Aviation Sri Lanka 

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Date:                       30.12.1911          

Type:                       Bleriot monoplane ( named after the famous French Aviator Louis Bleriot)

Operator:                Franz Oster (who imported the first aero plane to Sri Lanka)                   

Year built:              1909       

Crew:                     1 fatalities / 1 on board     

Passengers:            0 fatalities / 0 on board     

Total:                      1 fatalities / 1 on board     

Location:                Racecourse Colombo (Sri Lanka)   

Phase:                    Takeoff 

Nature:                    Public demonstration 

Flight:                     Test flight

Remarks:     

Oster attempted the first ever public flight in his monoplane. Taking off from the racecourse he managed to reach a height of 40 feet but crashed. He was not seriously hurt, and suffered only minor injuries. This was not officially recorded as the first flight in Ceylon as the take-off and landing were not controlled.

Between 14th and 19th of January 1912, Oster crashed the same monoplane during a trial flight in preparation for a public demonstration. Oster suffered a shoulder dislocation, cuts & bruises. The plane was badly damaged.