SAFETY FIRST
★★★★★
Very safety and detail oriented. Pre-flight briefing explained everything there was. To my knowledge, this flight school is exceptional in their ability.
An Honest Answer, Not A Reassurance
Are Small Plane Flights Over Los Angeles Safe?
This is the question behind almost every phone call we get, and it usually arrives disguised as something else. So here is a straight answer, with the regulations cited, the risks named, and the parts we cannot promise left unpromised.
Courses & Pricing
Every Course We Teach
★★★★★
5.0 Rating
100+ Google Reviews
Course prices are packages, not hourly rates - the aircraft, your instructor, ground school and simulator time are all in the figure. Van Nuys Airport, KVNY. Financing Available Through Stratus & In-House Plans.
Start Here
Discovery Flight
The First Hour At The Controls. Credited Toward Your Training If You Enroll Within 24 Hours Of Landing.
From$229
Book A Discovery Flight
01
Discovery Flight
The first hour at the controls; credits toward training if you enroll within 24 hours of landing.
From$229
02
Teen Flight Training Ages 10–15
Starting before it is legal to solo.
$4,200
03
Multi-Engine Rating
For existing pilots adding a twin.
$5,100
04
Solo Certificate
Enough training to take an aircraft around the pattern alone.
$5,500
05
Sport Pilot
A real certificate, fewer hours, narrower privileges.
$8,400
06
Private Pilot Most Enrolled
The one most people mean by “learn to fly.”
$10,900
07
Instrument Rating
Turns a fair-weather pilot into a useful one.
$11,700
08
Comprehensive Private Pilot
Private with flight time, ground instruction and materials bundled.
$15,900
09
Premium Private Pilot
The most flight time before your checkride - 80 logged hours.
$22,500
10
Airline Pilot Program
Zero experience to airline-hireable qualifications.
$89,000
All Prices In USD. 7900 Balboa Blvd, Suite 108A, Van Nuys, CA 91406 · Open 9 AM–9 PM, Seven Days. Free In-Person Tour Of The School
SAFETY FIRST
DISCOVERY FLIGHT
★★★★★
I recently had the chance to take my first-ever discovery flight, and it was nothing short of amazing! From the moment I stepped into the cockpit, the...
SUNSET CIRRUS
★★★★★
It was a great flight! I did a sunset flight and Alex let us fly an awesome. Website was easy to book, and the plane itself was really fun to fly...
FLYING LESSON
★★★★★
We had a great flying lesson with Ralph and came away with a much better understanding of both the aircraft and the principles of flight. Ralph is a...
KIDS LUXURY FLIGHT
★★★★★
I got 2 luxury discovery flights for my kids. I wanted them to have the experience of flying. Our instructor Alex was amazing he made sure they feel...
HONEYMOON SURPRISE
★★★★★
Last minute booking to surprise my wife on our honeymoon. She had no experience with flying and was scared of flying, but Alex was very easygoing and knew...
FULL-MOTION SIM
★★★★★
Amazing flight school in van nuys airport. I have been a student here for the past few months and i could not be happier. I started doing a lot of...
DISCOVERY FOR TWO
★★★★★
I booked a Discovery Flight for Two for my girlfriend's birthday and it was the perfect gift for her. She couldn't have been more excited to get to...
SIMULATORS
★★★★★
Very professional and great airplanes. I love the flight simulators. The pricing is very fair compared to any other flight school
TEEN FIRST LESSON
★★★★★
We gifted our teenage son his first flying lesson. He was so excited! Alex greeted us and gave a reassuring brief that made us all feel comfortable and at...
FIRST-TIME FLYER
★★★★★
Flying is my husband's hobby and I was incredibly anxious and apprehensive about the discovery flight. However, I felt completely safe and at ease once we...
SAFETY FIRST
★★★★★
Very safety and detail oriented. Pre-flight briefing explained everything there was. To my knowledge, this flight school is exceptional in their ability.
DISCOVERY FLIGHT
★★★★★
I recently had the chance to take my first-ever discovery flight, and it was nothing short of amazing! From the moment I stepped into the cockpit, the...
SUNSET CIRRUS
★★★★★
It was a great flight! I did a sunset flight and Alex let us fly an awesome. Website was easy to book, and the plane itself was really fun to fly...
