bolt hole with a guarantee of no extradition to SL, it is of course the terrorist's paradise, the UK. Under EU Human Rights law, the UK cannot send a fugitive to a country where the death penalty could be imposed. France, Spain and some other countries ignore this, but not here.

If he can get himself smuggled into the UK, he can claim disability benefit (diabetes, high blood pressure, guilt over thousands of needless deaths and massacres), and he can then work in Eelam Wines in Lewisham.

VP's new job, working in Eelam SuperWine

kappetipola said...

Still LTTE receiving LIVE satellite maps. those Zlins or Sea planes not driving by LTTE. they are highly trained foreigners from somewhere in EU.they specially trained for this job and highly paid by LTTE.they have hide path Madagascar or African country to Mulathiw by Sea.
in this time they are very prefer to hear True figures of where the bombs dropped?, how many killed ?,how many exploded ? and observations of soldiers and civilians. this is giving stats for their next attacks. these planes built by bullet proof sheets and fly very low attitude and has multi purpose landing option.by sea or land.

Kithul said...

kaati

I think you all misunderstand the LTTE leaders. Maybe some of them did not go through school or college.

in Sri Lanka School and College are used alternately but means the same. School and college are different in the west and in India. So i deduce that you have been in one of those countries from childhood.

you have tied your poants tight but they drop off unknown to you and expose your single ball.

i have repeatedly said you are a fake and i say that again. you have definitely not been in the LTTE, if you were would have been as a child and not when you were grown up (BTW you still don't seem to have gron up)

you preofes to know everything about the ltte which gain s unlikley given how the ltte operates, only vp would know everything and about every unit. if you were you would know only about your unit.

you can be a ltte'r that's your choice, anyone has the freedom to - but a fake o pretentious is not good. only cowards do that

you try your best but drop your trousers unknown to you and xpose your ball less private area.

Jambudipa said...

Phaedrus,

/*
However I think we need to keep in mind the larger picture of the war here.

We are not trying to defend our country against a major war by a foreign power. It seems that the TAF will unlikely to be nothing more than a distraction from the real battle.
*/


It was only a distraction until they came and hit Colombo financial distrct. The stock market and business confidence nose dived. The economic impact was significant. Furthermore, a single hit on a strategicly important installation could paralyse everything. Say for example a power generator such as Victoria or Sapukaskanda. If they can dodge air defences at Trinco they can easily do the same over the Presidents house or any of the air ports. Underestimate the TAF at our own peril.

Search Lights : The problem here is more often that not, the MOD tries to depend on off the shelf solutions that may not be appropriate for the problem we have. Sometimes most simple of the solutions can make a difference. Take for example, search lights. WWII type search lights could easily spot a low flying plane easily over 2 km. A searh light mounted on a mobile platform along with an AA gun may be all that is needed.

AA firing patterns : The IR images over Iraq under blitz from US bombers clearly showed Iraqi AA gun fire. They spary the air in a spirallling or cork screw pattern so that wide area is covered by a single gun. Contrast that with the footage of AA fire over Colombo. They typically fire holding the gun in one position. This results in fire being directed in a straight line. Clearly this is not very effective.

Air space use protocols : TAF chose a night when the airspace over Trinco was used for UAV excercises. If operational air spaces are used for friendly purposes, the radar operator must know the times, locations and identifiers of these aircraft before hand. Always changing special air corridors must be maintained for this type of activity. After air bourne, the crew in Trinco must confirm with radar operator he has correctly pinned down friendly aircaft on his console.

Simple things can make all the difference.

priyashantha said...

Shan,

This is the second time you have exposed Kaatikuduppaan. I'm begining to suspect his statements now.

Have you studied 'Ummagga Jataka' at school? If you studied in Sri Lanka for O/L you would know.

In that Mahawshada sends spies to the enemy's camp. Every time when the enemy tries a new trick to attack Mahawshada's country, the spies would tell the enemy king that it won't work because this and that. The enemy king believes those and ultimate fooled to follow rash action.

I think Kaatikuduppan is trying same. He knows that there are many of us keen to know what is going on the other side of the FDL. There is very little or no unbiased information flowing anyway. So this bugger has made use of these to fool some gulible guys. He adds a little bit of truth from time to time to keep people intersted.

