COLOMBO: A Sri Lankan Air Force helicopter crashed on Friday during a demonstration flight, killing six of the 12 personnel on board, the military confirmed.
The incident occurred at Maduru Oya, east of the capital Colombo, when a Bell 212 helicopter plunged into a lake as part of preparations for a "fast-roping" manoeuvre—a display in which troops descend by rope from a hovering helicopter. The exercise was part of a graduation ceremony for Special Forces commandos.
“There were 12 people on board, and six survived with minor injuries,” a military official told AFP. Among the deceased were four commandos and two Air Force gunners.
The ceremony was immediately called off, and an investigation into the cause of the crash is currently underway.
This marks the deadliest air force incident since January 2020, when a Chinese-built Y-12 aircraft crashed in Haputale, around 200 kilometers east of Colombo, killing all four crew members. The most fatal helicopter crash in Sri Lanka’s history occurred in September 2000, when an Mi-17 helicopter went down in central Sri Lanka, killing all 15 people on board.