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.
The other certificate
Part 141 Flight Schools: What The Certificate Buys, And Who Needs One
A Part 141 school holds an FAA pilot school certificate and trains against a course outline the FAA approved in advance. We do not hold one. Here is exactly what it is, what it changes, and the three groups who genuinely need it.
14 CFR 141.3 certificate required35 hours, Appendix BVA and M-1 need Part 141We train under Part 61
141.5the section that sets the certificate bar
35 hrsprivate minimum, Appendix B
13course appendices, A to M
5.0★85 reviews on Google
The short answer
A Part 141 flight school is a school with a certificate, not a pilot with a different licence.
A Part 141 school — and a Part 141 aviation school is the same thing under a different name — is a flight school that holds an FAA pilot school certificate issued under 14 CFR 141.3, with ratings for the specific courses it is approved to run. The courses themselves are approved in advance under 14 CFR 141.53 and must contain what 14 CFR 141.55 requires.
The certificate is not easy to get and it is not permanent. Under 14 CFR 141.5 an applicant runs first as a provisional school under 14 CFR 141.7, then applies having graduated at least ten students inside 24 calendar months and having shown that at least 80 percent of them passed the relevant test on the first attempt. 14 CFR 141.27 governs renewal and 14 CFR 141.21 lets the FAA inspect at any reasonable time.
What none of it changes is your certificate. A private pilot trained under an approved course is issued the same document, under the same 14 CFR part 61, after the same practical test against the same Airman Certification Standards.
We are a Part 61 school and we do not hold a Part 141 pilot school certificate. If you need one, this page is written to help you find and check a real one rather than to talk you out of it.
The mechanism
What a Part 141 certificate actually obliges the school to do
These are the operating rules a certificated pilot school lives under. They are the substance behind the phrase.
1
An approved course outline, lesson by lesson
14 CFR 141.53 sets the approval procedure and 14 CFR 141.55 the required contents — objectives, standards, a stage-by-stage syllabus and the minimum hours from the relevant appendix. The FAA signs it before a student flies it.
2
A vetted chief instructor
14 CFR 141.35 sets the hours and instructional experience a chief instructor must hold and requires them to pass a knowledge and proficiency test on teaching methods and the applicable regulations. 14 CFR 141.36 does the same for an assistant chief and 141.37 for check instructors.
3
Approved facilities, aircraft and devices
14 CFR 141.38 covers airports, 141.39 the aircraft, 141.41 simulators and training devices, 141.43 briefing areas and 141.45 ground training facilities. 14 CFR 141.25 requires a business office and a designated operations base.
4
Enrolment paperwork and a graduation certificate
14 CFR 141.93 requires the school to give every enrolled student a certificate of enrolment, a copy of the syllabus and its safety procedures. 14 CFR 141.95 requires a graduation certificate, which is the document a VA claim or an I-20 file is built around.
5
Training records the FAA can audit
14 CFR 141.101 sets what the record must contain and how long it is kept. 14 CFR 141.83 makes the school responsible for the quality of the training and for the standard its graduates reach.
6
Examining authority, if it earns it
Subpart D lets a school apply for examining authority. 14 CFR 141.63 requires it to have held the rating 24 consecutive calendar months, trained at least 10 students in that course in the preceding 24 months and seen at least 90 percent of them pass on the first attempt with an FAA inspector or a non-employee examiner. 14 CFR 141.65 then lets it recommend its own graduates for the certificate without an FAA knowledge or practical test.
The courses
The thirteen approved course types a Part 141 school can be rated for
A school is not “Part 141” in general. It holds ratings for named courses, and the appendix decides the minimum hours for each.
| Appendix | Course | Airplane minimum in the appendix |
|---|---|---|
| A | Recreational pilot certification | see Appendix A; the Part 61 comparison is 30 hours under 14 CFR 61.99 |
| B | Private pilot certification | 35 hours of ground training, 35 hours of flight training |
| C | Instrument rating | 30 hours of ground training, 35 hours of instrument flight training |
| D | Commercial pilot certification | 35 hours of ground training, 120 hours of flight training |
| E | Airline transport pilot certification | see the appendix; 14 CFR 61.159 still sets 1,500 hours |
| F / G | Flight instructor and flight instructor instrument | course-based, no lower total-time floor than Part 61 |
| H | Ground instructor certification | ground training only |
| I / J | Additional category or class rating, and type rating | course-based |
| K / L / M | Special preparation, pilot ground school, combined private and instrument | course-based |
Diligence
How to check a Part 141 claim before you pay a deposit
The phrase is used loosely in advertising. These three checks take ten minutes and settle it.