You seem to understand people very well. 'Gona harenakota kiyanna puluwan u karanna hadanne mokakda kiyala'. Our army needs that quality people to filter out 'double agents' within.

Well done.

B#1 said...

BOMB BLAST

Malin said...

@priyashantha

Thing is Nobody here depends on the info Kaati provides. For us it’s just info from someone who was inside the LTTE.. Just getting his perspective. He can lie or tell the truth. But it in our hands to determine the truth.

So far from what I have seen him posting he just told what he knew.. True or false doesn’t matter. I am sure MI don’t depend on him on defence matters.

So as far as bloggers here keep to a certain standard I think anybody has the right to publish what they feel. (Not been Racial)

Unknown said...

Guys, let's not care if Kaati is real or fake or LTTE, his stories are entertaining and sometimes informative, let him speak, it breaks the monotony.

Kaati: Keep posting, ignore insults.

priyashantha said...

Bhairav, Malin & Tharanga,

"So far from what I have seen him posting he just told what he knew.. True or false doesn’t matter."

"his stories are entertaining and sometimes informative, let him speak, it breaks the monotony."

That is the right spirit to take Kaati's "stories". Nobody relies on him unless insane. I agree that he is making a good unique contribution (less than Qrious though). He should keep posting.

Only problem is he sometimes asserts too much importance to unreal stuff.

NICO said...

Thanks for the update DW. Keep up the good work.
I guess this attack is also to check our air defence capability and rehearsal for the big one. Perhaps there are looking in to attack colombo harbor with air and ground.
I guess we have a good protection to harbor.

Kithul said...

malin

Thing is Nobody here depends on the info Kaati provides. For us it’s just info from someone who was inside the LTTE

do you think he's been in the LTTE? i doubt very much. he is very much like the ones in 'Ummagga jathaka' as priyashantha said.

kaati professes to know everything inside a the ltte, do you think they allow that. the structure within ltte is such they don't want cadres to know beyond what they know.

the language kaati uses shows, to me atleast, that he's not one who was in wanni but in the comfort of the western world. he ones told us that cadres get 'soda breaks'

don't be gullible to encourage what a pretentious person says however enterataining it is.

you will take it with a pinch of salt but not everyone.

kaati is one of those people who spreads misinformation ina very subtle manner

LKDOOD said...

tamilnet is reporting

SLA shelling kills 5 IDPs, children in Puthumu'rippu

everybody needs to be on alert

LTTE is again starting to target innocents in the south

wijayapala said...

Dear Bhairav,

"Before you mentioned that LTTErs are mostly forced conscripts,mentally retards,folks from love failures, handicaps etc. Now you claim other way around."

Actually Kaati is not "claiming the other way around." He is saying that despite the fact that most of the LTTE are forced conscripts, there had been enough skilled leaders and specialized carders (like TAF pilots) to carry the organization through, at least until now.

I am sorry that the thought of an ex-LTTE carder coming online and spilling the beans on the LTTE's shortcomings is painful for a mindless diaspora supporter like yourself. I am also sorry that one day this war will end and diaspora supporters like yourself will have no more entertainment at Sri Lankans' (especially Tamils') expense.

PHANTOM-X said...

I think this Kaati bugger is pro LTTE...!!! He just want to show how smart his leaders are (The LTTE). all Bull shit...!!!

They will do anything to stop the on-going mission to free the Tamil people from the the clutches of LTTE.

Prabha's days are numbered...!!! we must unite to defeat our common enemy...!!! Blue, green, red, yellow...all unite...!!! Sinhalese, Tamils, Muslims, Burghers, all unite to defeat this LTTE menace...!!!

wijayapala said...

Mango,

"Does VP command everything or is there a 'General Staff' type decision making council for military affairs? If it is the latter, that must mean discussion, debate and argument. How does VP deal with that, given that he appears to think of himself as being almost infallible."

I think I can answer this question, although I concede to Kaati if I am mistaken about anything (what I know is based on what I've read elsewhere, not on 1st-hand experience as a soldier or MI).

As far as I understand, the Tigers who do the military planning are NOT the same as those who lead the operations. The LTTE has a separate "Military Science and Planning Division" (I don't know the Tamil name) that draws up plans based on careful intel and recce. This division then passes on these plans to His Fatness for approval/editing, and he has the final word.

