Non-Subscriber Extract
Tamil Tigers sink Sri Lankan fast attack craft
By Tim Fish
27 March 2008
The Sri Lanka Navy has reported the loss of a Colombo-class fast attack craft after it was "caught in a possible underwater blast" during a patrol off Nayaru, 185 miles north of Colombo.
A mine strike was probably to blame for the loss of the 24 m-long, 56-ton P 438 early on 22 March, the navy said later the same day.
Websites backing the Tamil Tigers insurgency, however, say the vessel was destroyed during a 45-minute engagement with units of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) Navy's Black Sea Tigers.
Insisting that no confrontation occurred, a Sri Lanka Navy spokesman told Jane's that "some floating object" caused the explosion at about 0230 h local time.
He said that the craft began to take on water, forcing the crew of around 20 to abandon ship. Only six sailors have been found alive but a search-and-rescue mission is continuing.