A discovery flight is not a sightseeing ride: you take the controls once we are clear of Van Nuys and fly north over your own street in Santa Clarita.
Most people in Santa Clarita have flown out of Burbank, driven past Van Nuys on the 405 and never once thought about the airport itself. It is twenty-two miles from Valencia Town Center. You come down the 5, spend an hour flying an airplane over your own city, and are back in Saugus before the afternoon is gone.
The instructor does the takeoff and the landing. Everything between is yours. Once we are clear of the field the controls come across, and you fly the airplane north over the Sepulveda Basin, across the Santa Susana ridge and out over Newhall and Valencia. What surprises people most is how unremarkable it feels: steady, quiet, nothing sudden. More than 2,000 of these have been flown here safely, and not one of them needed anybody to be brave.
It also counts for something. The hour goes into a logbook as real dual instruction toward a pilot certificate, not as a tour. If you decide within 24 hours to carry on, 100% of what you paid comes off the cost of your training. It makes a better gift than most too: a College of the Canyons graduation, a fortieth birthday, someone in Canyon Country who has talked about this for twenty years.
Allow about two hours at the airport for a 60-minute flight, plus the drive down through the pass.
Come to 7900 Balboa Blvd, Suite 108A. Parking is free and directly outside. Bring ID and a pair of sunglasses. Nothing needs preparing and there is no reading to do first.
Twenty minutes with your instructor on what the controls do, what the flight will look like, and where you want to go. Valencia, Castaic Lake, Vasquez Rocks, the coast at Ventura: the route is yours to pick.
You do the preflight inspection with the instructor rather than watching it. Fuel, oil, tires, control surfaces. It is the same check every pilot runs before every flight, and it is usually the moment it starts to feel real.
The takeoff belongs to the instructor. Somewhere over the Sepulveda Basin the airplane becomes yours, and you climb it north across the ridge toward home. You keep the airplane for whichever you booked: 60, 90 or 120 minutes.
You get the entry signed and an honest read on what training would look like for you specifically. No pressure in either direction. Sign up within 24 hours and every dollar of the flight comes off the program price.
Every figure below is the real, published price. No "call for a quote," no hidden block-time minimums.
Full-motion simulator with an instructor. Never weather-canceled.
You in the pilot's seat, instructor beside you, LA underneath.
One flies, one rides along. The most-gifted flight we offer.
Premium Cirrus SR22 glass cockpit. The anniversary flight.
Twin-engine Piper Seminole. A real taste of the professional path.
From Valencia and Saugus, take the 5 south through the Newhall Pass, then the 118 east and off at Balboa Blvd, five miles straight south with the airport on your right. From Canyon Country the 14 south joins the same route at the pass. Twenty-two miles, about thirty minutes clear. The 405 south to Roscoe Blvd works just as well and is often the better call on a weekend.
Book a morning if you can. The air over the Santa Susanas is smooth early and turns bumpy by mid-afternoon in summer, which matters for photographs and for stomachs. A morning slot does mean driving south through the pass in the peak direction, so either leave early or take the 10:30 rather than the 9. Find us at 7900 Balboa Blvd, Suite 108A. Free parking outside, and the doors are open 9 AM to 9 PM every day of the week.
Pick your aircraft, pick a date and time, and you are on the schedule. You fly the airplane yourself with an FAA-certified instructor beside you — and every flight is 100% credited toward training if you enroll within 24 hours.
Full-motion simulator with an instructor. No weight limit, no medical needed.
Reserve →You in the pilot's seat over Los Angeles, hands on the controls the whole way.
Book Now →One of you flies hands-on, the other takes in the skyline. Share the story.
Book Now →Premium Cirrus SR22 glass cockpit and extended air time over the LA basin.
Book Now →Twin-engine Piper Seminole and a genuine look at the professional path.
Book Now →The usual airplanes for this are the Cessna 162 Skycatcher, the Diamond DA20 and the Piper Warrior. Discovery Flight For One is $229 for 60 minutes, $299 for 90 and $399 for 120. Discovery Flight For Two is $299, $399 and $499, so a partner or a friend can ride along and see exactly what you see.
