Phoebus Apollo Aviation

02/10/2026

Upset Prevention and Recovery Training (UPRT) is a combination of theoretical and practical training given to aircraft pilots to enable the pilot to prevent, recognize and recover from unusual attitudes and unexpected situations.
In EASA states, all pilots undergoing training for the CPL, ATPL and MPL (multi-crew pilot license) are given a basic UPRT course. Advanced UPRT (AUPRT or commonly just UPRT) refers to a regulated course of at least 5 hours’ theoretical instruction and 3 hours’ practical instruction. Since December 2019, this course is mandatory for all pilots before their first type rating course in multi-pilot operations. While the AUPRT course may be undertaken in an aerobatic aircraft, aerobatic training does not replace a UPRT course.
In EASA states, airlines must include upset prevention and recovery training as part of their recurrent training, covering the syllabus every three years. In the United States, all Part 121 air carriers have
From 2010 to 2014, loss of control in-flight represented approximately 30% of fatalities in scheduled commercial air transport. UPRT was adopted to address this safety problem.
In addition to teaching techniques to recover from unusual attitudes, UPRT is intended to provide initial experience of g-forces that could be encountered in a commercial aircraft, from approximately -1g to 2.5g, and to help a pilot gain angle-of-attack awareness. The psychological elements of the course include overcoming surprise and startle, developing counter-intuitive recovery skills, and developing self-confidence through upset recovery in a "real-world" environment.
The UPRT training must be done in Aerobatic certified aircraft by a Certified ATO.
The following 3 gentleman Ziad Minalla, Thomas Galy and Basel Eskandr recently underwent UPRT training at Phoebus Apollo Aviation.
Phoebus Apollo Aviation is one of the recognized ATO’s in South Africa that are able to conduct UPRT training and offer both simulator and real time training.

24/09/2026

Congratulations to an amazing pilot who has come so far in reaching this milestone of 1500 hours. Kayla Milne gained her commercial license and her Multi engine license at Phoebus Apollo Aviation.

20/09/2026

A few of my photographs of the Boeing 737-300 for Cobra Aviation, seen here in a display at AAD 2026 on Saturday.
Captain Hennie Delport - Phoebus Apollo Aviation, founder of the Rand Safety Forum. 24,000 hours fixed wing, 2,000 helicopters hours. Designated flight examiner. Hennie flies presently in the GA arena and is also associated with Fly Cobra. The type ratings in general aviation, are a page or two. Hennie has flown the entire 737 series, including the MAX. He retired from Turkish Airlines in 2020. It's actually March 2020, just before COVID. But in his heart, Hennie has always been a Douglas man. Flown every DC-3, DC-4, DC-6, DC-9. Hennie would sell his soul to the Douglas man.
Flying the aircraft under Hennie's command is Chad Markham. He was born on 13th January 1982. 13,000 hours, presently flying in the general aviation arena. Used to own a flight school. Flew the Airbus 320 for Singapore Airlines for three years. Chad is also rated on a Harvard. He is currently learning to fly helicopters. He's a training captain with FlyCobra. According to Hennie, Chad is a promising young man with a bright future ahead of him. Chad is also a designated flight examiner.
No flight is complete without a man middle seat, and this was Jeffrey Llewellyn who was the Safety Officer on the flight.

18/09/2026

17/09/2026

A few of my photographs to capture this amazing aircraft.
Phoebus Apollo Aviation have A Piper PA34-200T Seneca II in its fleet of aircraft based at Rand Airport. The aircraft is primarily used for training of Pilots for their multi –engine class rating at the flying school.
The Piper PA-34 Seneca is a twin-engine light aircraft, produced in the United States by Piper Aircraft. It was produced from 1971 to 2019.
Piper introduced the PA-34-200T Seneca II. The aircraft was certified on 18 July 1974 and introduced as a 1975 model.
The new model incorporated changes in the aircraft's control surfaces, including enlarged and balanced ailerons, the addition of a rudder anti-servo tab, and a stabilator bobweight
The "T" in the new model designation reflected a change to turbocharged, six-cylinder Continental TSIO-360E or EB engines for improved performance, particularly at higher altitudes. The Seneca II retained the counter-rotating engine arrangement of the earlier Seneca I
The Seneca II also introduced optional "club seating" whereby the two center-row seats face rearwards and the two back seats face forward allowing more legroom in the passenger cabin.
A total of 2,588 Seneca IIs were built.
Gross weights are 4,570 lb (2,070 kg) for take-off and 4,342 lb (1,969 kg) for landing, with all weight in excess of 4,000 lb (1,800 kg) required to be fuel.