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.
Sport pilot · Van Nuys Airport
Sport Pilot License Cost: $8,400, Complete, At Van Nuys
Our sport pilot package is $8,400 and it covers the aircraft, the instruction, the ground school and the simulator time. The FAA minimum is 20 hours under 14 CFR 61.313, which is half the private pilot minimum, and that hour count is the whole reason this certificate costs less.
$8,400 complete package20 hrs minimum · 14 CFR 61.313No FAA medical · 61.23(c)(1)5.0 ★ · 85 Google reviews
$8,400complete sport pilot package, flown from Van Nuys
20 hrsFAA minimum flight time under 14 CFR 61.313
$2,500typical deposit to start on a financed plan
5.0 ★85 Google reviews
The number
How much does a sport pilot license cost?
$8,400 here, as one package price, and that is the number you enrol at and the number you finish at. It covers the aircraft, the dual instruction, the ground school and simulator time. There is no separate hourly meter running underneath it.
The reason it is cheaper than a private pilot certificate is arithmetic, not marketing. 14 CFR 61.313 sets the sport pilot minimum at 20 hours — at least 15 of dual instruction and 5 of solo, plus 2 hours of cross-country training and 2 hours of practical test preparation in the two calendar months before the test. 14 CFR 61.109 sets the private pilot minimum at 40. Half the hours, and the difference shows up in the price.
Be careful with the word minimum, because it is doing a lot of work. Twenty hours is a legal floor, not a prediction. Most people take longer, and the honest variables are how often you fly, how much you prepare between lessons, and whether you are the kind of person who is comfortable talking on a radio in the first month. Flying once a week finishes faster and cheaper than flying once a fortnight, every time.
The other honest point: the package price is what we charge. It is not everything you will spend. A headset, an iPad app, the knowledge test and the examiner are all real and none of them is billed by us.
Side by side
What $8,400 buys against the other routes
Sport pilot is the cheapest certificate we sell that lets you carry a passenger. Whether it is the right one depends far more on what you want to do afterwards than on the price.
| Programme | Price | FAA minimum hours | What it lets you do |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sport Pilot | $8,400 | 20 hrs — 14 CFR 61.313 | One passenger, aircraft meeting 14 CFR 61.316, 10,000 ft ceiling, 3 SM visibility. No FAA medical certificate needed for day flying. |
| Solo Certificate | $5,500 | — | Training to first solo. No passengers, but every hour counts toward sport or private afterwards. |
| Standard Private Pilot | $10,900 | 40 hrs — 14 CFR 61.109 | Every seat in the aircraft, no 61.316 aircraft restriction, no altitude ceiling below Class A, night included. Third-class medical certificate needed before solo. |
| Comprehensive Private Pilot | $15,900 | 40 hrs — 14 CFR 61.109 | The same certificate with 60 hours logged, 10 hours of ground school and 5 hours of Redbird. Priced at roughly what the national average actually takes. |
| Redbird simulator session | $189 | — | One hour in the full-motion Redbird MCX with an instructor. The cheapest way to test whether you enjoy this before committing to anything. |
| Discovery Flight For One | $229 | — | A real lesson, loggable as dual instruction, credited in full against any programme if you enrol within 24 hours. |
Financing runs from $2,500 down through Stratus Financial and our own in-house plans. Full detail on the flight training financing page.
What moves the number
Six things that decide whether you finish near 20 hours or well past it
None of these is a hidden fee. They are the things that actually change how many hours you fly, which is what really decides the cost on a certificate this short.
1
How often you fly
Twice a week and the last lesson is still in your hands when you strap in. Once a month and the first fifteen minutes of every lesson is spent recovering what you had. On a 20-hour certificate that gap is the difference between finishing on the minimum and adding ten hours.
2
Radio work
Van Nuys is a Class D field with an operating control tower, and 14 CFR 61.325 requires the endorsement before you can operate here at all. Some people find the radio harder than the flying. That is normal, it is trainable, and the simulator is where to train it because it costs less than the aeroplane.
3
Preparation between lessons
The single cheapest hour in flight training is the one you spend at your kitchen table. Turning up knowing the manoeuvre you are about to fly saves real money, and it is free.
4
The medical route you choose
For day flying under 14 CFR 61.23(c)(1) a valid US driver license is enough and costs nothing. If you want night under 14 CFR 61.329 you will need a part 67 medical or BasicMed, which is a separate process with its own cost and timeline.