01
Ask to see the certificate
14 CFR 141.19 requires the pilot school certificate to be displayed at the operations base. Ask which ratings it carries. A school approved only for a ground school course under Appendix L is not approved for your flight training.
02
Ask which appendix your course runs under
A school can be Part 141 for its commercial course and Part 61 for everything else. If the 35-hour Appendix B private course is what you came for, ask whether that specific course is approved.
03
Ask about stage checks and credit
Ask who does the stage checks and what happens if you fail one. And if you already have hours, ask what they will credit — 14 CFR 141.77 caps it at 50 percent of the requirements from another approved course and 25 percent from anywhere else, and the school must test you to grant even that.
Choosing
Who genuinely needs a Part 141 school, and who does not
Three groups need one, and for them it is not a preference. If you are using VA or GI Bill education benefits, 38 CFR 21.4263 requires the course to be offered by a school holding a valid FAA pilot school certificate under 14 CFR part 141. If you need an M-1 or F-1 student visa, SEVP policy guidance 1207-04, issued under 8 CFR 214.3, requires the provider to hold FAA Part 141 or Part 142 certification before it can be SEVP-certified and issue an I-20. And if you are going commercial full time, 14 CFR 61.129(i) allows an approved-course graduate to qualify at 190 hours instead of the 250 in 14 CFR 61.129(a).
Everybody else is choosing between two ways of getting the same certificate. The five-hour gap at private level — 35 hours under Appendix B against 40 under 14 CFR 61.109(a) — is about a lesson and a half, and AOPA puts the national average at 50 to 70 hours either way. It is not the number that decides your outcome.
The thing that decides your outcome is how often you fly, which depends on aircraft availability and how many instructors the school has. A Part 141 certificate says nothing about either. Some approved schools have superb availability; some have a queue.
If a structured, audited, full-time programme suits how you learn, an approved course is a genuinely good product and you should buy it. If your training has to fit around a job, read our comparison of Part 61 vs Part 141 and then come and talk to us.
What we are
A Part 61 school with its own fleet at Van Nuys
We will not claim a certificate we do not hold. What we will show you is the ramp.
Every aircraft on this ramp is ours, inspected on our schedule under 14 CFR 91.409(b), and flown by our instructors daily.
Redbird MCX
Where an approved course puts a stage check, we put the simulator
The Redbird MCX is FAA-approved, fully enclosed and it moves. Procedures, instrument scan and emergencies transfer straight to the aircraft.
Two to five hours of simulator time sit inside every private pilot programme. A single session is $189.
Your instructor
Career instructors, not hour-builders passing through
A Part 141 certificate vets one chief instructor under 14 CFR 141.35 and requires recurrent proficiency checks under 14 CFR 141.79. Below that line, the quality of the teaching is the school’s own doing under either part.
Every instructor here holds a commercial or airline transport pilot certificate plus a CFI and a current medical, and is legally pilot in command on every training flight under 14 CFR 91.3. There are eleven, so your lesson does not wait on one person.
Ask on the consultation to see the syllabus we teach to. Part 61 does not require us to have one. We have one anyway.
What people say
5.0 Stars, 85 Reviews
On Google, the same three things come up again and again.
★
Instructors who actually teach
The most repeated compliment in our Google reviews is not the aircraft and it is not the price. It is the debrief.
★
Scheduling that works
Eleven instructors and a fleet we own means the lesson happens on the day we said it would.
★
Prices that do not move
The number you enrol at is the number you finish at. Reviewers mention it constantly.