If you want it to feel like an occasion, the Luxury Cirrus For Two is $499 for 60 minutes, $699 for 90 and $949 for 120, flown in the Cirrus SR22 Turbo with a full glass panel. The Multi-Engine Discovery Flight in the Piper Seminole is $499, $699 and $899. There is also a $189 hour in the Redbird MCX full-motion simulator, which is the fallback if the weather is against us. The school holds a 5.0 star rating on Google across 100+ reviews.
A 60-minute flight out of Van Nuys puts the whole Santa Clarita Valley under the wing with time to spare.
By a wide margin the most recognizable thing in the city from the air. White steel loops and drop towers packed into a fold of the hills beside the 5, visible long before anything else resolves.
The wall between the Valley and Santa Clarita. You cross it about six minutes after takeoff, and the moment the ground falls away on the far side is the part everyone remembers.
Deep blue against dry brown hills just north of the city, with the dam wall and the boat ramps sharp from 3,000 feet. On a clear day it is the prettiest thing on the route.
The looping green walkways and bridges that thread between Valencia's neighborhoods make a pattern you simply cannot see from the ground. First-time flyers find their own street off them every time.
The Route You Fly
About an hour from Van Nuys Airport: Universal Studios, the Hollywood Sign, Griffith Observatory and a full circle around Downtown LA, then west just north of SoFi Stadium and LAX to the coast, from Venice Beach up to Malibu. Your instructor takes off and lands. You fly 50–80% of it.
01Instructor Takeoff
Wheels Up From Van Nuys
Your instructor takes off from one of the busiest general aviation airports in the world and talks you through every step. Once you are clear of the field, the controls are yours.
02You’re Flying
The Backlot From Above
The studio lots turn out to be far bigger than they look on TV, with the soundstages lined up like a small town.
03You’re Flying
Nine Letters On Mount Lee
The most famous sign in the world, seen from where almost nobody gets to see it: level with the hilltop.
04You’re Flying
The Domes On The Ridge
The white domes of Griffith Observatory on the slope of Mount Hollywood, with the whole Los Angeles basin laid out beyond them.
05You’re Flying
A Full Circle Around Downtown
In on the south side, then a full counterclockwise circle around the towers: up the east side, over the top and back around. The San Gabriel Mountains stand behind the skyline.
06You’re Flying
The Roof You Know From TV
We pass just north of the stadium and never fly over it. Its huge translucent roof, home of the Rams and the Chargers, sits right off your left wing.
07You’re Flying
Airliners On Final, Off Your Left Wing
Jets lining up for one of the busiest airports on Earth, off your left wing. We stay north of LAX and never fly over it.
08You’re Flying
Right Turn Up The Coast
The boardwalk, the skate park and the sand, then a right turn up the coast with all of Santa Monica Bay opening up ahead of you.
09You’re Flying
The Pier And The Ferris Wheel
The pier, the Ferris wheel and the beach, straight out of a thousand films.
10You’re Flying
The Mountains Meet The Pacific
Up the coast past the Palisades to Malibu, where the Santa Monica Mountains drop straight into the ocean.
11You’re Flying
Over The Hills To Warner Center
North over the Santa Monica Mountains to Warner Center in Woodland Hills, then east across the San Fernando Valley with Van Nuys straight ahead.
12Instructor Landing
Your Instructor Lands, Then A Quick Debrief
Have your own pilot logbook? Bring it and your instructor will be happy to sign it. Enroll within 24 hours of landing and 100% of what you paid is credited toward your training.
Book Your Flight · From $229Typical route. Weather and air traffic control set the final path on the day.
Hands-On From The Left Seat
Your instructor takes off and lands. Almost everything in between is yours: turns, climbs, descents, holding a heading over Los Angeles. How much depends on you and the conditions on the day.
Your instructor flies the takeoff from Van Nuys and talks you through it while you listen to the tower in your headset.
