Glass cockpit instrument panel and kneeboard in a training aircraft at Van Nuys Airport
Reference · 100+ Terms

The Aviation Glossary For Student Pilots

Flight training has its own language, and most of it gets thrown at you in the first three lessons with no translation. This is the translation. Every term you will actually hear at a flight school, in plain English, written by the instructors who teach it.

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Certificates And RatingsAirspace And WeatherRadio And Instruments
100+terms defined in plain English by our instructors
40 hrsFAA private pilot minimum under FAR 61.109
5.0★100+ reviews on Google
$229discovery flight, credited in full if you enroll within 24h
Certificates, Ratings And EndorsementsMedical CertificatesRegulations And PaperworkAirspaceAirports And GroundNavigationWeatherInstruments And CockpitAircraft And Flying
How To Use This

Nobody Expects You To Know Any Of This On Day One

Every student pilot has the same experience in the first week: an instructor says something completely ordinary like squawk VFR and stay below the shelf, and you nod as though that meant anything. It is not a sign you are behind. Aviation compresses a lot of meaning into very few words because radio time is expensive, and the vocabulary is learned the same way any vocabulary is — by hearing it used.

This page exists so you can look things up without pretending. It is organized by subject rather than strictly alphabetically, because terms make more sense next to their neighbors. If you are looking for one specific word, use your browser's find function.

Two pilots wearing headsets in the cockpit of a training aircraft at Van Nuys Airport
A–Z By Subject

Certificates, Ratings And Endorsements

What You Can Earn, In Order

Aviation distinguishes between a certificate (the license itself), a rating (an addition that expands what you may do) and an endorsement (a logbook signature from an instructor permitting something specific). People say license in conversation; the FAA says certificate.

  • Student Pilot Certificate — the first certificate, free through the FAA's IACRA system. Required before you fly solo, not before you start lessons.
  • Sport Pilot Certificate — a lower-hour certificate (20 hours minimum) flown in aircraft that meet the performance limits in 14 CFR 61.316, with one passenger. No FAA medical is required by day if you hold a valid US driver's license; night flying is permitted under 14 CFR 61.329 with training, an endorsement and either a part 67 medical or BasicMed. Our program is $8,400.
  • Recreational Pilot Certificate — a rarely used middle tier between sport and private. Most people skip it.
  • Private Pilot Certificate (PPL) — the standard license. 40 hours minimum under FAR 61.109; national average is 50 to 70, per AOPA. Lets you carry passengers, fly at night, and go anywhere, but not for hire. Our Standard program is $10,900 and our Comprehensive program is $15,900.
  • Instrument Rating (IR) — added to a private certificate. Permits flight in cloud and low visibility by sole reference to instruments. Widely considered the rating that makes you a genuinely competent pilot. $11,700 with us.
  • Commercial Pilot Certificate (CPL) — 250 hours total time under Part 61. Permits flying for compensation or hire.
  • Multi-Engine Rating (ME / AMEL) — added to private or commercial. Permits flying aircraft with more than one engine. No minimum hour requirement, just proficiency — typically 10 to 15 hours. Our add-on is $5,100 in the Piper Seminole.
  • Certified Flight Instructor (CFI) — permits teaching. The standard route to building hours toward an airline job while being paid.
  • CFII — a flight instructor authorized to teach instrument flying. MEI — authorized to teach in multi-engine aircraft.
  • ATP (Airline Transport Pilot) — the highest certificate. 1,500 hours in most cases; reduced to 1,000 or 1,250 for graduates of certain approved programs (an R-ATP).
  • Type Rating — required for aircraft over 12,500 lb or turbojet-powered. This is what airline pilots mean when they say they are 'typed on the 737'.
  • High-Performance Endorsement — required for aircraft with engines over 200 horsepower.
  • Complex Endorsement — required for aircraft with retractable gear, flaps and a controllable-pitch propeller. Flown here in the Piper Arrow II.
  • Tailwheel Endorsement — required for conventional-gear aircraft, where the third wheel is at the back.
  • Flight Review (BFR) — every certificated pilot must complete one every 24 calendar months to stay legal. One hour ground, one hour flight.

Medical Certificates

Issued by an Aviation Medical Examiner (AME), not an ordinary doctor. Applied for through MedXpress, the FAA's online system, before the appointment.