It is only then that the field commanders receive these plans. The field commanders can only very slightly alter these plans when confronted with unexpected situations during operations- otherwise they have to stick to the letter. Prabakaran allows some monitored discussion/debate between his subordinates, but he has the final word.

This doesn't make a lot of sense because over-centralization is detrimental to military effectiveness. It is hard to imagine how the LTTE built a strong war machine by discouraging individual initiative. I hope Kaati can shed some light on this.

Perhaps the LTTE was not so centralized in the 1990s as it was transitioning from a guerrilla into a conventional force, and maybe it did allow some room for personal initiative and leadership during operations. Perhaps the LTTE is suffering right now because it has lost even that small level of decentralization.

My assessment of Prabakaran is that he has been successful because he has an intuitive/instictive grasp of war, as opposed to an academic/books understanding (although it is claimed that he is well-read). That would explain why an 10th-grade dropout has come so far. This quality combines with a calculated ruthlessness which did not really exist in Tamil society- Prabakaran was able to take over by introducing this new element of total ruthlessness/disregard for human life which nobody else could match. In academic terms, Prabakaran could be labeled as a "conflict entrepreneur."

Prabakaran's other strength has been as a strategic thinker- unlike many others he is able to see the larger picture. Nevertheless, he would've never succeeded on his own. He needed skilled field commanders like Balraj and Karuna to implement his vision, without KP to bring in weapons, without Shankar as a technical military advisor etc.

wijayapala said...

Navindran,

"A Jetliner at Sea would be more valuable to take out then at land."

Yes, but does the TAF have the naval aviation expertise (a different skill set from regular flying) to carry out such an operation, at night?

The LTTE is smart but it is not infallible. In fact, I would go as far as to argue that the government's current war against the LTTE is not so much about completely annihilating the LTTE (as it is unclear whether that is possible) than disproving the myth of LTTE invincibility and bursting Thalaivar's Fat Inflated Ass.

wijayapala said...

Kaati,

Hello again. This time instead of asking questions, I will answer one of yours about the Govt. strategy. You argued that the SLA should not waste time and should instead move quickly into Mullaitivu where all the LTTE camps/infrastructure are.

Although it makes sense to target the LTTE's material strengths first, this war is equally if not more about psychology than about resources. The PA govt. in late 1990s made a mistake by attempting a knockout blow during Op. Jaya Sikurui, while neglecting the east and LTTE's supply lines. The LTTE managed to bog the SLA down on the A9 road and make the war seem unwinnable to Sri Lankan youth who then did not enlist. This is probably what would have happened if Gota and Fonseka and started the war in Weli Oya area, instead of Batticaloa and Mannar.

By going after the LTTE's weaker positions in the east and Mannar, the govt. has created the impression that the LTTE is getting its ass kicked. Although the LTTE obviously still has a great deal of military resources and is not a "spent force," the fact is that the LTTE has not demonstrated a single battlefield success since 2006 (with the exception of Muhamalai, and that was defense not offense). Both Sinhalas and Tamils see this, but the LTTE cannot do much about this.

Eventually the SLA will have to move into Mullaitivu. But by the time it makes this move, it will be in its strongest possible position and the LTTE conversely will be in its weakest position. Even if the SLA does not succeed, it will be impossible for the LTTE to regain what it had from 2001-2006.

wijayapala said...

Priyashantha & shan,

"I think Kaatikuduppan is trying same. He knows that there are many of us keen to know what is going on the other side of the FDL. There is very little or no unbiased information flowing anyway. So this bugger has made use of these to fool some gulible guys."

Interesting theory. Why don't you tell us the exact "misinformation" that Kaati is trying to spread? Which of his information is wrong or will lead the military to defeat?

Overall Kaati has painted a gloomy picture of the LTTE- a picture of a doomed organization with no future. For this reason, I initially thought he was a Sinhala masquerading as an ex-Tiger.

His information however is far too specific. DW once stated that Kaati knew what he was talking about, after Kaati described the differences between SLA and LTTE assault weapons, and what artillery fire plumes look like. No Sri Lankan expatriate dumbass- SInhala or Tamil- has this level of knowledge. He can't be MI because MI has better things to do than blog.

PHANTOM-X said...

Sri Lanka's air force has begun dropping leaflets urging civilians to leave northern areas controlled by Tamil Tiger rebels.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/7587586.stm

LKDOOD said...

its very sad to see the pictures on tamilnet

they look real to me

what do you guys think ?

http://anonymouse.org/cgi-bin/anon-www.cgi/http://www.tamilnet.com/art.html?catid=13&artid=26783

Unknown said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Bhairav said...

