NGAP is owned and run by Darryl Ellitson, a former Air Botswana Chief Pilot who has had an interesting career that has included a recent spell as Director of Flight Operations and Chief Pilot at a Saudi operation. Currently NGAP’s training fleet includes a pair of Primes and a 206, choices aimed at delivering what is needed for today’s Commercial market, particularly in Botswana.

I was hit immediately by the professionalism of the operation, both in terms of customer service and also in Darryl’s philosophy of producing pilots that follow standard operating procedures from day one, while still being able to think for themselves. This approach was influenced by Darryl’s experience at his first airline, where he realised how little he actually knew in terms of operating aircraft, as opposed to just flying them. This approach should lead to pilots who have a full understanding of aircraft systems and who look after their aeroplanes!

This philosophy was what led to the slightly unusual choice of the Blackshape Prime and its glass cockpit. Technically, the Prime is a microlight, but it bears as much resemblance to my Bantam as the F-22 does to the BDF’s F-5’s - though, to be fair, the associated costs have a similar relationship!

The dashboard is dominated by a large Dynon Skyview panel, with a basic backup above it. This multipurpose screen is perfectly matched to ensuring that new pilots will have the skills to take their flying beyond a PPL. It is fully programmable, allowing automatic reminders to pupils, and is IFR capable. The display is intuitive and easy to use, allowing accurate flying while giving new pilots experience of state of the art instrumentation.

Start-up was straightforward and taxiing with the nose wheel steering was easy, helped by being on the centreline. The only issue I had was keeping the speed down, as the aircraft was keen to get going.

Once on the runway, opening the throttle led to rapid acceleration. Surprisingly little rudder was required to keep the aircraft straight, but I was nearly caught out by the very light controls. Only a tiny amount of back pressure sent the nose up a tad too high. This was soon recovered and we were soon climbing out at 80 knots.

The benefit of having an instructor was the ability to climb through clouds, giving me a chance to see how the glass gauges worked. However, we were soon down below the cloud ceiling to do some basic manoeuvres.

Losing altitude was also impressive as bringing the nose down just a degree or two showed you how clean the aircraft is with a rapid increase in speed.

All too soon, it was time to head back to Sir Seretse and with full flap the view over the nose was good and the aircraft was stable in the approach and easy to control, with no feeling of heaviness despite the dirty configuration. Given the low stall speed, the approach was made at 75 knots as the aircraft can easily fall behind the drag curve if not handled carefully. Normally this is not a problem, as dropping the nose rapidly brings back speed - but this is not something you want to try on approach!

Unfortunately, the nose tyre blew on touch down. Darryl was far too polite to suggest it was my heavy touch down and put it down to just one of those things. This meant a long push back to the hanagar. It was at this point that I first felt the difference in weight between the Prime and my Bantam - I was barely strong/heavy enough to keep the tail down! Luckily, we found a willing help and I could help by taking a video!

Despite this end to flight, I was hugely impressed with the capability of the Prime. Not just in itself, but as a trainer. The performance is on another level compared with its weight. It feels like a much bigger, more powerful aircraft. This is helped by the spacious cockpit, which removes the claustrophobic aspect of most trainers. The digital cockpit and the need to manage the constant speed engine develop the skills that those wishing to take flying further need, while they are not beyond the capabilities of a prospective PPL.

NGAP’s attitude towards maintenance and safety is apparent throughout and their training programme provides the skills that the Next Generation need. Highly recommended.