FLYING LESSON
★★★★★
We had a great flying lesson with Ralph and came away with a much better understanding of both the aircraft and the principles of flight. Ralph is a...
KIDS LUXURY FLIGHT
★★★★★
I got 2 luxury discovery flights for my kids. I wanted them to have the experience of flying. Our instructor Alex was amazing he made sure they feel...
HONEYMOON SURPRISE
★★★★★
Last minute booking to surprise my wife on our honeymoon. She had no experience with flying and was scared of flying, but Alex was very easygoing and knew...
FULL-MOTION SIM
★★★★★
Amazing flight school in van nuys airport. I have been a student here for the past few months and i could not be happier. I started doing a lot of...
DISCOVERY FOR TWO
★★★★★
I booked a Discovery Flight for Two for my girlfriend's birthday and it was the perfect gift for her. She couldn't have been more excited to get to...
SIMULATORS
★★★★★
Very professional and great airplanes. I love the flight simulators. The pricing is very fair compared to any other flight school
TEEN FIRST LESSON
★★★★★
We gifted our teenage son his first flying lesson. He was so excited! Alex greeted us and gave a reassuring brief that made us all feel comfortable and at...
FIRST-TIME FLYER
★★★★★
Flying is my husband's hobby and I was incredibly anxious and apprehensive about the discovery flight. However, I felt completely safe and at ease once we...
2,000+discovery flights flown safely
100 hrsbetween full inspections
2 setsof flight controls, always
5.0★100+ reviews on Google
The Short Version
Flying A Small Aircraft Is Not Risk-Free, And Anyone Who Tells You It Is Should Worry You
General aviation carries more risk per hour than riding on an airliner. That is simply true, and no operator who is being straight with you will claim otherwise. What is also true is that the accident record in general aviation is dominated by a small number of identifiable causes — continuing visual flight into instrument conditions, fuel exhaustion, loss of control during low-speed maneuvering, and pilots flying beyond their currency or their aircraft's capability.
Almost every one of those causes is a decision, not a mechanical failure. And almost every one of them is specifically designed out of the flight you are considering: a professional instructor is making the decisions rather than a low-time private pilot; the flight is short, local and in daylight or over a fully lit city; the fuel state is trivially adequate; and the maneuvering is gentle, at altitude, with dual controls.
Instructional flying with a certified flight instructor is, in practice, one of the more conservative things you can do in a light aircraft. Below is exactly why, in specifics rather than adjectives.
The Specifics
Four Things That Make This Flight Different From General Aviation At Large
1. The Maintenance Standard Is Stricter Than For A Private Aircraft
Most privately owned aircraft in the United States are required to have one inspection a year — the annual, under FAR 91.409(a). An aircraft used to carry persons for hire, or to give flight instruction for hire, must additionally be inspected every 100 flight hours under FAR 91.409(b).
Our fleet flies a lot, so in practice that means a full inspection every few weeks rather than once a year. On top of that, every single flight begins with a documented preflight inspection walked around the aircraft by the instructor — and, on a discovery flight, by you alongside them. You will check the fuel for water yourself. It is a real part of the lesson, not a demonstration.
2. A Career Professional Is Legally In Command
Your instructor is not a hobbyist. To hold a flight instructor certificate they must already hold at least an FAA commercial pilot certificate, pass an instrument and a fundamentals-of-instruction knowledge test, and pass a practical test with an FAA inspector or designated examiner. They must hold a current FAA medical certificate and renew the instructor certificate every 24 calendar months.
Legally, they are pilot in command for the entire flight. That matters more than it sounds: it means every go/no-go decision, every route change and every weather call is being made by someone whose certificate is on the line, not by the customer who paid for the flight.
3. There Are Two Sets Of Controls And They Are Both Real
Our training aircraft have full dual controls — yoke or stick, rudder pedals, throttle — in front of both front seats. Your instructor is not supervising from the back; they are sitting beside you with their hands and feet inches from a complete set of flight controls. If you do something the airplane does not like, they can take it back before you have finished doing it. In practice they will simply say 'I have the airplane' and you let go.
Your instructor also flies the takeoff and the landing on every discovery flight. Those two phases account for a disproportionate share of general aviation accidents, and they are the parts we do not hand over.