Wijayapala,

I do not want to argue that whether Kaati is ex-LTTEr or not- I would say the chances of being ex-LTTer are high than not. If you have noticed, I have never addressed him as a traitor, at least, not yet. Painting him as a public enemy will hurt the general bloggers here since he is the one who offers the inside knowledge about LTTE life.

Mango said...

Wijaya,

'His Fatness', very funny.

Perhpas we can re-name him 'His Glorious Fatness (HGF)? Anyway, thanks for the info on LTTE doctrine. Even HGF knows that no plan survives contact with the enemy, so why so rigid?

So what is the LTTE 'brains trust' telling HGF now? Escape, negotiate, ceasefire, counterattack?

I realise that the LTTE have to counterattack, if only for their self-image.

I also agree that attacking Katti is pointless unless you can point out specific areas where he's concoted untruths. So far, I don't see that.

As for labelling him a public enemy, it depends on how you define 'public'. If by that you mean every Sri Lankan, irrespective of ethnicity, he isn't.

Finally re, the LTTE diaspora in the West. Unlike the Armenians, Kurds and Palestinians, the 'glamour' of supporting the LTTE was destroyed, a long time ago through their naked terrorism.

I can't believe how stupid and shortsighted the LTTE were to engage in fraud and piracy in the UK. Ordinary Brits having their credit cards cloned after filing up for petrol. Tamil gangs running riot with stabbings and beheading etc. i.e. a textbook case of how to piss off your host community whilst simultaneously demanding their support for your cause in an country thousands of miles away.

The LTTE disaspora will have to get used the bitter ashes of defeat and become ever more deranged. They'll be the equivalent of the mad person with wild hair ranting about 'injustices'. The kind no one wants to know.

TropicalStorm said...

".. soldier of the Sri Lanka Army Women’s Corps, who resisted sexual harassment in the Maduru Oya Army camp has been shot, the ‘Ravaya’ reports.

Afterwards, a statement has been obtained from the victim, identified as Y.K. Sandya Kumari that she shot herself in an attempt to commit suicide, it adds.

The victim has been hospitalized after being shot in the back on March 29th. The bullet has surfaced from her lower abdomen..."

The article in Lankadissent goes on to describe the attempted cover-up story in greater detail.

I saw this happen multiples of times in my personal dealings with the sri lankan military, where cover-up is almost taken for granted in each and every time. The victims, some who end up dead, are always swept aside under a mountain of cooked up 'evidence' and eye-witnesses who lie brazenly or in open and visible fear. Rape incidents involving villagers and village guards' families are often un-reported as it is a given that they will suffer greater punishment, including possible death. Impunity developed thru blanket immunity for sexual predators in the SLA has always been at a high level. The SLA definitely carries a low moral conduct and apparently that hasn't changed even now.

Bhairav said...

[I saw this happen multiples of times in my personal dealings with the sri lankan military, where cover-up is almost taken for granted in each and every time. The victims, some who end up dead, are always swept aside under a mountain of cooked up 'evidence' and eye-witnesses who lie brazenly or in open and visible fear. Rape incidents involving villagers and village guards' families are often un-reported as it is a given that they will suffer greater punishment, including possible death. Impunity developed thru blanket immunity for sexual predators in the SLA has always been at a high level. The SLA definitely carries a low moral conduct and apparently that hasn't changed even now.]

Well, so many of the Tamil women and kids are raped by SLA in Jaffna these days. Worst of all incidents, the Krishanthy raping, which was took place in Ariyalai,Jaffna when she was on the way to tuition center. She was raped by more than dozen SLA men and his family members were also shot to death by SLA. No wonder why they even followed their tradition in foreign country where they stationed as peace keepers in Haity, involved in the number of sexual harassment incidents, later they were sent home after their misconduct-I'm sure these predators are still on the streets. When SLA have the license to rape any Tamil woman in Jaffna, you can't imagine how many of the Tamil women are raped now.

Regardless of Tamil or Sinhala woman, if the woman says NO, that means NO-You have no rights to touch her. All these animals should be taken off from the streets- just kill them on the spot.

SL RealEstate said...