  • First Class Medical — required for airline transport pilots. Most stringent standards.
  • Second Class Medical — required to exercise commercial privileges.
  • Third Class Medical — what a private pilot needs, and it must be in hand before you fly solo. Valid 60 months if you are under 40, 24 months if you are over.
  • BasicMed — an alternative to the third-class medical for certain private operations, using a state-licensed physician and an online course. Requires you to have held a valid FAA medical at some point since July 2006.
  • Special Issuance — a medical granted with conditions, for pilots with a disqualifying condition that is nonetheless being managed. More conditions are approvable than most people assume.
Rules

Regulations, Schools And Paperwork

The Regulations You Will Actually Hear Cited

The FARs (Federal Aviation Regulations) live in Title 14 of the Code of Federal Regulations. Instructors cite them constantly and by number.

  • Part 61 — the certification rules for pilots and instructors. Also the name given to flexible, non-syllabus-bound flight schools. Most US flight training happens here, and it is what we are.
  • Part 91 — general operating and flight rules. Governs almost everything a private pilot does.
  • Part 141 — FAA-approved flight schools operating a fixed, inspected syllabus. Slightly lower hour minimums, considerably less scheduling flexibility.
  • Part 135 — commuter and on-demand charter operations. What you need to fly paying passengers on a scenic tour.
  • Part 121 — scheduled airline operations.
  • Part 107 — commercial drone operations. A separate certificate entirely.
  • FAR 61.109 — the specific rule setting the 40-hour private pilot minimum.
  • FAR 91.409(b) — requires aircraft used for instruction for hire to have a 100-hour inspection in addition to the annual. Privately owned aircraft need only the annual. This is why a training fleet is inspected more often than most private airplanes.
  • ACS (Airman Certification Standards) — the document defining exactly what you must demonstrate on your checkride, to what tolerance. Not secret. Read it early.
  • IACRA — the FAA's online application system for certificates.
  • TSA / AFSP — the Alien Flight Student Program. Non-US citizens must be approved through it before beginning training toward a certificate.
  • M-1 Visa — the vocational student visa most international flight students hold.
Where You Learn It

Van Nuys Is Class D Under The LAX Class B Shelf

The vocabulary below stops being abstract about ten minutes into your first lesson, because you will hear all of it on the radio at one of the busiest general aviation airports in the world. Students trained here learn radio discipline quickly because there is no alternative.

KVNY · Class DUnder The LAX Class B ShelfPractice Areas North And West
Flight instructor briefing a student beside a training aircraft on the ramp at Van Nuys Airport
Where You Fly

Airspace, Airports And Navigation

Classes Of Airspace

US airspace is layered like an upside-down wedding cake around busy airports. Van Nuys sits in Class D beneath the Class B shelf belonging to LAX — which is exactly why students trained here learn radio discipline quickly.

  • Class A — 18,000 ft and above. Instrument flight rules only.
  • Class B — the busiest airports (LAX). Explicit ATC clearance required to enter.
  • Class C — moderately busy airports with radar service. Two-way radio contact required.
  • Class D — airports with an operating control tower, such as Van Nuys (KVNY). Two-way radio contact required.
  • Class E — controlled airspace that is not A, B, C or D.
  • Class G — uncontrolled airspace. No ATC service.
  • TFR (Temporary Flight Restriction) — temporary no-fly area, often for wildfires, sporting events or VIP movements. Common in Los Angeles.
  • MOA (Military Operations Area) — airspace where military training occurs.
  • Practice Area — the block of airspace a school uses for maneuvers. Ours run north over the Santa Clarita valley and west toward the coast.

Airports And Ground

  • KVNY — Van Nuys Airport. One of the busiest general aviation airports in the world. The K prefix is the ICAO identifier convention for the contiguous US.
  • ATIS — Automatic Terminal Information Service. A recorded loop of current weather and runway information you listen to before calling the tower. Each update gets a letter: 'information Bravo'.
  • Ground / Tower / Clearance Delivery — the three controllers you will speak to at a towered field, in that order on departure.
  • Run-up — the engine checks performed in a designated area before taxiing to the runway.
  • FBO (Fixed Base Operator) — the business on the field providing fuel, parking and services.
  • Taxiway / Hold Short Line — the yellow markings you must not cross without a clearance. Crossing one without permission is a runway incursion and it is taken very seriously.
  • Pattern (Traffic Pattern) — the rectangular circuit flown around a runway: upwind, crosswind, downwind, base, final.
  • Go-around — abandoning a landing and climbing away to try again. A sign of good judgment, never of failure.
Weather And Aircraft

