Air Vice Marshal (Retired) Sampath Thuyacontha has been appointed as the new Secretary of Defence.Thuyacontha joined the Sri Lanka Air Force on 17th of May 1988 to the 19th Intake as an Officer Cadet and was commissioned as a Pilot Officer in the General Duties Pilot Branch in the year 1990. After completion of training in the year 1990 he was deployed for flying duties as an operational pilot in Bell 212/412 helicopters.

In 2001, he was posted to No 9 Attack Helicopter Squadron, Sri Lanka Air Force Base Hingurakgoda as the Second in Command and later was appointed as the Commanding Officer in the year 2005. During his long tenure, he actively participated for all major operations which includes Humantarian War to liberate North and East and he managed to log more than 7000 flying hours as an Operations/ VIP and Attack Helicopter Pilot of Sri Lanka Air Force.   Air Vice Marshal Thuyacontha also served as the Defense Adviser to the High Commission of Sri Lanka in Islamabad, Pakistan for a period of two years and as the Chief Instructor of the Defence Services Command and Staff Collage in the year 2014.For his individual acts of gallantry and bravery in the face of the enemy during the Humanitarian Operations he was decorated with “Weera Wickrama Vibhushanaya” (WWV), “Rana Wickrama Padakkama” (RWP) and “Rana Sura Padakkama” (RSP) on several occasions.