5
Whether you actually want the sport certificate
The most expensive mistake here is buying the cheaper certificate and then discovering in month four that you needed the private one. If you have a family of four, or you want to fly at night on a driver license, sport pilot is not the answer and we will say so.
6
Weather — which barely matters here
Van Nuys had 355 flyable days in the twelve months to August 2026 against a 3,000 ft ceiling and 5 SM visibility standard. Weather cancellations are not what makes flight training expensive in Los Angeles. Read the method on our flyable days study.
What is not in the price
The things we do not charge for, and therefore cannot include
Three costs sit outside any flight school's package because they are paid to somebody else. The FAA knowledge test is administered by a third-party testing centre. The practical test is conducted by a Designated Pilot Examiner, who sets their own fee. And if you decide to add a medical certificate for night privileges, the Aviation Medical Examiner charges for the examination.
Equipment is the fourth. A headset is the one thing worth buying properly and early, because you will wear it for every hour of your training and a bad one makes radio work harder than it needs to be. An electronic flight bag app on a tablet is close to standard now. Charts, a kneeboard and a logbook are small by comparison.
We are deliberately not putting dollar figures against those, because they are not ours to quote and they move. Ask at the consultation and we will tell you what current examiners in this area are charging.
What we will commit to is the $8,400. It does not change partway through because the aircraft rate went up, and it does not change because you took twenty-four hours instead of twenty. That is the point of selling a package rather than an hourly meter.
The sequence
How the money actually gets spent, in order
Nobody should hand over $8,400 on day one without having flown. The order below is the one we recommend, and it is the one most people here follow.
01
Fly a discovery flight first — $229
Sixty minutes, and you fly the aircraft yourself with an instructor beside you. It is loggable dual instruction under 14 CFR 61.51, so the hour counts toward the 20. The full $229 comes off the programme price if you enrol within 24 hours.
02
Or try the simulator — $189
An hour in the Redbird MCX with an instructor. Cheaper than the aeroplane, never cancelled for weather, and a better test of whether radio work worries you.
03
Have the consultation
Free, about half an hour, in person at Van Nuys. This is where we work out whether sport or private is actually right for you, and where the medical question gets settled before you spend anything.
04
Enrol and choose how to pay
$8,400 in full, or financing from $2,500 down through Stratus Financial and our own in-house plans. The price does not move once you are enrolled.
05
Fly the 20 hours — 15 dual, 5 solo
14 CFR 61.313 sets the split, plus 2 hours of cross-country training and one solo cross-country of at least 75 NM total with a straight-line segment of at least 25 NM.
06
Knowledge test, then the checkride
The FAA knowledge test at a third-party centre, then 2 hours of practical test preparation in the two calendar months before the test, then the checkride with a Designated Pilot Examiner.
The fleet
What you are paying to fly
We own and maintain the fleet. Sport training here is flown in the two-seat Cessna 162.
The package rate for enrolled students on single-engine aircraft is $179 an hour wet, and that is the aircraft and its fuel. Instructional hours sit inside the package price. Since MOSAIC the certificate itself is no longer tied to two-seat aircraft — see MOSAIC aircraft eligibility.
Redbird MCX
The cheapest hour in your training
FAA-approved, fully enclosed, and it moves. On a 20-hour certificate every hour you do not waste in the aeroplane is money you keep, and the simulator is where you stop wasting them.
Simulator hours are built into the sport pilot package. A standalone Redbird session is $189.
Your instructor
Eleven instructors, which is why the schedule does not cost you money
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 you take with them. There are eleven of them.
That number is a cost item, not a boast. The most common way a 20-hour certificate turns into a 35-hour certificate is a three-week gap between lessons because one instructor is busy. You are matched to an instructor and you can change if the fit is wrong, and neither of those things should ever be awkward.
What people say
5.0 ★ · 85 Google reviews
Three things come up again and again in what people write about training here, and the price is only one of them.
★
The debrief, not the flight
The most repeated compliment in our reviews is not the aeroplane and it is not the ramp. It is that somebody sat down afterwards and explained what happened.
★
Lessons that actually happen
Eleven instructors and a fleet we own and maintain ourselves. Reviewers mention scheduling more than anything else, which tells you what most schools get wrong.