4. The Airspace Is Controlled And Monitored
Van Nuys is a towered Class D airport sitting beneath the Los Angeles Class B shelf — some of the most actively controlled airspace in the country. From the moment you call for taxi to the moment you shut down, air traffic control knows where you are and is separating you from other traffic. Our aircraft carry ADS-B, which broadcasts your position continuously and shows nearby traffic on the panel.
The Question Everybody Asks
What Actually Happens If The Engine Stops?
An airplane with a failed engine does not fall. It becomes a glider, and a fairly good one. A typical training aircraft glides roughly nine feet forward for every foot it descends, which from 3,000 feet gives you somewhere around five miles of range in any direction and several minutes to use it.
Handling that is not improvised. Simulated engine failures are a required training maneuver, practiced repeatedly by every student, and demonstrated to an examiner on the private pilot checkride. Your instructor has flown that scenario hundreds of times. Over Los Angeles specifically there is Van Nuys behind you, Burbank and Whiteman nearby, Santa Monica to the south, and the golf courses, flood control basins and freeways that make up any instructor's mental list of options.
On the Cirrus SR22T there is a further layer: CAPS, a rocket-deployed parachute that lowers the entire airframe rather than the occupants. It is standard equipment on the type and has been used successfully in real emergencies many times.
And on the multi-engine Piper Seminole, an engine failure does not produce a glider at all — the aircraft continues flying on the remaining engine. If the engine question is the one keeping you on the ground, the twin at $499 is the honest answer to it.
Our Rules
What We Will Not Do
A safety policy is only meaningful in the moments it costs somebody money. These are ours.
🌤
We Do Not Fly Marginal Weather
If conditions are below our minimums, the flight does not happen. You reschedule at no cost or move to the simulator. The instructor decides and the decision is not open to negotiation, including by us.
🚫
We Do Not Fly A Squawk
If anything is found unserviceable on the preflight, that aircraft does not fly until it is fixed and signed off. We would rather move you to another aircraft or another day.
🕒
We Do Not Rush A Booking
Nobody is pressured into taking off because a slot is booked. If the briefing runs long or you want another ten minutes on the ground, you get it.
🎪
We Do Not Do Aerobatics
No loops, no rolls, no unusual attitudes, no low passes for photographs. A discovery flight is gentle, and the aircraft are not certified for anything else.
🗣
We Do Not Talk Anyone Into It
If you or your guest is genuinely uncomfortable at the aircraft, we stop. Full stop, no charge argument, and the simulator is there instead.
🦺
We Do Not Cross Water Unprepared
Coastal and Catalina routes are flown with glide range planned and flotation equipment aboard and briefed before engine start.
Practical
For The Nervous Flyer Specifically
If Turbulence Is The Worry
Book the first slot of the morning. Turbulence over Los Angeles is overwhelmingly thermal — caused by the ground heating and warm air rising — so before about 11am the air is usually glass smooth. An hour after sunset is nearly as good. Mid-afternoon in summer is the bumpiest and we will tell you so if you try to book it.
If Motion Sickness Is The Worry
It is manageable and it is common. Eat something light beforehand rather than nothing. Sit in the front. Look at the horizon, not at your phone. Tell the instructor at the briefing and they will fly more gently and give you the controls early — people who are flying the aircraft get motion sick far less often than people being flown. Over-the-counter medication taken an hour beforehand works well; ask a pharmacist about drowsiness.
If Flying Itself Is The Fear
A light aircraft is a surprisingly good place to address that, because you can see out in every direction and you understand what is happening and why. Nothing is hidden behind a cockpit door. That said, if the thought of leaving the ground is genuinely distressing, start on the ground: the $189 Redbird is a full-motion FAA-approved simulator that pitches and rolls with the same controls, and a lot of people fly it first.
We also run a dedicated fear-of-flying course if this is something you want to actually solve rather than work around.
Book It Or Gift It
Fly It Yourself, Or Give The Flight To Someone Else
Every discovery flight below can be booked for yourself in the next few minutes, or bought as a gift certificate that is emailed within minutes and never expires. Same flight, same price, either way.
Most Given
Two Seats
The Nice One
Twin Engine
Discovery Flight For One
One person, one instructor, and no audience. Hands on the controls from the left seat, briefed before you go and debriefed after you land.
