Ponte de Sor, Alentejo, Portugal
LPSO
Sevenair Academy
- ATO PT.ATO.009 · ANAC (Portugal)Verified
- Airbus Flight Academy
- Royal Brunei Airlines
- All Nippon Airways (ANA)
Portuguese airline-pilot academy training from zero experience on one campus at Ponte de Sor aerodrome in the Alentejo — theory, flying and housing on a single site. A member of the Airbus Flight Academy network since November 2025, it trains Royal Brunei Airlines and ANA Group cadets alongside self-funded students.
Illustration · runway to scale, buildings indicative
ICAO
LPSO
Runway
03/21
Length
1,800 m
Elevation
390 ft
- Roots since
- 1980
- Aircraft
- 44
- Simulators
- 4
- Rooms on campus
- 150
- Programmes
- 4
- From
- €100k
Overview
Regulatory approval
ATO PT.ATO.009
ANAC (Portugal) — EASA Part-FCL
Airline-standard training
Airbus Flight Academy
Network member. Trains to Airbus standards and CBTA. Not an employment route in itself.
Cadets for Royal Brunei Airlines and All Nippon Airways (ANA) train here.
Information completeness
92%
11 of 12 topics documented
Verification coverage
15%
4 verified · 19 school · 3 unconfirmed
Student review score
None yet
Only verified students can review. We never write reviews ourselves.
These measure how much is documented — not how good the school is.
Chief Executive Officer
Martim Sacavém
January 2026 (CFO since September 2022)
Ownership & campus
Acquired the Ponte de Sor pilot-training centre previously run by L3Harris in 2022, including its campus, hangars, aircraft and student housing.
In numbers
Who says what. Where sources disagree we show each figure side by side.
Airbus programme at Ponte de Sor
~50 in 2026, 100+ a year later
Joint statement reported in February 2026.
Starting salary claimed
€50k–€85k gross a year
The academy's own indicative figure, not independent data.
Experienced pilot salary claimed
€140k–€210k+ gross
The academy's own indicative figure, not independent data.
Training programmes
4 programmes documented from the school's own pages.
Integrated ATPL(A)
Aspiring airline pilots with little or no flying experience.
- 1Ground schoolMonths 1–12ATPL(A) theoretical knowledge
- 2Foundation flyingMonths 13–15Aircraft handling and first solo
- 3Visual & basic instrumentMonths 16–19Navigation, night flying, emergencies, basic instrument flying
- 4Commercial flight trainingMonths 20–23Instrument navigation, multi-engine, advanced UPRT
- 5MCCMonth 24Multi-Crew Cooperation
You finish with
- EASA CPL(A)
- SEP rating
- MEP rating
- Instrument Rating
- ATPL theory credit (frozen ATPL)
Training covers
- SEP
- MEP
- IR
- PBN
- Advanced UPRT
- MCC
Exams: 13 school exams and 13 authority exams (first attempt)
Timetable: Ground school Monday–Friday, 08:30–17:30. Flight training needs full-time availability, including weekends and holidays.
Entry requirements
- Age
- 17 to apply
- Education
- High-school certificate (12th year) or equivalent
- English at entry
- Fluent, spoken and written
- English for the licence
- ICAO Level 4
- Medical
- EASA Class 1
- Selection
- Sevenair competency and aptitude assessment
- Other
- Clean criminal record; right to study in the EU/Switzerland or visa eligibility
Published start dates
- 9 Nov 2026Next intake
- 1 Feb 2027
- 10 May 2027
- 6 Sept 2027
The same page also says “next start dates to be announced” — treat the dates as indicative and confirm a place.
School's pageSide by side
Integrated ATPL(A) vs Airbus ATPi Cadet Programme
| Integrated ATPL(A) | Airbus ATPi Cadet Programme | |
|---|---|---|
| Duration | ~24 months | ~24 months |
| Structurediffers | Ground school → Foundation flying → Visual & basic instrument → Commercial flight training → MCC | Core → ATPL theory → Basic (flight training) → APS MCC |
| Agediffers | 17 to apply | 17 to apply, 18 before the course starts |
| Educationdiffers | High-school certificate (12th year) or equivalent | High-school diploma, ideally including mathematics |
| English at entrydiffers | Fluent, spoken and written | ICAO Level 3 or equivalent |
| English for the licence | ICAO Level 4 | ICAO Level 4 |
| Medicaldiffers | EASA Class 1 | Valid EASA Class 1 |
| Selectiondiffers | Sevenair competency and aptitude assessment | Airbus/Sevenair online and on-site assessments |
| Otherdiffers | Clean criminal record; right to study in the EU/Switzerland or visa eligibility | — |
| You finish withdiffers | EASA CPL(A) · SEP rating · MEP rating · Instrument Rating · ATPL theory credit (frozen ATPL) | Frozen ATPL: CPL with ATPL theory · IR / ME · Advanced UPRT · APS MCC · Airbus cadet code certificate |
| Next published startdiffers | 9 Nov 2026 | 11 Jan 2027 |
Aircraft fleet
44 aircraft listed by the school. Counts are not a guarantee of daily availability.
- Diamond DA4012
Single engine · 4 seats
- Piper PA-2811
Single engine · 4 seats
- Tecnam P20088
Single engine · 2 seats
- Cessna C150/1525
Single engine · 2 seats
- Diamond DA425
Twin engine · 4 seats · Garmin G1000
- Tecnam P2006T3
Twin engine · 4 seats
- Single engine 36
- Multi engine 8
Cessna
C150/152
2 seats
Tecnam
P2008
2 seats
Piper
PA-28
4 seats
Diamond
DA40
4 seats
Tecnam
P2006T
4 seats
Diamond
DA42
4 seats · Garmin G1000
Simulators
4 flight simulators (types not published; a DA42 simulator is shown at open days)
Airfield & campus
Runway data from OurAirports — unconfirmed until checked against the national AIP.
