Whilst Ara certainly does seem to have been 'current' in terms of his 135 checkrides and UA/IIMC training - I am left wondering how demanding those UA/IIMC manoeuvres were that he had to pass.
The IEH Ops manual defines a UA as +/- 10 kts of intended IAS or +/- 10% of normal cruise power (unless I am reading it all wrong) so very little adjustment required to correct either of those.
By comparison, the 2 standard UAs for Brit Mil IRTs are 'Low speed autorotative turn at not more than 30 deg AoB and High speed descending turn at not more than 30 deg AoB' - both of these should be recovered with minimum height loss and with a specified minimum base height and recovery height to simulate being below safety alt.
My point is that if you don't train properly for a hazardous situation, you are far less likely to recover from it if it does present itself.
Do the part 135 UAs and IIMC checks come even close to replicating real disorientation? If not, is it because the checkers don't have any more actual IMC time than the check airmen and have no idea what it is really like?
Real disorientation is f***ing scary - as Robbiee has discovered - and only good, realistic training or a very big handful of luck will save you.