Weather, Instruments And How The Airplane Works

Weather

  • METAR — a coded current weather observation for an airport.
  • TAF — Terminal Aerodrome Forecast. The forecast version of a METAR.
  • Ceiling — the height of the lowest broken or overcast cloud layer.
  • Marine Layer — the low coastal stratus that rolls into the LA basin on summer mornings and burns off by mid-morning. The single most common reason a Los Angeles lesson gets delayed rather than canceled.
  • Density Altitude — pressure altitude corrected for temperature. On a hot day at Van Nuys the aircraft performs as though the airport were thousands of feet higher. It is the number behind a surprising share of accidents.
  • Crosswind — wind across the runway rather than along it. Every certificate requires demonstrated crosswind landings.
  • Santa Ana Winds — strong, dry offshore winds that produce excellent visibility and demanding mechanical turbulence over the LA basin.

Instruments And Cockpit

  • Six Pack — the traditional arrangement of six analogue flight instruments: airspeed, attitude, altimeter, turn coordinator, heading, vertical speed.
  • Glass Cockpit — digital displays replacing the six pack. Garmin G1000 and similar. Our Premium program at $22,500 is flown entirely in a glass-cockpit Cirrus SR22 Turbo.
  • Steam Gauges — affectionate slang for the traditional analogue instruments.
  • PFD / MFD — primary flight display; multi-function display.
  • Attitude Indicator — shows the aircraft's pitch and bank relative to the horizon. Your lifeline in cloud.
  • Altimeter Setting — the local barometric pressure you dial in so the altimeter reads correctly. Given in the ATIS.
  • Transponder — the box that replies to radar with your identity and altitude.
  • Foggles / Hood — view-limiting devices worn to simulate instrument conditions in clear weather.

Aircraft And Flying

  • Angle of Attack — the angle between the wing and the oncoming air. Exceed the critical angle and the wing stalls, regardless of speed or attitude.
  • Stall — loss of lift caused by exceeding the critical angle of attack. Not an engine failure. Practiced deliberately and repeatedly in training.
  • Spin — an aggravated stall with rotation. Spin awareness is required for instructor candidates.
  • Slip — a cross-controlled maneuver used to lose altitude quickly or to land in a crosswind.
  • Trim — the control that relieves pressure on the yoke so the aircraft holds an attitude by itself.
  • Flaps — devices that increase lift and drag, allowing steeper, slower approaches.
  • Wet Rate / Dry Rate — an hourly aircraft rate with fuel included, or without. A dry number always looks cheaper and never is, so when you compare schools, confirm which one you are being quoted. We settle the question with the package instead: enrolled students at LA Flight School train at $179 an hour, wet, single-engine, and that rate is already inside the program price and fixed at enrollment.
  • Hobbs / Tach Time — two different ways of measuring how long an aircraft has run. Hobbs runs in real time from engine start to shutdown; tach time runs slower at lower power settings, so an hour of one is not an hour of the other. Where a school bills by the hour, the choice quietly changes what a lesson costs. On a package it does not: our programs buy a stated number of logged hours at the $179 package rate — 40 hours on the Standard program at $10,900, 60 on the Comprehensive at $15,900.
  • Glide Ratio — how far an aircraft travels forward per unit of altitude lost with the engine off. A typical trainer manages about 9:1 — roughly five miles from 3,000 feet.
  • CAPS — the Cirrus Airframe Parachute System, a whole-aircraft parachute fitted to Cirrus aircraft.
  • Preflight — the walkaround inspection before every flight. Non-negotiable and never rushed.
  • Cross-Country — a flight to an airport more than 50 nautical miles from the departure point. Required for certification.
  • Solo — flying alone. First solo typically happens between 15 and 25 hours and is the day you will remember.
  • Checkride — the FAA practical test, conducted by a DPE (Designated Pilot Examiner). An oral exam followed by a flight, assessed against the ACS. The examiner is independent of the flight school.
  • Logbook — the record of every hour you fly. Your discovery flight is the first entry.
  • Currency vs Proficiency — currency is the legal minimum that keeps you allowed to fly; proficiency is actually being good at it. They are not the same, and good pilots keep the second well ahead of the first.

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.

