A first-hand military memory
Told from the perspective of a former Sri Lanka Air Force avionics officer who was present during the attack.
Pre-order / Exclusive
Exclusive AngryPages Book Card
Hemasiri Wijayagunawardane
7,500 tokens
The Night We Pulled Aircraft from a Burning Hangar
Bandaranaike International Airport, 24 July 2001
At 3:30 in the morning, Hemasiri Wijayagunawardane heard what sounded like firecrackers.
It was not a festival.
It was gunfire.
His wife and six-month-old daughter were inside the house. Outside, the sky above the airfield was turning orange. A hangar was under attack. Aircraft were burning. Men were pinned down in darkness.
He had seconds to choose.
Stay with his family - or run toward the fire.
He ran.
A tense first-person account of smoke, urgency, and Air Force personnel moving aircraft out of danger during the airport attack.
A first-hand aviation-war memory about duty, fear, survival, and the cost of not looking back.
A father ran from his crying child into a burning hangar - and helped save four aircraft before dawn.
Buy this book to unlock the full book page on AngryPages.
The Choice
He saved four aircraft that night. But he still remembers the sound of his daughter crying.
This is not a story about victory in the usual sense.
It is the memory of a Sri Lanka Air Force avionics officer who left his home before dawn, with his infant daughter crying behind him, and ran toward a burning hangar under attack.
Inside the hangar were Kfir fighter aircraft - fueled, exposed, and in danger of being lost. In the dark, surrounded by smoke, gunfire, and aviation fuel, Hemasiri and his men pulled four aircraft out by hand.
They did not have time to feel brave.
They only had time to act.
Story snapshot
A night of fire, fuel, and impossible choices
On 24 July 2001, militants attacked Sri Lanka's main international airport and adjoining air force base.
For Hemasiri Wijayagunawardane, the attack did not begin as a headline. It began outside his own home.
He heard sharp popping sounds in the dark. At first, they sounded ordinary. Then they continued. The sky changed color. The sound grew heavier. Gunfire. Rocket-propelled grenades. Smoke. Aviation fuel.
His home was only meters from the air force hangar.
His wife and daughter were inside.
His men were outside.
The hangar was burning.
And the aircraft had to be moved before it was too late.
Inside this book card
What readers will find inside
A human story, not just a war story
The account begins with a father leaving his crying infant daughter and ends with the memory he still carries.
A tense aviation rescue
Four aircraft had to be moved from a dangerous hangar filled with smoke, damaged metal, and fuel.
A portrait of command under pressure
Men were afraid. The night was confused. There was no perfect plan. Still, they moved.
A story about what soldiers carry afterward
The guns eventually fell silent. The memory did not.
It is not bravery. Not in the way people use the word. It is something simpler. When the moment comes, you do what needs to be done. You just act. From Hemasiri Wijayagunawardane's first-hand memory of the 24 July 2001 airport attack.
Collector value
Why this AngryPages card matters
Some stories are collected because they are rare.
Others are collected because they are impossible to forget.
This exclusive AngryPages book card preserves a first-hand account from one of Sri Lanka's most dramatic aviation-war nights. It is a compact historical memory built around one unforgettable moral image:
A father running from the sound of his child crying - toward fire, fuel, and duty.
Card type: Exclusive AngryPages Book Card
Theme: Aviation, war memory, Sri Lanka, duty, survival
Author bio
Hemasiri Wijayagunawardane
Hemasiri Wijayagunawardane is a former Avionics Officer in the Sri Lanka Air Force who served with No. 10 Squadron during the conflict.
He was present during the attack on Bandaranaike International Airport on 24 July 2001.
His memory of that night is not told as a victory speech. It is told as something quieter: a record of fear, responsibility, survival, and the private cost of duty.
He now lives in Sri Lanka.
The aircraft were saved. The memory stayed.
By morning, the hangar was damaged. One aircraft had burned. Others were scarred. Men had been wounded. The airfield was littered with shell casings, torn metal, and smoke.
But four aircraft had been pulled out.
A squadron had been preserved.
And a father had survived with a memory he still cannot easily explain.
He did not look back when he left his house.
His daughter was crying.
She would never remember.
He would never forget.
Gallery
Images from this book page
More books
Hemasiri Wijayagunawardane shelf
Bonus
Early essay
Pre-order the book to unlock the early essay before the full book card is ready.
Special Mission: Hangar at Dawn
A restrained playable companion mission where the buyer moves aircraft through smoke, darkness, fuel, and fear - focused on pressure, teamwork, and survival rather than combat.
About the author
Hemasiri Wijayagunawardane
Former Sri Lanka Air Force Avionics Officer
Hemasiri Wijayagunawardane is a former Avionics Officer in the Sri Lanka Air Force who served with No. 10 Squadron during the conflict. He was present during the attack on Bandaranaike International Airport on 24 July 2001. He now lives in Sri Lanka.
Sri Lanka Air Force memoir
View author pagePre-order the AngryPages book card
This exclusive card preserves a first-hand memory of one night, four aircraft, and the cost of duty.
Exclusive AngryPages Book Card · Pre-order / Exclusive · 7,500 tokens · Historical first-hand memory