Hands-On Stick TimePre-Flight BriefingLoggable Flight Time
Flight Length
$229Book It Or Gift It
Same Price Either Way
Discovery Flight For Two
The same flight with a passenger in the back seat, briefed and on the intercom. Couples book it; so do parents who would rather watch than hear about it.
One Passenger SeatPiper Warrior Or ArcherHeadsets For Both
Flight Length
$299Book It Or Gift It
Same Price Either Way
Luxury Discovery Flight
The nicest airplane we put a first-time flyer in. Glass cockpit, air conditioning, leather seats, and a parachute built into the airframe rather than strapped to the person.
Turbocharged Cirrus SR22Air ConditioningWhole-Airframe Parachute
Flight Length
Bring A PassengerInstructor + 2 is our maximum+$100
$499Book It Or Gift It
Same Price Either Way
Multi-Engine Seminole
Two engines, and the airplane instrument-rated pilots move into when they start thinking about a career. Flown from the left seat with a multi-engine instructor.
Piper Seminole TwinMulti-Engine DepartureCareer-Track Instructor
Flight Length
$499Book It Or Gift It
Same Price Either Way
Gift It issues a real gift certificate, emailed within minutes, which never expires and credits in full toward training. Flights are limited to 180 lb per person, 370 lb combined. Questions: (818) 290-8249, 9 AM–9 PM, seven days.
FAQ
Safety Questions
General aviation carries more risk per hour than airline travel, and it would be dishonest to say otherwise. But the accident record is dominated by pilot decision-making — flying into weather beyond the pilot's rating, running out of fuel, loss of control while maneuvering low and slow. On an instructional flight those decisions are made by a professional instructor with a current medical and a certificate to protect, flying a short local route in good weather in an aircraft inspected every 100 hours. That is a very different risk profile from general aviation as a whole.
The aircraft becomes a glider, not a falling object — roughly nine feet forward for every foot down, which from 3,000 feet gives about five miles of range and several minutes. Handling engine failure is a required, repeatedly practiced training maneuver and is tested on the private pilot checkride. The Cirrus additionally carries a whole-airframe parachute, and the twin-engine Seminole simply continues flying on the other engine.
Every 100 flight hours, as required by FAR 91.409(b) for aircraft used to give flight instruction for hire, plus an annual inspection. Privately owned aircraft are only required to have the annual. Every individual flight also begins with a documented preflight inspection, which on a discovery flight you help carry out.
At minimum an FAA commercial pilot certificate, a flight instructor certificate renewed every 24 calendar months, and a current FAA medical certificate. Many of our instructors also hold instrument and multi-engine instructor ratings. They are the legal pilot in command for your entire flight.
Yes, without hesitation and at no cost to you. We reschedule or move you to the simulator. The instructor makes the weather call and neither the customer nor the school can overrule it.
Yes, and we fly them regularly — our youngest ongoing students are 10. A child must be able to see over the panel and reach the controls to fly the aircraft, but any age can ride along. A parent or guardian signs for anyone under 18.
Our coastal routes are planned to keep a suitable landing site within gliding distance, and flotation equipment is carried and briefed on any route that goes beyond it. If you would prefer additional margin over water, book the twin-engine Seminole, which continues flying on one engine.
Tell your instructor. They take the controls, turn back and land — typically within ten minutes from anywhere on our routes. It happens occasionally, nobody makes anything of it, and you will not be the first.
Talk To Us
Still Have A Question We Have Not Answered?
Call (818) 290-8249 and ask it. We would much rather spend ten minutes on the phone than have you book something you are not comfortable with.
Redbird Simulator Session
$189
Full motion, on the ground, 60 minutes
Start On The Ground
Or Call (818) 290-8249
More Flights Over Los Angeles
No Cost, No Obligation
Get The Full Training Plan And Price Sheet
The three private pilot packages, what each one includes, the financing options and a realistic timeline built around how often you can actually fly. Sent to you in one email. Nobody will pressure you.
- Every package price, itemised
- Financing from $2,500 down
- A timeline based on your schedule
Loved On Google
Over 100 Reviews. 5.0 Stars.
Every review below is real and shown verbatim, in the reviewer’s own words — written by the people who learned to fly here, not by us.
SAFETY FIRST
★★★★★
Very safety and detail oriented. Pre-flight briefing explained everything there was. To my knowledge, this flight school is exceptional in their ability.