A Sri Lanka Army (SLA) Deep Penetration Unit member was killed by vilalge people in vanni

SL RealEstate said...

A Sri Lanka Army (SLA) Deep Penetration Unit member was killed by village people in vanni

TamilNewsWorld.com

Bhairav said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Bhairav said...

Suren,

I thought the one on the picture was killed a month ago, they are putting the same picture again?

It looks as
TamilNewsWorld.com cooks news.

Unknown said...

Bhairav and Suren. No, TamilNewsWorld is not cooking news. They stored the dead body in a deep freezer after it was first captured about 2-3 months ago. Occassionally, they bring out the body, photograph it in various poses, invent a story that it is a DPU soldier just shot dead, and sends the story and photo to pro LTTE websites to satisfy the insatiable appetite of the diaspora. Expect to see the same photo and story in 2-3 months time.

kaatikuddupaan said...

One thing I think SLA and sinhala people in general are shortcoming is misunderstanding and underestimating their enemy.

Everyone has to understand the reason I chose this blog, is because the articles are generally unbiased and even some guys have inside info of what's actually happening now on battlefield.

Anyways everytime I give a bit more info I am exposing myself to harm. LTTE is not finished yet and I am very keen to help more in their destruction by atleast telling the Sinhala people my views about LTTE so they can make better choices.

I can never reveal exactly which unit or brigade I am in.

Northeastern Sri Lanka is my home and due to misplaced patriotism I fully joined LTTE and did some work for them, all of which I regret now.

To answer question about Centralization in LTTE.

Prabhakaran trusts nobody, it's said he only trusts the dead and war injured.

Anyways, He makes all the decisions and then uses the most talented person available to get the job done.

This is going to be LTTE downfall, since there is no room for inititative, everything has to be ordered by Prabhakaran. You can make suggestions to Prabha but even too much of that is dangerous.

Once Prabha gives you a specific job, then there is a small room for initiative but its better to consult with him first.

THere are huge problems with this. Ie cadres become too specific. In the August 2006 fight near Jaffna, one cadre got cut off from the group but he found an RPG weapon.

Despite many years of being in LTTE he didn't know how to use it.

Half an hour of walkie communication was needed to tell him how to use it which he managed to in the end.


This is why LTTE is going to fail, everyone just thinks about doing their job and is too scared to make suggestions or carry out jobs on their own.

Everything must go up chain of command and there is no delegation of responsibility.

මොරටු සමන් - MoratuSaman said...

"Worst of all incidents, the Krishanthy aping,"

Well, Well, Well all diaspora s are too busy doing double job in UK, Norway and Canada...so thanganchies are very very lonly...

at least Army Aiyas showing some love to LTTE Beauties...

soon we must double penatrate LTTErs and Sinhalanize North, just like East.

To Do List:
1). Rename all town/village/street name etc..to Sinhala names

2). Bulldose all LTTE grave yard etc.

3). Burn any left over fake Library etc.

3). dual penatrate LTTE tamil Beauties, mass produce sinhala offspring and give them Sinhalese Last name

4). Not just a sinhala is first language – make Sinhala and English are the only languages.

5). find another Vellupillar and get more tamil males to fight and kill them all, more the better for Thangachies (ya cherry poping time baby).

and that along will take care of the Tamil cause and Tamil Terrorism, no need Political package etc…


If anyone wants to beat terrorism then think and act likes a terrorist

priyashantha said...

About Kaati...

We were only attacking Kaati's unreal stories. We never attacked Kaati personally as we would attack Bhairav, Shyam, Upul or Wije.

He is much better and entertaining. Some times he comes up with good info. He should not stop as we all enjoy his contribution. But the only thing is he feeds misinformation at times and although no one depends on it, there is no harm in pointing out so.

priyashantha said...

Moratusaman,

Man; not right. We should never fall into their level.

If we do GSL will be a terrorist "group" in EU, US,....

Mango said...

Mortaus: "If anyone wants to beat terrorism then think and act likes a terrorist"

Errr.. no. By behaving like terrorists, you only prove that you're no different to them.

Counterinsurgency is the most difficult operation a professional military can be tasked with. 30+ yrs in SL proves it.

It requires very disciplined troops and is easier said than done.

Your prescription only prolongs and feeds the disease and will never cure it.

Professionalism and discipline (fire control) is what separates a professional army from the LTTE.

wijayapala said...

