Our complete zero-to-airline program is $89,000. It starts with no flight time and finishes with a commercial certificate, an instrument rating, a multi-engine rating and a flight instructor certificate — one published price, fixed on the day you enroll.
Book It Or Gift It
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
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 Or Gift
Same Price
Two Seats
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 Or Gift
Same Price
The Nice One
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
$499Book Or Gift
Same Price
Twin Engine
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 Or Gift
Same Price
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.
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...
Here is the thing nobody explains properly. The commercial pilot course itself — the maneuvers, the chandelles and lazy eights, the complex aircraft time, the checkride preparation — is a matter of weeks. That is not the expensive part.
The expensive part is FAR 61.129, which requires 250 total flight hours before you can take the checkride. A private certificate gets you a fraction of the way there. An instrument rating adds more. The rest is time you have to go out and fly, and that is why a career program is priced as a program rather than assembled from receipts.
Our zero-to-airline program is $89,000. It covers the private certificate, the instrument rating, the commercial certificate, the multi-engine rating and the flight instructor certificate, and the price is fixed on the day you enroll. If you would rather buy the stages separately, the private pilot programs start at $10,900 and the instrument rating is $11,700.
Enrolled students fly single-engine aircraft at $179 an hour wet, which is the package rate the whole program is built from and the reason a fixed career price is possible at all.
Every certificate and rating an airline will ask to see, in the order you will earn them.
| Stage | Requirement |
|---|---|
| Stage 1: Private Pilot | |
| FAA minimum, FAR 61.109 | 40 hrs |
| Available separately from | $10,900 |
| Stage 2: Instrument Rating | |
| Instrument time, FAR 61.65 | 40 hrs |
| Cross-country PIC prerequisite | 50 hrs |
| Available separately at | $11,700 |
| Stage 3: Commercial Pilot | |
| Total time, FAR 61.129 | 250 hrs |
| Pilot in command | 100 hrs |
| Cross-country as pilot in command | 50 hrs |
| Complex or technically advanced aircraft | 10 hrs |
| Stage 4: Multi-Engine and Flight Instructor | |
| Multi-Engine add-on, available separately at | $5,100 |
| Flight instructor certificate | included |
| Hours before an airline will hire, FAR 61.159 | 1,500 hrs |
| Complete zero-to-airline program | $89,000 |
The flight instructor certificate is not a luxury on this path. It is how nearly everyone builds the 1,500 hours FAR 61.159 requires while being paid rather than paying, and it is inside the $89,000.
The same four stages as the table above, in plain language.
Non-negotiable, and the foundation everything else is built on. There is no route to a commercial certificate that skips it. On its own it is $10,900 on the Standard program.
Technically optional for the commercial certificate. Practically compulsory, because without it your commercial certificate carries a limitation barring you from carrying passengers for hire more than 50 nautical miles or at night. No employer wants that pilot. On its own it is $11,700.
Precision maneuvers flown to tighter tolerances than anything you have done before, 10 hours in a complex or technically advanced aircraft, and the checkride flown in the Piper Arrow. Getting to 250 total hours is the long part, and how you plan those hours is the thing that decides your timeline.
The multi-engine add-on is flown in the Piper Seminole and is $5,100 as a standalone rating. The flight instructor certificate is what turns the next 1,500 hours from an expense into a salary. Both are inside the $89,000 program.
There is no way to avoid the hours. There are several ways to make them do more work for you.
Continuity is worth more on this path than on any other. Currency lapses between stages and skills have to be relearned, and every week you do not fly pushes the 250-hour mark further away. The program schedule is built to keep you flying rather than restarting.
FAR 61.129 wants 100 hours of pilot in command, 50 hours of cross-country PIC, 10 hours of instrument training and 10 hours of complex or TAA time. Plan flights that satisfy two requirements at once. Students who build hours randomly and then discover they are 20 cross-country hours short pay for that mistake in time.
Two commercial students can log the same cross-country as pilot in command and safety pilot on alternating legs, provided it is set up properly. Done correctly that puts twice as much logged time on the same flight. Ask an instructor to set the rules out before you try it.
The Redbird MCX is $189 for a standalone session. It will not log total time toward the 250, but for instrument procedures and emergency drills it is better training than the airplane, you can fly the same approach six times in forty minutes, and it is never canceled for weather.
Every aircraft on the career path is owned by the school and inspected on our schedule under the FAR 91.409(b) 100-hour cycle required for instruction for hire.
Single-engine time on the career path is flown at $179 an hour wet as an enrolled student. The multi-engine add-on is flown in the Seminole.
FAA-approved, fully enclosed, and it moves. Procedures, instrument scan, radio work and emergencies all transfer straight to the aircraft — and it is never canceled for weather.