Aeródromo Municipal de Ponte de Sor
Campus: theory, flight training and accommodation
- ICAO
- LPSO
- Elevation
- 390 ft
- Runway
- 03/21
- Length × width
- 1,800 × 30 m
- Surface
- asphalt
Runway
1,800 m with ILS
Housing
150 double rooms on campus
Fleet
44 aircraft (36 single, 8 twin)
Simulators
4
Maintenance
Own maintenance centre
Transfers
Accepts students from other ATOs; prior training is assessed
Student accommodation on campus
150 double rooms on campus, next to the aerodrome. Price, meals and single occupancy are not published — ask a Training Advisor.
Aeródromo Municipal de Ponte de Sor, EN 2, km 440, 37 Tramaga, 7400-601 Ponte de Sor, Portugal
Costs & financing
Published starting investment
From €100,000
The school's stated starting investment. Programme prices are not itemised publicly.
Not published — ask in writing
- Exact programme price
- Accommodation and meals
- Exam and licence fees
- Extra flying hours
- Resits and retests
- Payment schedule and refunds
Financing: Payment plans and financing are arranged through a Training Advisor; terms are not published. The modular ATPL page lists contacts at two Portuguese banks (CGD and Novobanco).
Airline connections
Formal: announced by the airline or Airbus. Reported: terms unknown. No school can guarantee a job.
Airbus Flight Academy
Network member · Since November 2025
Trains to Airbus standards and CBTA. Not an employment route in itself.
Royal Brunei Airlines
Airbus cadet training · Since November 2025
First cadets began Airbus training at Ponte de Sor in November 2025.
All Nippon Airways (ANA)
Airbus ab initio programme · Announced 2 September 2026
ANA Group cadets trained at Ponte de Sor; first cohort of 19 planned for late 2026.
Luxair
Cadet sponsorship · 2024
Selected cadets were offered funding for the rest of training and a conditional job letter. Luxair's July 2026 announcement names BAA Training and RWL German Flight Academy as its partners — don't assume this is still open.
History
Every milestone with its own source and status.
1980
Roots
Traces its origins to Portugal's first civilian pilot school.
School reportedSevenairSept 2022
Moves into Ponte de Sor
Acquires the L3Harris training centre — campus, hangars, aircraft and housing. The municipality amends the hangar concession for Sevenair.
Jul 2024
Luxair sponsorship
Chosen as a partner for Luxair's cadet sponsorship programme.
UnconfirmedAFMNov 2025
Joins Airbus Flight Academy
Agreement signed at the European Airline Training Symposium; first Royal Brunei Airlines cadets start.
6 Jan 2026
New CEO
Martim Sacavém, CFO since 2022, becomes Chief Executive Officer.
UnconfirmedAFM26 Feb 2026
Airbus Academy inaugurated
Ceremony at Ponte de Sor aerodrome marks the Airbus Flight Academy presence.
UnconfirmedObservador2 Sept 2026
ANA selects Airbus
Airbus will train ANA Group cadets at Sevenair, starting with 19.
Check before you pay
What the public sources don't settle — and the questions to put to the school in writing.
Things that don't line up
Not necessarily a problem — but worth asking about in writing.
ATO number
The site shows PT.ATO.009.009 on its home and About pages, but PT.ATO.009 in its FAQ — which matches ANAC's register.
Registered address
Start dates
The Integrated ATPL page lists four dates and also says “next start dates to be announced”.
Student numbers
About 250 in training (Sevenair), about 200 a year (Airbus release) and ~50 in 2026 for the Airbus programme (municipality) — likely different scopes, not reconciled.
Ask before you pay
0 of 13 answered
Student reviews
No reviews yet. Trained here? Rate instructors, aircraft, scheduling, ground school, housing and value. Reviews are marked “verified student” only after we check evidence of training.
21 sources
Last checked 1 Nov 2026. Something wrong or out of date?
- 01Sevenair Academy — official websiteschool website
- 02Sevenair — About the academyschool website
- 03Sevenair — Integrated ATPL(A)school website
- 04Sevenair — Airbus ATPi Cadet Programmeschool website
- 05Sevenair — Flight Instructor FI(A)school website
- 06Sevenair — Training fleetschool website
- 07Sevenair — Campusschool website
- 08Sevenair — FAQschool website
- 09Sevenair — ATO transferschool website
- 10ANAC — Approved Training Organisations (Part-FCL), April 2026regulator · 2026-04
- 11Airbus — Airbus Flight Academy and Sevenair partnerpartner announcement · 2025-11
- 12ePlane AI — Airbus Flight Academy partners with Sevenairpress · 2025-11-06
- 13Airbus — All Nippon Airways selects Airbus for new flight training programmepartner announcement · 2026-09-02
- 14Sevenair — ANA selects Airbus (republished release)school website · 2026-09-02
- 15AFM — Sevenair appoints Martim Sacavém as CEOpress · 2026-01-06
- 16AFM — Sevenair chosen for Luxair's sponsorship programmepress · 2024-07-12
- 17Luxair — Pilot Cadet Programme 2026 (press release)partner announcement · 2026-07-10
- 18Observador — Airbus partnership in Ponte de Sorpress · 2026-02-27
- 19DNOTICIAS — Sevenair buys pilot school and takes three hangars in Ponte de Sorpress · 2022-09-30
- 20Flying — L3Harris divests flight training assets in Portugal to Sevenairpress
- 21Sevenair — Modular ATPLschool website
Contact Sevenair Academy
Your enquiry goes only to the schools you tick. Add more from your comparison and send one message to several.
Similar schools
IFA – International Flight Academy
Cascais, Portugal