"We were only attacking Kaati's unreal stories.

"But the only thing is he feeds misinformation at times..."

Still haven't answered a very simple question: what is the misinformation? Is it too much to ask a Modaya to provide even one example????

wijayapala said...

Kaati,

"One thing I think SLA and sinhala people in general are shortcoming is misunderstanding and underestimating their enemy."

Is there anything specific that the SLA misunderstands or underestimates?

You have pointed out that LTTE is having morale problems and that it is too centralized. LTTE has pulled off a few guerrilla hits against Jaffna islands and TAF mosquito bites, but these will not shift the balance of the war. LTTE has not pulled off any counterattacks that are worth mentioning.

Some people here and in DN are talking about a massive LTTE counterattack in the future, but they also point out that the SLA's firepower is too strong for the LTTE to make such a large attack.

So what are we missing?

Prodigy said...

Air Defence systems is a very expensive business. I don’t think Sri Lanka should spend lots of money for Air Defence systems to cover whole country.
Zilin is a small and slow air craft easy to avoid radar by low flying. LTTE know that and that’s why they bought it. No point blaming SLAF for this since they do not have enough time to reach air craft at all. If they fly to Colombo again Air Force have the time they need. Then there is another problem finding the Air Craft.
Look like some of you think at night finding a low flying Air Craft very easy task. It is very difficult and dangers. You could hit AA fire from ground since ground AA operator could not identity which is which. If there are several SLAF air crafts on the air they have to well coordinate. Other wise they will fire each other. This type of coordination needs more electronics, training, etc. That means more money.
There are lots of high rise power lines and telecom towers all over the country. I don’t have to explain while you drive height speed and try to search something what could happen.
I’m not a defence or flying expert. But that what I think.

Rover said...

Guys,

I usually try not to go off topic, but sometimes it seems it is necessary.

There is no point in analysing someone's personel traits, for instance, Kaati could be a Sinhalese, a Tamil (non-LTTE, LTTE or Ex-LTTE guy). But when someone's personal traits are analyzed just becasue we think that he is a Tamil is not fair. If he used a non-Tamil name, and said that he was Sri Lanka MI, we sould be lapping up the information he puts out with glee.

It is ok to analyze and criticise the information that he brings to the blog.

Same goes for Wijayapala. Recently there was a hilarious analysis of Wijepala's name. The first point is, someone assumed that Wije had used his true name for this blog. Second, he assumed that he was a Tamil. Third he said something like some other blogger identifiyng him to be a LTTEer! And then the attack on him commenced. At that point, I was afraid that Wije would leave this blog; as he is someone who asks the right questions and has a good knowledge of the history of the conflict.

I see both Kaati and Wije are back again, and have not taken any of the personal insults seriously.

The bottomline is, we would not know the true identity of anyone (even if they reveal it, we can't be sure). So it is best to analyze just the points they bring in and not personalities.

Rover said...

And the amazing thing is the amount of back-patting (and encouragement) that the people who do analyze personalities get.

මොරටු සමන් - MoratuSaman said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
මොරටු සමන් - MoratuSaman said...

May be you can call me even a terrorist, that’s ok. However I appreciate everybody’s input, Sinhalese are the majority of our country they must continue to be the majority, it doesn’t mean we must destroy our minority, unless they want to Destroy them self just like LTTE.

And that’s what I meant anyway.

Sun Tzu's disciple said...

One baby who died in the SLA artillery has a birth defect in mouth( hare lip).Rest in peace.It is sad to see some people here baying for killing and raping others here at the same time.

"And the amazing thing is the amount of back-patting (and encouragement) that the people who do analyze personalities get."

The statement carries the answer within it!

*DW,
are the rear cleared areas in Wanni manned by any significant presence of SLDF? That would determine whether LTTE can infiltrate & attack from rear if and when they decide to.As such LTTE itself seems to have started ' DPU ' attacks in rear areas against SLA going by recent reports of claymores in Mannar & Vavuniya sectors.They would have buried weapons & supplies beforehand-- and many areas being forested they can thus operate for long durations behind enemy lines. The only protection against it is more numbers guarding the rear--and counter-DPU teams.

Adrenaline_Grin said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Adrenaline_Grin said...

Well said, Rover.

I've noticed with amusement how people try to read too much into the names and comments of some of the users of this and other blogs to try and reveal their "true" identities.

