A total of 160 new civilian employees formally joined the Sri Lanka Air Force at a ceremony held at SLAF Headquarters on Tuesday, in an intake that includes 25 recruits from the Tamil and Muslim communities.
Deputy Minister of Defence Major General Aruna Jayasekara (Retd) attended as chief guest and presented the appointment letters. He told the recruits their appointment marked an important step towards addressing longstanding staff shortages across the public sector, which had been aggravated by the suspension of government recruitment.
The Deputy Minister said the government has prioritised systematically filling vacancies, particularly in the defence sector, under the President’s directives. He commended the recruits for completing a selection process he described as based on fairness, transparency and merit, according to a statement issued by the Ministry of Defence.
Major General Jayasekara urged the new employees to maintain discipline, integrity and efficiency throughout their service, and to adapt to rapid technological change in the defence sector. He also pointed to their role in building a transparent, efficient and people-oriented public service free from corruption.
The Ministry of Defence described the inclusion of the 25 Tamil and Muslim recruits as reflecting the Air Force’s commitment to inclusive representation within its workforce.
Air Force Commander Air Marshal Bandu Edirisinghe attended the ceremony, alongside members of the SLAF Board of Management, the Director of SLAF Civil Administration and senior officials from the Ministry of Defence and the Air Force.
Civilian staff in the Air Force fill administrative, technical and support roles that sit outside the uniformed cadre. Neither the Ministry nor Ada Derana specified which grades or divisions the 160 recruits will be posted to, or how many civilian vacancies remain unfilled across the service.
