BY: Xinhua

At least four airmen were injured when a weapon fixed to a Sri Lanka Air Force aircraft went off Sunday afternoon in an air base near the capital Colombo, defence officials said.

A gun fitted to a Kfir fighter went off when the plane was being cleaned at the Katunayake Air Base adjoining the island country's only international airport, sources said.

'Four airmen were injured in the misfire,' said Air Force spokesman Group Captain Ajantha Silva, adding that there was no damage to the aircraft.

Israeli built Kfir aircraft are used by the Sir Lankan Air Force to fight Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) rebels in the island's restive Northern and Eastern provinces.

The air base had come under LTTE attack on March 26 this year, during which three airmen were killed and 16 were injured.