Two Seychellois promoted as captains on Air Seychelles |16 September 2013
Two pilots on Air Seychelles’ domestic operations have been promoted to the rank of captain, the national airline of Seychelles has said.
Air Seychelles’ chief executive Cramer Ball presented commander’s bars to First Officers Archille Young and Shiv Padayachy, at the national airline’s head office at the Seychelles International Airport.
Captain Pete Mitchell, general manager operations, captain Granger Narara, head of flight operations, and training instructors captain Sandy Benoiton who is also chief domestic pilot, and captain Eddie Cesar also attended the ceremony.
The new Twin Otter commanders successfully completed the rigorous Company Command Upgrade Programme, which includes refresher training on aircraft technical elements, Crew Resource Management (CRM), leadership, decision-making and emergency procedures.
Chief pilot, captain Sandy Benoiton and captain Eddie César, were trained and certified as flight instructors to the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) standard and are the first two Seychellois captains to conduct Company Command Upgrade training in 10 years.
From Anse Boileau, 24-year-old captain Archille Young completed his A-levels at the Seychelles Polytechnic at Anse Royale. He joined Air Seychelles in June 2010 and worked for 14 months at the Operations Control Centre before becoming a full-time pilot on the Twin Otter as a first officer. Captain Young is a Flight Safety Officer and a member of the Safety Action Group. He has also been trained in Flight Data Monitoring and Audits.
Captain Shiv Padayachy, who is 28 years old and comes from Anse Royale, completed his A-Levels at the Seychelles Institute of Technology (SIT) at Mont Fleuri. He joined Air Seychelles in June 2011 and worked for six months at the Operations Control Centre before flying full-time as a Twin Otter first officer.
Both captain Young and captain Padayachy completed an 18-month training as commercial pilots at the 43rd Air School in South Africa under scholarships from the government of Seychelles, after having completed compulsory basic military training in Seychelles prior to joining the national airline.
Mr Ball said: “Achieving the rank of captain is a major milestone in any pilot’s career, and I am delighted to present Archille Young and Shiv Padayachy with their epaulettes to mark their passage to the rank of commander. This is a major accomplishment at such a young age. Our Seychellois workforce is the future of the airline, and we are committed to its development, and to nurture that talent. I am particularly thrilled that the command training programme was conducted by our very own Seychellois pilots, Sandy Benoiton and Eddie César.”
Captain Archille Young said: “I feel proud. Becoming a commander is a big achievement for me. I had a dream and I worked hard to realise it. My next goal is to become an Airbus A380 captain. I would like to thank the Seychelles government and Air Seychelles for having given me this opportunity to pursue my dream of being a captain for our national airline.”
Captain Shiv Padayachy said: “This is a great accomplishment for me and I am very proud of what I have achieved. I now need to work harder to move to the international fleet. I would especially like to thank my line trainers and Chief Pilot for their support, as well as the Seychelles government for my scholarship and Air Seychelles for providing the training opportunities.”
Air Seychelles employs 53 Seychellois pilots: 10 Airbus captains; 20 first officers; 14 Twin Otter captains and nine Twin Otter first officers.
Air Seychelles was established in 1978 and began long-haul service in 1983. The airline currently offers international flights to Abu Dhabi, Hong Kong, Johannesburg and Mauritius. Air Seychelles also offers more than 200 domestic scheduled flights a week throughout the archipelago, as well as domestic charter services.
As the national airline of the Republic of Seychelles, Air Seychelles is a pillar of tourism, the island nation’s strongest and growing economic sector. The airline maintains a strategic partnership with Etihad Airways, the national airline of the United Arab Emirates and 40 per cent stakeholder.