A student's hands on the control stick and a kneeboard in a training aircraft, the instrument panel lit in front of them Most Given The Hollywood sign on its ridge seen past the wing of a light aircraft, with the San Fernando Valley beyond Two Seats A Cirrus SR22 Turbo parked on the ramp with both gullwing doors raised, showing the leather interior and glass cockpit The Nice One The flight school's Piper Seminole twin-engine training aircraft parked inside the hangar at Van Nuys 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.

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.

A student pilot smiling in the cockpit of a Diamond DA20 with the canopy raised on the Van Nuys Airport ramp at golden hour

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
Enroll Now Get Course Information
See The Training Fleet Redbird MCX Simulator $189/Hr (818) 290-8249

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

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.

5.0Google100+ Reviews 355Flyable DaysA Year At Van Nuys 9–9Open Daily9 AM To 9 PM, 7 Days
The Downtown Los Angeles skyline under an overcast sky, seen from a small airplane on a flight with LA Flight School, from the Google review by Marc Bolanos SAFETY FIRST
Marc BolanosJAN 2026 Google
★★★★★
Very safety and detail oriented. Pre-flight briefing explained everything there was. To my knowledge, this flight school is exceptional in their ability.
The view from the pilot seat of a small training airplane, with the instrument panel beside the window and Los Angeles below, from the Google review by Diego Gutierrez DISCOVERY FLIGHT
Diego GutierrezOCT 2024 Google
★★★★★
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...
The sun setting over the hills past the wing of a small airplane on a sunset flight from Van Nuys, from the Google review by Ethan Pilon SUNSET CIRRUS
Ethan PilonOCT 2024 Google
★★★★★
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...
A yellow and white Piper training airplane, registration N6312C, parked on the ramp at Van Nuys Airport under a clear blue sky, from the Google review by Mia Bompat FLYING LESSON
Mia BompatJUN 2026 Google
★★★★★
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...
Sunset over the Santa Monica Mountains and the Malibu coastline, seen from a small airplane above Santa Monica Bay, from the Google review by Sanaz Diba KIDS LUXURY FLIGHT
Sanaz DibaAUG 2024 Google
★★★★★
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...
Pink and orange sunset clouds over the ridgelines of the Santa Monica Mountains, photographed from a small airplane, from the Google review by Rakkad Alhouqani HONEYMOON SURPRISE
Rakkad AlhouqaniJUL 2024 Google
★★★★★
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...
A row of yellow and white LA Flight School training airplanes parked on the ramp at Van Nuys Airport at dusk, from the Google review by Niyousha Aslejafari FULL-MOTION SIM
Niyousha AslejafariNOV 2025 Google
★★★★★
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...
A student and an instructor in headsets in the front seats of a small airplane, flying toward the sunset over the Pacific, from the Google review by Bruce Guido DISCOVERY FOR TWO
Bruce GuidoNOV 2024 Google
★★★★★
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...
A smiling LA Flight School student standing in front of a white training airplane outside the hangar at Van Nuys Airport, from the Google review by George Attallah SIMULATORS
George AttallahAPR 2024 Google
★★★★★
Very professional and great airplanes. I love the flight simulators. The pricing is very fair compared to any other flight school
A student pilot in a headset sitting in a Cirrus with the door raised, parked outside a hangar at Van Nuys Airport, from the Google review by Tania Anders TEEN FIRST LESSON
Tania AndersJUN 2025 Google
★★★★★
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...
A white Cirrus being moved out of its hangar at Van Nuys Airport before a flight, from the Google review by Meghan Klien FIRST-TIME FLYER
Meghan KlienOCT 2024 Google
★★★★★
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...
The Downtown Los Angeles skyline under an overcast sky, seen from a small airplane on a flight with LA Flight School, from the Google review by Marc Bolanos SAFETY FIRST
Marc BolanosJAN 2026 Google
★★★★★
Very safety and detail oriented. Pre-flight briefing explained everything there was. To my knowledge, this flight school is exceptional in their ability.
The view from the pilot seat of a small training airplane, with the instrument panel beside the window and Los Angeles below, from the Google review by Diego Gutierrez DISCOVERY FLIGHT
Diego GutierrezOCT 2024 Google
★★★★★
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...
The sun setting over the hills past the wing of a small airplane on a sunset flight from Van Nuys, from the Google review by Ethan Pilon SUNSET CIRRUS
Ethan PilonOCT 2024 Google
★★★★★
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...
A yellow and white Piper training airplane, registration N6312C, parked on the ramp at Van Nuys Airport under a clear blue sky, from the Google review by Mia Bompat FLYING LESSON
Mia BompatJUN 2026 Google
★★★★★
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...
Sunset over the Santa Monica Mountains and the Malibu coastline, seen from a small airplane above Santa Monica Bay, from the Google review by Sanaz Diba KIDS LUXURY FLIGHT
Sanaz DibaAUG 2024 Google
★★★★★
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...
Pink and orange sunset clouds over the ridgelines of the Santa Monica Mountains, photographed from a small airplane, from the Google review by Rakkad Alhouqani HONEYMOON SURPRISE
Rakkad AlhouqaniJUL 2024 Google
★★★★★
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...
A row of yellow and white LA Flight School training airplanes parked on the ramp at Van Nuys Airport at dusk, from the Google review by Niyousha Aslejafari FULL-MOTION SIM
Niyousha AslejafariNOV 2025 Google
★★★★★
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...
A student and an instructor in headsets in the front seats of a small airplane, flying toward the sunset over the Pacific, from the Google review by Bruce Guido DISCOVERY FOR TWO
Bruce GuidoNOV 2024 Google
★★★★★
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...
A smiling LA Flight School student standing in front of a white training airplane outside the hangar at Van Nuys Airport, from the Google review by George Attallah SIMULATORS
George AttallahAPR 2024 Google
★★★★★
Very professional and great airplanes. I love the flight simulators. The pricing is very fair compared to any other flight school
A student pilot in a headset sitting in a Cirrus with the door raised, parked outside a hangar at Van Nuys Airport, from the Google review by Tania Anders TEEN FIRST LESSON
Tania AndersJUN 2025 Google
★★★★★
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...
A white Cirrus being moved out of its hangar at Van Nuys Airport before a flight, from the Google review by Meghan Klien FIRST-TIME FLYER
Meghan KlienOCT 2024 Google
★★★★★
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.

