Learn to Fly for Fun
Not every pilot is headed for the airlines. Learn to fly for yourself, at your own pace, out of Van Nuys.
Maybe flying has been on your list for years. Maybe you want to take your family up the coast for lunch, or just see Los Angeles from the left seat. You don’t need to want a flying career to train with us.
What You Can Do as a Private Pilot
- Fly family and friends: take passengers with you, from a sunset flight over the city to a weekend trip.
- Go places: fly to airports across California and beyond, skipping the freeway on the way.
- Fly for the joy of it: some of the best flights are the ones with nowhere to be.
A private pilot certificate is for flying for yourself, not for hire. If you ever change your mind about a career, everything you learn counts toward your next rating.
Train on Your Schedule
Early mornings, evenings, weekends: we can fly whenever works for you, not just during our regular business hours. Tell us your schedule and we’ll build your training around it. Fly as often as your life allows. Flying more often usually means finishing sooner and spending less in total.
The Sky Doesn’t Wait. Neither Should You.
Almost everyone has looked up at an airplane and wondered what it would be like to fly it. Most people leave it there. “Someday,” they say. When work slows down. When the kids are older. When the timing is right.
The pilots who make it aren’t the ones with perfect timing. They’re the ones who decided to stop waiting. Every one of them started exactly where you are now: curious, a little nervous, with no experience at all.
The first step is smaller than you think. One Discovery Flight. One flight where you take the controls, feel the airplane lift off the runway and see for yourself whether this is the thing you’ve been wondering about all these years.
Maybe you’ll land knowing it’s not for you. Or maybe, like so many of our pilots, you’ll land already planning your next flight. Either way, you’ll know. And that beats wondering for the rest of your life.
Your Path as a Personal Pilot
Go as far as you want. Many pilots stop at the private pilot certificate and fly for years.
Discovery Flight
Take the controls on your first flight and see if flying is for you. No commitment.
One flightPrivate Pilot
The certificate that lets you fly yourself, your family and your friends.
Typically 3–4 monthsInstrument
Fly through the clouds with confidence, so weather cancels fewer of your trips.
Typically 2–4 monthsHigh Performance
Fly further, faster in higher-performance airplanes. Both endorsements together.
Typically 5–10 hours
What It Costs
A private pilot certificate typically costs $18,000 to $25,000. Where you land in that range depends mostly on how often you fly and how prepared you come to each lesson.
Our training aircraft rent from $170 per hour, and our high-performance aircraft from $305 per hour. See every airplane, its equipment and its rate on our fleet page.
Not sure yet? Start with a $199 Discovery Flight. If you decide to keep going, you get $100 back when you start training.
Want to See LA from Above First?
Our Scenic Discovery Flight is a longer first flight over Los Angeles landmarks like the Hollywood Sign, Griffith Park, Downtown, Santa Monica and Malibu. You’re the one flying, and you’re welcome to bring another person along.
You’ve Thought About It Long Enough.
That pull you feel every time a plane flies overhead is worth listening to. Book a Discovery Flight, or call or text us at (818) 378-0141 and we’ll help you figure out where to start.