Published prices
What we charge, published
One number per programme. Financing from $2,500 down.
Standard Private Pilot
$10,900
40 hours logged under 14 CFR 61.109(a). Cessna, Piper or Diamond, 30 hours dual, 3 hours ground school.
- Aircraft 38 hrs
- Dual instruction 30 hrs
- Redbird simulator 2 hrs
Most chosen
Comprehensive Private Pilot
$15,900
60 hours logged, closer to the national average, with 10 hours of ground school and 5 in the simulator.
- Aircraft 55 hrs
- Dual instruction 50 hrs
- Ground school 10 hrs
Instrument Rating
$11,700
The rating that makes a licence useful in Southern California weather, under 14 CFR 61.65.
- XC PIC required 50 hrs
- Instrument time 40 hrs
- Simulator time Included
$500 off any private pilot program this summer. Standard $10,400 · Comprehensive $15,400 · Premium $22,000. Ask when you enroll.
Your next step
Tell us which route you actually need
Thirty minutes, free. If your funding is VA, or you need an I-20, we will say so and point you at a certificated pilot school instead of taking a deposit.
Discovery Flight For One
$229
60 minutes · you fly the aircraft · credited in full on enrolment within 24 hours
Part 61 and Part 141
Part 61 vs Part 141 comparedPart 61 flight schools explainedPart 61 flight trainingFAA certified flight schoolsPart 61 flight school in Los Angeles
FAQ
Part 141 Flight Schools — Common Questions
A Part 141 flight school is one that holds an FAA pilot school certificate issued under 14 CFR 141.3 and trains against course outlines the FAA approved in advance under 14 CFR 141.53. The school is certificated; the pilot certificate you earn is still issued under 14 CFR part 61 and looks identical.
Nothing. Both phrases describe the same thing: a school holding a pilot school certificate under 14 CFR part 141. The FAA calls it a pilot school. “Aviation school” and “academy” are marketing words with no regulatory meaning.
It runs first as a provisional pilot school under 14 CFR 141.7, then applies under 14 CFR 141.5 having graduated at least ten students within the preceding 24 calendar months and having shown that at least 80 percent of them passed the relevant test on the first attempt. Renewal is governed by 14 CFR 141.27.
35 hours of flight training and 35 hours of ground training under Part 141 Appendix B, against 40 hours of flight time under 14 CFR 61.109(a). The five-hour difference is about one and a half lessons, and AOPA puts the real national average at 50 to 70 hours under either route.
No. We are a Part 61 school at Van Nuys Airport and we do not hold a Part 141 pilot school certificate. We publish that plainly because it decides whether we can help you: VA benefits and M-1 visa sponsorship both require Part 141, and we cannot provide either.
No. An unrestricted ATP requires 1,500 hours under 14 CFR 61.159 whichever route you took, and airlines evaluate certificates, ratings, total time and checkride records. The one real advantage is the commercial certificate at 190 hours under 14 CFR 61.129(i) instead of 250.
A privilege a Part 141 school can apply for under Subpart D. 14 CFR 141.63 sets a hard bar — the rating held 24 consecutive calendar months, at least 10 students trained in the course in the preceding 24 months and at least 90 percent passing on the first attempt. 14 CFR 141.65 then lets the school recommend its graduates for the certificate without an FAA knowledge or practical test.
Partly. 14 CFR 141.77 caps credit for previous training at not more than 50 percent of the course requirements if the training came from another approved Part 141 or Part 142 course, and not more than 25 percent if it did not, and the receiving school must test you before granting it.
14 CFR 141.19 requires the pilot school certificate to be displayed at the operations base, so ask to see it and ask which course ratings it carries. A school can hold a rating for one course and run everything else under Part 61, so ask specifically about the course you are enrolling in.
The audit is stricter, not the standard. The practical test is the same test against the same Airman Certification Standards, and 14 CFR 61.43 requires the same performance either way. What Part 141 adds is a syllabus the FAA signed off, stage checks and records the FAA can inspect under 14 CFR 141.21 and 141.101.
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
Seventy 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
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.