Paddy Mendis

Paddy Mendis
Paddy Mendis
Born	24 January 1933; Chairman, Air Ceylon;; Chairman, Civil Aviation Authority of Sri Lanka

Air Chief Marshal Deshamanya Pathman Hariprasadha Mendis, FBIM (24 January 1933 – 18 January 2022) was a Sri Lankan aviator. He was the fourth Commander of the Royal Ceylon Air Force

from 1971 to 1976.

Early life and education

The son of a doctor, Mendis was educated at

S. Thomas' College

.

Air force career

He joined the newly formed Royal Ceylon Air Force as its fifth recruit (1005 AC2) as a

Imperial Defence College in London in 1968 and was appointed Chief of Staff in December 1969.^[1]

On 1 January 1971, he was appointed Commander of the Air Force with the rank of

1971 JVP Insurrection began. Though unprepared for a full-scale insurrection, with limited aircraft, under Mendis' command, the Air Force responded effectively. At first, it carried out troop and supply transport to stations under attack, then it turned to ground attacks. The insurrection was brought under control in two months. Following the insurrection, military spending was drastically cut as a result of major economic problems faced by the country. As a result, Mendis was forced to create Helitours

with Air Force planes and pilots to finance the operation of the Air Force.

One of his major contributions to the Air Force was the creation of the current management structure, including the board of management. He established the

Air Marshal

.

After retiring he went on to work as chairman, Air Ceylon; Commissioner General, Civil Defence and Aviation; member, Reserve Affairs Council and chairman, Civil Aviation Authority of Sri Lanka.