Aviation veteran Capt. Navin De Silva appointed to Civil Aviation Authority Board

Navin de Silva receives the letter of appointment as a Director - Civil Aviation Authority Board from Tourism and Aviation Minister Prasanna Ranatunga

By Shamseer Jaleel

Former SriLankan Airlines Chief Pilot and Head of Flight Operations Capt. Navin De Silva has been appointed to the Board of Directors of the Sri Lankan Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) by the Minister of Aviation, Prasanna Ranatunga.

After graduating from the US as a pilot, De Silva joined the Sri Lankan Air Force (SLAF) as a volunteer pilot at a time when the two squadrons flying fixed wing aircraft were short on pilots. He served with the SLAF for one and a half years, after which he joined SriLankan Airlines as a Cadet Pilot, a journey he continued for 35 years. He was responsible for the training of the first officers and captains at the national carrier overs several decades.

He has flown planes such as Boeing 737, Lockheed Tristar, and Airbus 320/330/340, and logged over 20,000 flight hours. For over two decades he has been an examiner and an instructor. 

Speaking to Daily FT, De Silva said: “It’s time that I gave my expertise and input on a national level, and I am grateful to [SriLankan Airlines] Chairman Ashok Pathirage and the board for giving their blessings for my appointment.”

Some of his achievements during his time in senior management were: Simulator Project installation and certification of Airbus A320 and A330 Simulators; Establishment of a New Crew Planning and Resource Management department – to improve the productivity of both tech and cabin crew; the installation of the Sabre Crew Management System – fully automated crew management system to enhance crew planning and rostering; Electronic Flight Bag (EFB) project – the first airline in South Asia to implement class 2 EFB (all aircraft paper manuals/airway charts were replaced by digitally loaded iPads); the implementation of the Flysmart Aircraft Performance calculation tool, which brought about significant savings engine maintenance cost payload calculations; EU Emission Trading Scheme – the first airline in Asia to obtain European Union approval on           CO2 emissions monitoring plans and mechanisms, saving the airline Rs. 1.8 billion; Green Operations – fuel saving/CO2 emission reduction and waste management best practices implementation in all departments of Sri Lankan Airlines; and the establishment of Type Rating Training Organisation (TRTO) – A320/A330-type courses for foreign pilots.

Captain De Silva, a product of Wesley College, Colombo, was an outstanding all-round sportsman and Head Prefect of his alma mater. During his time, he captained the first-ever Sri Lanka schools’ side to the UK and still continues his sporting endeavours. He is the present captain of the Royal Colombo Golf Club (RCGC).