DISCOVERY FLIGHT
★★★★★
I recently had the chance to take my first-ever discovery flight, and it was nothing short of amazing! From the moment I stepped into the cockpit, the...
SUNSET CIRRUS
★★★★★
It was a great flight! I did a sunset flight and Alex let us fly an awesome. Website was easy to book, and the plane itself was really fun to fly...
FLYING LESSON
★★★★★
We had a great flying lesson with Ralph and came away with a much better understanding of both the aircraft and the principles of flight. Ralph is a...
KIDS LUXURY FLIGHT
★★★★★
I got 2 luxury discovery flights for my kids. I wanted them to have the experience of flying. Our instructor Alex was amazing he made sure they feel...
HONEYMOON SURPRISE
★★★★★
Last minute booking to surprise my wife on our honeymoon. She had no experience with flying and was scared of flying, but Alex was very easygoing and knew...
FULL-MOTION SIM
★★★★★
Amazing flight school in van nuys airport. I have been a student here for the past few months and i could not be happier. I started doing a lot of...
DISCOVERY FOR TWO
★★★★★
I booked a Discovery Flight for Two for my girlfriend's birthday and it was the perfect gift for her. She couldn't have been more excited to get to...
SIMULATORS
★★★★★
Very professional and great airplanes. I love the flight simulators. The pricing is very fair compared to any other flight school
TEEN FIRST LESSON
★★★★★
We gifted our teenage son his first flying lesson. He was so excited! Alex greeted us and gave a reassuring brief that made us all feel comfortable and at...
FIRST-TIME FLYER
★★★★★
Flying is my husband's hobby and I was incredibly anxious and apprehensive about the discovery flight. However, I felt completely safe and at ease once we...
SAFETY FIRST
★★★★★
Very safety and detail oriented. Pre-flight briefing explained everything there was. To my knowledge, this flight school is exceptional in their ability.
DISCOVERY FLIGHT
★★★★★
I recently had the chance to take my first-ever discovery flight, and it was nothing short of amazing! From the moment I stepped into the cockpit, the...
SUNSET CIRRUS
★★★★★
It was a great flight! I did a sunset flight and Alex let us fly an awesome. Website was easy to book, and the plane itself was really fun to fly...
FLYING LESSON
★★★★★
We had a great flying lesson with Ralph and came away with a much better understanding of both the aircraft and the principles of flight. Ralph is a...
KIDS LUXURY FLIGHT
★★★★★
I got 2 luxury discovery flights for my kids. I wanted them to have the experience of flying. Our instructor Alex was amazing he made sure they feel...
HONEYMOON SURPRISE
★★★★★
Last minute booking to surprise my wife on our honeymoon. She had no experience with flying and was scared of flying, but Alex was very easygoing and knew...
FULL-MOTION SIM
★★★★★
Amazing flight school in van nuys airport. I have been a student here for the past few months and i could not be happier. I started doing a lot of...
DISCOVERY FOR TWO
★★★★★
I booked a Discovery Flight for Two for my girlfriend's birthday and it was the perfect gift for her. She couldn't have been more excited to get to...
SIMULATORS
★★★★★
Very professional and great airplanes. I love the flight simulators. The pricing is very fair compared to any other flight school
TEEN FIRST LESSON
★★★★★
We gifted our teenage son his first flying lesson. He was so excited! Alex greeted us and gave a reassuring brief that made us all feel comfortable and at...
FIRST-TIME FLYER
★★★★★
Flying is my husband's hobby and I was incredibly anxious and apprehensive about the discovery flight. However, I felt completely safe and at ease once we...
See Discovery Flight Details — $229
Reviews shown verbatim, exactly as each reviewer published them.
Aviation News
Latest From The Field
Notes from the flight line at Van Nuys — weather, regulation changes, checkride questions and the cost of training, written up as they come.
Van Nuys Airport · KVNY
(818) 290-8249
7900 Balboa Blvd. Suite 108A
Van Nuys, CA 91406 Get directions →
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Open 7 days · 9:00 AM – 9:00 PM
Los Angeles Flight School7900 Balboa Blvd. Suite 108A
Van Nuys, CA 91406 Get directions →
★★★★★
5.0 · 100+ Google reviews