'Exercise - Cormorant Strike VI - 2015' begins on September 3!

Saturday, August 29, 2015

The three-week long joint military exercise involving thousands of Sri Lankan armed forces personnel and representatives from foreign countries will commence on Thursday (September3) for the sixth consecutive year, the Army said.

 

The joint field exercise, known as the 'Exercise - Cormorant Strike VI - 2015', is organized by the Sri Lankan Army (SLA) with the participation of overt 2500 tri-service personnel of the Army, Navy and Air Force.

 

The mock Field Training Exercise (FTX), focused on the employment of Special Operations Forces (SOF) in order to provide basis to launch ground operations will commence from Pulmoddai to north of Arugam Bay.

 

According to the Army, 2500 Infantry, Commando and Special Forces troops representing Sri Lanka Army, 245 Navy personnel, 140 Air Force personnel and 53 foreign participants and observers are expected to participate in this year's Exercise.

 

Military officers from Bangladesh, China, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Nepal, Pakistan and USA have already confirmed their participation in the Exercise.

 

The Exercise with Army Commando (CR) Regiment and Special Forces (SF) Regiment troops, integrated with Navy and Air Force Special Forces, aims to enhance special operation capabilities and maintain combat readiness at all levels," Army Chief of Staff Major General Jagath Dias said at a press briefing held at Defence Media Center on Wednesday (27).

 

Covering a vast patch of island's jungle areas, coupled with simultaneous mock seaborne and airborne operations, the Exercise in its final stages expects to join with Army troops.

The Field Training Exercise, organized and implemented in close cooperation with the Navy and Air Force, has been designed for deployment of their troops in a war milieu of Special Operations at any given moment and planned for conduct of joint operations as one team, using manoeuvrist approach, encompassing planning, execution and command, the Army said.

 

It also focuses on planning, preparations, formulations, coordination, command, control, tactics, techniques and procedures (TTP), execution of Special Operations within given frameworks and is organized by the Directorate of Training at the Army Headquarters.