★
The number does not move
What you enrol at is what you finish at. On an $8,400 package that promise is the entire point, and people write about it because it is not universal.
Programmes and prices
Every programme and both ways to start
Book it now if you are ready, or book a free consultation and talk to a human first. Financing runs from $2,500 down through Stratus Financial and our own in-house plans.
Start here
Sport Pilot Certificate
$8,400 / complete
The full FAA sport pilot certificate at $8,400. Aircraft, instruction, ground school and simulator time in one package price, flown on a valid US driver license under 14 CFR 61.23(c)(1).
Standard Private Pilot
$10,900 / 40 hrs logged
$2,500 more than the sport package, and it buys three passengers, no 14 CFR 61.316 aircraft restriction, no 10,000 ft ceiling and night flying inside the certificate.
Comprehensive Private Pilot
$15,900 / 60 hrs logged
Our most chosen private pilot programme. 55 hours single-engine, 5 hours in the Redbird and 10 hours of ground school, which is roughly the national average built into the price.
Solo Certificate
$5,500 / to first solo
For people whose whole ambition is the moment the instructor climbs out. Not a certificate to carry passengers, but every hour counts toward sport or private afterwards.
Discovery Flight For One
$229 / 60 min
A real lesson. You fly the aircraft, the time is loggable dual instruction, and the full $229 is credited against any programme if you enrol within 24 hours.
Redbird Simulator Session
$189 / session
An hour in the full-motion Redbird MCX with an instructor. A cheap way to find out whether you can handle radio work before you spend anything on an aeroplane.
$500 off any private pilot programme this summer. Standard $10,400 · Comprehensive $15,400 · Premium $22,000. Ask when you enroll. The sport pilot package stays at $8,400.
Next step
Fly for an hour before you decide what to spend
A $229 discovery flight is a real lesson, the hour is loggable toward the 20 in 14 CFR 61.313, and the full price comes off the programme if you enrol within 24 hours. If you would rather talk first, the consultation is free.
Discovery Flight For One
$229
60 minutes · you fly the aircraft · credited in full on enrolment within 24 hours
MOSAIC and the new rules
The MOSAIC rule and what it changedDoes my aircraft qualify under 14 CFR 61.316?Sport pilot night flying under 14 CFR 61.329Sport pilot medical requirementsSport pilot endorsements explainedLight sport aircraft rules after MOSAIC
FAQ
Sport Pilot License Cost: The Questions We Get Asked
$8,400 at LA Flight School as a complete package, covering aircraft, instruction, ground school and simulator time at Van Nuys Airport. The FAA minimum is 20 hours under 14 CFR 61.313, which is half the 40-hour private pilot minimum in 14 CFR 61.109.
Hours. 14 CFR 61.313 requires 20 hours for a sport pilot certificate and 14 CFR 61.109 requires 40 for a private pilot certificate. Our sport package is $8,400 and the standard private package is $10,900.
Aircraft, dual flight instruction, ground school and simulator time, as one package price that does not change once you enrol. The FAA knowledge test, the Designated Pilot Examiner's fee and your own equipment are paid to third parties and are not billed by us.
Yes. Financing runs from $2,500 down through Stratus Financial and our own in-house payment plans. We settle the plan at the free consultation before you enrol.
Twenty hours is the legal minimum in 14 CFR 61.313, not a prediction. Flying twice a week and preparing between lessons is what keeps people close to it; long gaps between lessons are the most common reason the number goes up.
Not for day flying. 14 CFR 61.23(c)(1) lets you exercise sport pilot privileges on a valid US driver license, subject to the conditions in 14 CFR 61.303(b). Night flying under 14 CFR 61.329 does require a part 67 medical certificate or BasicMed, which is a separate cost.
$179 an hour wet on single-engine aircraft, which is the package rate for enrolled students. That is the aircraft and its fuel; instructional hours sit inside the package price.
Yes. A $229 Discovery Flight For One is credited in full against any programme if you enrol within 24 hours, and the hour itself is loggable dual instruction that counts toward the 20 in 14 CFR 61.313.
The Solo Certificate is $5,500 and takes you to first solo without a certificate to carry passengers. The sport pilot package is $8,400 and ends with an FAA certificate that lets you carry one passenger under 14 CFR 61.315(c)(4).
No. The $8,400 is a package price, not an estimate against an hourly meter. What you enrol at is what you finish at.
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.