You fly the airplane. Turns, climbs, descents and holding a heading over Los Angeles, for roughly 50–80% of the flight depending on you and the conditions. Your instructor has an identical set of controls and handles the radio.
Your instructor lands and narrates the approach. Have your own logbook? Your instructor will be happy to sign it. Want to fly less and look more? Say so at the briefing.
Tap Takeoff, You Fly or Landing to see who is flying.
Yes. The instructor handles the takeoff and the landing; you fly the climb, the turns and the cruise north toward Santa Clarita. The instructor has a full set of controls and stays on them throughout, so there is nothing you can get wrong. No experience and no preparation needed.
Twenty-two miles, about thirty minutes: the 5 or the 14 south through the Newhall Pass, then the 118 east to Balboa Blvd or the 405 south to Roscoe. We are at 7900 Balboa Blvd, Suite 108A. Parking is free and right outside the door. Allow around two hours at the airport for a 60-minute flight.
Discovery Flight For One is $229 for 60 minutes, $299 for 90 and $399 for 120. For Two is $299, $399 and $499. The Luxury Cirrus For Two starts at $499, the Multi-Engine Discovery Flight in the Seminole at $499, and an hour in the Redbird MCX simulator is $189.
It does. It is logged as dual instruction and counts toward the 40-hour minimum for a private pilot certificate. Enroll in a program within 24 hours and 100% of what you paid for the flight is credited against it. The Standard Private Pilot program is $10,900.
Both, easily, inside 60 minutes. Tell your instructor at the briefing what you want to see: your own street in Saugus, the CalArts campus, Vasquez Rocks out past Canyon Country, or the coast at Ventura. Ninety minutes gives you room for the coastline as well as the city.
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.
Our Courses
Real pricing on every program we teach at Van Nuys Airport, beyond the pricing already shown above.
5.0 Average Rating
100+ Google Reviews
CertificateMost Popular
The one most people mean by “learn to fly.” Fly with an instructor, fly alone, then carry passengers on your own certificate.
Fly With An Instructor Fly Solo Carry Passengers $10,900 Enroll Now
Youth Program
Ages 10–15. For young people who want to start before they can legally solo.
$4,200 View Course
Milestone
Enough training to take an aircraft around the pattern alone. The day everything changes.
$5,500 View Course
Certificate
A real certificate with fewer hours and narrower privileges. The shortest honest route to flying yourself.
$8,400 View Course
Bundle
Private Pilot with flight time, ground instruction and study materials bundled into one price.
$15,900 View CourseBundle
The same certificate as Private, with the most flight time before your checkride. Eighty logged hours, ground instruction and materials, all in one price.
80 Logged Hours Ground School Included Materials Included $22,500 View Course
Rating
The rating after Private. Turns a fair-weather pilot into a useful one who can file, launch and land in cloud.
$11,700 View Course
Rating
For pilots already certificated who are adding a twin. Trained in our own Piper Seminole.
$5,100 View Course
Our Fleet
Diamond DA20, Cessna 162, Piper Arrow II and our Piper Seminole twin — all on the field at Van Nuys.
View The FleetThe Full Route
Zero experience to airline-hireable qualifications, in one continuous program rather than nine separate ones. Financing is available, and every hour of it is flown out of Van Nuys.
$89,000Financing Available
Free In-Person Tour Before You Commit
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.
Santa Clarita is one drive down the 5 from an hour in the left seat of an airplane. Call (818) 290-8249 to book, or come to 7900 Balboa Blvd, Suite 108A, where we fly seven days a week from 9 AM to 9 PM.
Or Send Us A Message And We'll Come Back To You The Same Day →Fully Automated Booking
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Choose your time in the aircraft
You spend exactly 60 minutes in the aircraft.
Please book in advance. Aircraft and instructor time is reserved ahead, so choose your date early.
What you receive the moment you book
Text Message
You're booked! Discovery Flight, 60 min in the aircraft, on the date and time you chose. Details are in your email.
Email Confirmation
Example of the confirmations sent after booking.