While some of them are pretty obvious, some others do raise an eye brow.

But that's the beauty and, at the same time, scary thing about the web - people can become whoever they want and say whatever they want.

I say live and let live. There are too many important things to bother about.

PHANTOM-X said...

Tropical Storm Said.....

".. soldier of the Sri Lanka Army Women’s Corps, who resisted sexual harassment in the Maduru Oya Army camp has been shot, the ‘Ravaya’ reports.

Afterwards, a statement has been obtained from the victim, identified as Y.K. Sandya Kumari that she shot herself in an attempt to commit suicide, it adds.

The victim has been hospitalized after being shot in the back on March 29th. The bullet has surfaced from her lower abdomen..."

The article in Lankadissent goes on to describe the attempted cover-up story in greater detail.

I saw this happen multiples of times in my personal dealings with the sri lankan military, where cover-up is almost taken for granted in each and every time. The victims, some who end up dead, are always swept aside under a mountain of cooked up 'evidence' and eye-witnesses who lie brazenly or in open and visible fear. Rape incidents involving villagers and village guards' families are often un-reported as it is a given that they will suffer greater punishment, including possible death. Impunity developed thru blanket immunity for sexual predators in the SLA has always been at a high level. The SLA definitely carries a low moral conduct and apparently that hasn't changed even now.


This is DW...this site contains defence related info.What i am saying is, this is not the place for you to tarnish the image of Sri Lanka and SLA.
This is war and "ugly" things happen, Rapists are everywhere not only in the SLA.I do know that you are exaggerating and lying,these so called "mass rapes" don't happen.
Using words like

"swept aside under a mountain of cooked up 'evidence'"

say's the whole thing.

What you need is evidence and some lawyers to file a case.without evidence, you are useless my friend. GET A LIFE...PAL

Moshe Dyan said...

rover,

agree with you.

BUT shan and priyashantha did EXACTLY what you say.

they did NOT "analyse" kaati's ethnicity and the like. they analysed his STATEMENTS.

in similar vain their analysis should also be welcomed.

a few weeks ago priyashantha did an excellent "analysis" of the other moniker BASED ON his (always racial) statements.

BTW i enjoy kaati's input.

Jambudipa said...

http://www.defence.lk/new.asp?fname=20080829_02

What was his mission? Recon/guide artillery ? Is LTTE planning on taking on the Muhmalai defenses? Something smells foul here.

Moshe Dyan said...

rover,

i forgot. interestingly one of the two guys you metioned tried to find the other's origin, race, "reasons" for "leaving" the LTTE, etc.!!!!!!

kaatikuddupaan said...

SLA's huge firepower is great, however it is not the answer to all situations.

When I was in Muhamalai front ( near Palai ) every night we would get bombarded with a mix of arty and the MBRL fire.

however it wasn't really a problem as we took precaution. Like digging bunker and going inside bunker when we saw muzzle flash from the arty guns. Also one of our team could look at the distance to the flash, the muzzle blast and judge where the shell would land. When the shell is going to land near you it makes a low whistling sound. That time you jump into bunker like a rabbit.

So while SLA wastes arty shells @ $300 a piece and rockets we were just eating, or doing sentry.

The only danger from the arty heavy weapons is when the fighting teams are doing an advance and the SLA DPU spotters can give the correct fix back to the firebase.

SLA is doing great job right now taking over Wanni, and I hope that soon Kili and Puthukudyruppu get taken.

I am not a military strategist. Simply I am teling what I know or have heard.

However it would be better to see better airforce bombings, and intelligence based attacks rather than just relying on heavy firepower

Moshe Dyan said...

panhinda,

thanks for the info.

strange that 2 radio set covers were found but no radio set was found!!

definitely they (2 of them) were there on a mission. how many more are there?????


BTW GOSL is pressurising GAs & NGOs to encourage ppl to come to govt controlled areas. as part of it govt has appointed some kilinochchi, mulaitivu in VAVUNIYA.

this is good because only "good" methods are not enough to "encourage" or force ppl to cross over to govt controlled area. ppl MUST come to GOSL controlled area.

TN claims an NGO vehicle had narrowly escaped a DPU attack. according to it, the attack was aimed at pressurising reliefe workers (and ppl) to come to govt controlled areas.

i don't know how true this bit is. but there were a number of attacks on seemingly "disobedient" GAs recently. TF it is not wholly impossible. in that event i still approve those methods. we need to bring ppl to our side by hook or by crook.

