Captain: Francois Botha
Hailing from Limpopo in South Africa, Francois comes from a small farming town in the Afrikaans area of the country. He grew up close to the nature and the breathtaking wildlife of the area, and has carried his love of the outdoors throughout his life.
Francois began his maritime career working as a commercial diver, flown out to the BVI to assist in the mass clean up and yacht salvage in the wake of Hurricanes Irma and Maria. As a qualified class 2 Commercial Bell Diver he is more than comfortable below sea level, and has recently transferred his skills to qualify as a Dive Master, ensuring all guests are in more than safe and experienced hands.
One of his proudest achievements is his involvement with a non-profit charity in the BVI creating artificial reefs and interactive dive sites including the sunken wreck of the ‘Willy T’ and ’Sharkplano’, he has a great local knowledge of the sites and will ensure to show you the very best spots.
Being an incredibly calm and collected character, Francois will always be at your service with a smile and will make sure his guests feel well attended to and safe, whilst giving them their own tailored trip of a lifetime.
Qualifications and Skills:
STCW-HLSCC Tortola
PADI IDC- In process, Rainbow Reef Dive School, Key Largo (Completion September 26th)
PADI DIVEMASTER-Aquanauts Grenada
Certification of Commercial Class II Diver, Jacks Dive Chest
Commercial Diving School (Member: NO M-JDC)
-Decompression Chamber Operator -Underwater Welding Proficiency
-H2S-Hydrogen Sulfide Induction Course – SSDE Nitrox Diver Class III
-Compressor Operator – Pre Sea Induction Course
DMT-IMCA Diver Medic (PDC-DMT-950) Professional Diving Centre, Durban Harbour
Diving First Aid & First Aid at Work (Level 3)
Commercial Diver Advanced 02 Administration Certificate
Diving Medical Certificate Class II (Air) with Decompression Chamber, Dr MJ Pravetz PhD