The Fleet

The Aircraft Behind Half The Words On This Page

Angle of attack, trim, complex, glass cockpit, multi-engine — every one of those terms points at a specific airplane on our ramp. We own all of them, inspect them on our own schedule, and fly them every day.

Cessna trainer on the ramp at Van Nuys Airport
Cessna trainer — high wing, six-pack panel, and where most of this vocabulary is first heard.
Piper Warrior training aircraft parked at Van Nuys Airport
Piper Warrior — low wing, four seats, the Standard and Comprehensive program workhorse.
Diamond DA20 training aircraft at Van Nuys Airport
Diamond DA20 — bubble canopy, which makes 'see and avoid' considerably easier to practice.
Piper Arrow II complex training aircraft at Van Nuys Airport
Piper Arrow II — the complex endorsement airplane: retractable gear, constant-speed prop.
Cirrus SR22 Turbo with glass cockpit at Van Nuys Airport
Cirrus SR22 Turbo — glass cockpit and CAPS. The Premium program at $22,500 is flown in it.
Piper Seminole multi-engine training aircraft at Van Nuys Airport
Piper Seminole — AMEL, Vmc, critical engine. The $5,100 multi-engine add-on lives here.

Single-engine training on the Standard and Comprehensive programs is flown in the Cessna, Piper and Diamond aircraft. The Premium program is flown in the Cirrus SR22 Turbo with its full glass cockpit.

Redbird MCX

Foggles, ILS And Squawk Codes — Practiced On The Ground First

A full-motion, FAA-approved, fully enclosed simulator, and it moves. Half the vocabulary on this page is easier to learn here than in the aircraft, because the instructor can freeze the world and explain it. And it is never canceled for weather.

Simulator hours are built into every private pilot program — 2 hours on Standard and Premium, 5 hours on Comprehensive. A standalone session is $189.

Your Instructor

The People Who Translate All Of This For You

Every instructor here holds a commercial or ATP certificate plus a CFI and a current medical, and the instructor is legally pilot in command on every flight. Which means you can use a term wrongly on the radio in your third week and nothing bad happens — which is exactly how the vocabulary gets learned.

There are eleven of them, so your lessons are not hostage to one person's calendar. You are matched to an instructor when you enroll and you can change if the fit is wrong, without a conversation about loyalty.