Moshe Dyan said...

kaati,

"So while SLA wastes arty shells and rockets "

yes. this is a big waste without any harvest.

few weeks back they did it throughout the night apparently to keep tigers at bay. just wasting arti and money. like a blind throwing stones.

Jambudipa said...

moshe,

/*
strange that 2 radio set covers were found but no radio set was found!!
*/

His accomplice escaped. He probably took the radios with him.

Adrenaline_Grin said...

Hemantha, thanks for the video link on the capture of the KK-duwai beach. Good stuff!

Not to sound flippant but that's one beautiful beach. Would have been a shame to have left it in Tiger hands for long.

Moshe Dyan said...

panhinda,

obviously. he would have removed the covers (can't think why??) and taken the most valuable possession of them.

if captured the frequency used and other communication would have been found out by SLA.

Kithul said...

priyashanthamore of kaati's being 'unreal stories' - the point i'm trying to make is those of you who read and enjoy his posts should do so with a 'pound of salt'

today kaati says

I can never reveal exactly which unit or brigade I am in.

Northeastern Sri Lanka is my home and due to misplaced patriotism I fully joined LTTE and did some work for them

but in June he says
Dear Wijayapala,
I was a big supporter of LTTE before and I was heavily involved in many aspects. However I realized my mistake one day when I was in Manal aaru area on a job. A clash broke out between an LTTE claymore team and SLA. During the skirmish, SLA soldiers helped me out by putting me up in their camp and giving lunch and dinner and then even asking me to come and visit them in the south little knowing that I was on a mission against them and against all our Sri Lankan peoples.

Then after I saw how LTTE were using arms against our own people and kidnapping young girls and torturing them. Thats when I snapped and went against them.


then again in his post today he writes Ninja Turtle type crap of someone finding a RPG - laughable

wijayapala said...

Hello Moshe,

"BUT shan and priyashantha did EXACTLY what you say.

"they did NOT "analyse" kaati's ethnicity and the like. they analysed his STATEMENTS."

Which statements have priyashantha and shan "analyzed"? Have they looked at what Kaati had identified as the LTTE's key vulnerabilities? Or are they focusing on insignificant semantics that have no bearing whatsoever on this war?

wijayapala said...

Shan cites Kaati's following statements,

"Northeastern Sri Lanka is my home and due to misplaced patriotism I fully joined LTTE and did some work for them

"I was a big supporter of LTTE before and I was heavily involved in many aspects."

Forgive me but I do not see the gaping hole in Kaati's statements. It is common to hear a Commando or SF who killed dozens of Tigers, simply say that he "did some work" for Mother Lanka. Kaati is clearly not proud of his service in the LTTE, but it is clear from his statements that he was not simply a "helper."

wijayapala said...

Kaati,

"The only danger from the arty heavy weapons is when the fighting teams are doing an advance and the SLA DPU spotters can give the correct fix back to the firebase."

This is what I was talking about- the LTTE will have a hard time massing forces for a counteroffensive.

I have some questions about Karuna and Balraj. Have you ever met either of them?

1) Did Karuna's defection reduce morale within the LTTE? Did the northern carders begin to look down on easterners? How would you describe Jaffna-Batticaloa relations within the LTTE?

2) Balraj had been sick since 2002 with heart disease. Did that cause morale to drop? Are there any other commanders who have Balraj's military leadership skills?

Unknown said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Kithul said...

Troops enter Mallavi area: Heavy fighting escalates

defence.lk

SL RealEstate said...

Breaking News

SLAF fighter jets targeted two LTTE craft sighted on the Nayaru lagoon in the Alampil area this morning (Sept. 3) at around 10.30. One Tiger craft was completely destroyed while the other suffered extensive damage, according to the SLAF.
TamilNewsWorld.com

perein said...
This comment has been removed by the author.

About Us

We are a Non-Political Group of Defence Experts Sharing Our Knowledge For the Good Of Our Country. This is a Voluntary Effort. We Report to No-one But You.

Contact US

You can contact us by e-mail on defencewire@gmail.com and on defence_wire@yahoo.com.

Disclaimer

DefenceWire or its editors are not responsible for the opinions expressed by the contributors to this website.