Simulator time is built into every private pilot program — 2 hours on Standard and Premium, 5 hours on Comprehensive — and it does its hardest work on the instrument rating and the commercial procedures.
Every instructor here holds a commercial or ATP certificate plus a CFI and a current medical, and is legally pilot in command on every flight you make together. On a career track that runs from a first lesson to an airline interview, being taught by people who have made that exact journey is the difference between a syllabus and a mentorship.
There are 11 instructors on the team, which is what makes a career timeline realistic. A student trying to reach 250 hours cannot afford to be waiting on one person having a free Tuesday. You are matched to an instructor when you enroll and can change if the fit is wrong.
Many of them built their own hours instructing here, which is exactly what you will be doing in stage four. They will tell you what that year is genuinely like before you commit $89,000 to it.
On Google, the same three things come up again and again.
The most repeated compliment in our reviews is not the aircraft or the price — it is the debrief.
Eleven instructors and a fleet we own means lessons happen when we say they will.
The number you enroll at is the number you finish at. Reviewers mention this constantly.
One program price for the whole career track, or the individual programs if you would rather buy a stage at a time.
Stage one, on its own. 40 hours logged, 30 hours dual, 3 hours ground school, books included.
The whole career path in one fixed price, from no flight time to airline-ready.
Stage two, on its own. The rating that makes a commercial certificate employable.
Also published: Comprehensive Private Pilot $15,900 · Premium Private Pilot $22,500 · Multi-Engine add-on $5,100 · Sport Pilot $8,400 · Redbird simulator session $189. Financing from $2,500 down with monthly plans available, through aviation lenders or in-house.
The sensible first step toward a commercial certificate is one hour in an airplane and one conversation with an instructor who will tell you the truth about the timeline.
A real lesson. You fly it, the time is loggable, and it counts toward the 250. Credited in full on enrollment within 24 hours.
Two engines, the aircraft the multi rating is flown in. Worth doing if the airline path is what you are actually here for.
Fly the twinSit down with an instructor and map the 250 hours against your calendar and your finances. You leave with a written plan and a date.
Financing for the career track runs through aviation lenders or an in-house payment plan from $2,500 down. Neither requires you to decide today, and neither is a reason to skip the discovery flight first.
Every hour counts toward the 250, including this one. Sixty minutes over Los Angeles with your hands on the controls, logged as dual instruction. Enroll within 24 hours and the $229 comes off your program. Call (818) 290-8249, 9am to 9pm, seven days.
Our complete zero-to-airline program is $89,000 at Van Nuys Airport, taking a student from no flight time to a commercial certificate with an instrument rating, a multi-engine rating and a flight instructor certificate. Bought a stage at a time, the private pilot program is $10,900 and the instrument rating is $11,700.
$89,000 for the full program at Van Nuys, with the price fixed on the day you enroll. Most students then instruct for twelve to eighteen months to reach the 1,500 hours FAR 61.159 requires for an airline, and are paid for that time rather than paying for it.
250 total flight hours under FAR 61.129 at a Part 61 school like ours. Within that you need 100 hours pilot in command, 50 hours of cross-country as pilot in command, 10 hours of instrument training and 10 hours in a complex or technically advanced aircraft. Part 141 programs can do it in 190 hours but are far less flexible.
Not legally, but a commercial certificate without an instrument rating carries a limitation prohibiting you from carrying passengers for hire on cross-countries over 50 nautical miles or at night. That makes the certificate close to unemployable, which is why effectively everyone does the instrument rating first — $11,700 on its own, and included in the $89,000 program.
The private pilot certificate, the instrument rating, the commercial certificate, the multi-engine rating and the flight instructor certificate, along with all flight instruction, ground school, briefings and training materials. The price is fixed at enrollment for the duration, and enrolled students fly single-engine aircraft at $179 an hour wet.
Eighteen to twenty-four months from zero for a student flying consistently on the $89,000 program. Part-time students take three to four years, and the extra time matters because currency lapses between stages and skills have to be relearned before you can move on.
Yes. We are a Part 61 school at Van Nuys Airport, which means the same FAA commercial certificate with the same privileges, at $89,000 for the full career program, without a degree requirement or a residential campus. Part 61 also lets you train around a job, which is why most career changers choose it.
Yes. The zero-to-airline program starts from $2,500 down with monthly payment plans available, through aviation lenders or an in-house plan. Because the $89,000 is fixed at enrollment, your monthly figure is calculated against a number that will not move while you train.
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.
Loved On Google
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...
Reviews shown verbatim, exactly as each reviewer published them.
Aviation News
Notes from the flight line at Van Nuys — weather, regulation changes, checkride questions and the cost of training, written up as they come.
Open 7 days · 9:00 AM – 9:00 PM
Los Angeles Flight School