They fly here as a career rather than treating the school as a waiting room for an airline class date. It shows up in the debrief, which is where most of the words on this page actually get explained.

Flight instructor and student in the cockpit of a training aircraft at Van Nuys Airport
Put The Words To Use

An Hour In The Aircraft Teaches More Vocabulary Than An Evening On This Page

A discovery flight is a real lesson — you fly the aircraft, your instructor talks you through the radio calls, and it goes in a logbook as dual instruction. The full price is credited against any program if you enroll within 24 hours.

Redbird Simulator Session

$189 / 1 hr

Full-motion and FAA-approved. Foggles, approaches and radio work, with the ability to pause and ask what a word means.

Most Chosen

Discovery Flight For One

$229 / 60 min

You fly it. Logged as dual instruction. 90 min $299, 120 min $399. Credited in full against any program within 24 hours.

Free Consultation

$0

Half an hour on your calendar, your budget and which certificate actually fits. No obligation.

Programs: Sport Pilot $8,400 · Private Pilot $10,900 Standard, $15,900 Comprehensive, $22,500 Premium · Instrument Rating $11,700 · Multi-engine add-on $5,100 · Solo Certificate $5,500 · Teens 10–15 $4,200 · Zero-to-airline $89,000. Enrolled students train at $179 an hour wet, single-engine, fixed at enrollment. Financing from $2,500 down.

Back to School: $500 off any private pilot program through 30 September 2026. Standard $10,400 · Comprehensive $15,400 · Premium $22,000. Ask when you enroll.
Next Step

The Fastest Way To Learn The Language Is To Use It

An hour in the aircraft will teach you more vocabulary than an evening on this page. You fly it, your instructor talks you through the radio calls, and it goes in a logbook as real instruction. Call (818) 290-8249 or book online.

Discovery Flight For One
$229
60 minutes · hands on the controls · credited in full if you enroll within 24h

Keep Reading

FAQ

Questions Students Ask About The Vocabulary

They are the same thing. The FAA issues 'certificates' and that is the correct legal term in the United States; most of the world and most conversation says 'license'. Nobody will correct you either way, and the private pilot certificate you earn in our $10,900 Standard program is the document people mean when they say license.

A rating is added to your certificate by the FAA after a checkride — an instrument rating or a multi-engine rating, for example. An endorsement is a signature an instructor writes in your logbook permitting a specific activity, such as flying a high-performance or tailwheel aircraft. Ratings require a test; endorsements require an instructor to be satisfied you are competent. Our instrument rating is $11,700 and the multi-engine add-on is $5,100.

Visual Flight Rules — flying by looking out of the window, in weather good enough to see and avoid other aircraft and terrain. In Class D airspace such as Van Nuys that means 3 statute miles visibility and cloud clearance of 500 feet below, 1,000 above and 2,000 horizontally. The alternative is IFR, which requires an instrument rating and permits flight in cloud under air traffic control.

An hourly aircraft rate with fuel included. A dry rate excludes fuel, which you then buy separately, so a dry number always looks cheaper than it is. At LA Flight School enrolled students train at $179 an hour, wet, single-engine — the package rate, already inside the program price and fixed at enrollment.

Hobbs time runs in real time from engine start to shutdown. Tach time is driven by engine RPM and runs slower at lower power settings, so an hour of one is not an hour of the other. Where a school bills by the hour it changes what a lesson costs; on our packages it does not, because you buy a stated number of logged hours — 40 on the $10,900 Standard program, 60 on the $15,900 Comprehensive.

Set your transponder to code 1200, the standard code for VFR flight in the United States. Air traffic control assigns you a discrete four-digit code when you are receiving radar service; 1200 is what you use otherwise. 7700 is the emergency code, 7600 signals lost communications and 7500 signals a hijacking.

No. You will absorb almost all of it in the first 20 hours simply by using it. This page exists so you can look things up in the evening without feeling behind. Every pilot flying today started out not knowing any of it, and a $229 discovery flight will teach you more of it in an hour than a week of reading.

Our Cessna, Piper and Diamond single-engine trainers, which is what the $10,900 Standard and $15,900 Comprehensive private pilot programs are flown in. The $22,500 Premium program is flown in a glass-cockpit Cirrus SR22 Turbo, and multi-engine terms such as AMEL and critical engine belong to the Piper Seminole. We own and maintain every one of them.

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