Early career Weeratunga joined the newly formed Ceylon Army on 11 October 1949, in its first cadet officer intake and received his basic officer training at the
Mons Officer Cadet School,
Aldershot and at the
Royal Military Academy, Sandhurst, and was commissioned as a
second lieutenant and posted to the
Ceylon Light Infantry on 2 August 1951. He was appointed
adjutant of the
Ruhunu Regiment on 4 July 1956; adjutant of the 1 Battalion, Ceylon Light Infantry on 22 October 1956 and
Staff Captain Administration Branch at
Army Headquarters on 25 July 1958. He was transferred to the Corps of Infantry on 8 December 1962 and posted later to the
Gemunu Watch on its formation. In December 1965, he was appointed
brigade major of the 1st Brigade Group in
Panagoda. From 23 February 1966 to 1 November 1967 he served as the Military Liaison Officer in the
Ministry of External Affairs and Defence. He had followed the Unit Commander’s Course in Australia and the
Joint Service Defence College. He was promoted to the rank of
major general and made
Commander of the Sri Lankan Army on 14 October 1981, and held the post till 2 November 1985. His tenure marked the start of the
Sri Lankan Civil War with the
LTTE ambush of the army patrol
Four Four Bravo in July 1983. He undertook several reforms in the army, including the formation of the
Gajaba Regiment and undertaking the rapid expansion of the army to cope with the civil war. He was promoted to the rank of
lieutenant general and appointed the first
general officer commanding of the Joint Operation Command on 11 February 1985 to co-ordinate army, navy and air force
counter-terrorist operations in the north and east of Sri Lanka. He retired from the army on 29 August 1985 and was promoted to the rank of
general on the same day. Brigadier
Cyril Ranatunga was brought out of retirement with the rank of lieutenant general to succeed General Weeratunga. ==Later life==