The Sling Squawk – June 2026
7 Jun 2026
“It’s not going to last. You know that, right?”
“Yes, well I guess we’ll see.”
That was how conversations went when I arrived in Port Elizabeth with our first Sling in December of 2012.
Well, it’s 10 years on and our fleet of six years Slings have accumulated in excess of 35,000 flight hours. ZU-IAE has 7,300 hours on it, making it the highest-hour Sling in the world. This article tells the story of our experience of keeping our Slings airworthy.”
– Gerhard Van Eeden
After reaching Cape Town in Part 2, Josh Flowers and Chelsea Smith of Aviation101, along with Chris Lammert and Keelyn Costello, reunite with friends and fly their Sling aircraft north from Stellenbosch through the Tankwa Karoo, before crossing into Namibia and exploring the spectacular Fish River Canyon. From formation flying and the Tanqua Kuru Bicycle Race to fireside celebrations and an off-airport landing in the desert, the journey becomes less about following a plan and more about embracing whatever comes next—because sometimes the most memorable part of flying happens after the engine shuts down.