First Steps

First, contact us to discuss your goals and objectives. Are you looking to fly for fun? To support a business? Perhaps you have aspirations to fly for the airlines. No matter your goal or desire, we can help you get started!

  1. Schedule a discovery flight

    If you’ve never taken flight, we recommend setting up a discovery flight with one of our certified flight instructors. We’ll spend an hour with you that will include an overview of flight training options, a tour of the airport facilities (including our full motion Red Bird simulator), and a brief discovery flight in our Piper Cherokee 140. In addition, we’ll answer any questions you may have and discuss next steps.

  2. Attend a ground school class

    You’re required to log a minimum number of flight training/hours in the aircraft and take a check ride with an examiner. In addition, you must pass a written exam. Our accelerated two-day ground school class is held several times a year, providing an overview of all the knowledge areas required to pass your written and practical flight tests.

  3. Become involved with the local EAA Chapter

    The Experimental Aircraft Association (EAA) was founded to support pilots with homebuilt aircraft construction and to expose children (ages 8–17) to aviation. Our local EAA Chapter 1174 meets at 6 pm, every third Monday of the month in the lobby of the Fergus Falls Airport. The chapter flies up to 650 young eagles annually — more than any other chapter in the state! For more information, attend any meeting or visit the chapter website.

  4. Schedule your first lesson

    When you know, you know. In many cases, students come to us ready to reach their aviation goals and start training. Set up a time to get started!

How High Will You Fly?

(From FSANA.com) When the Wright Brothers made their first flight on December 17, 1903, there were no pilot certificates and no Federal Aviation Regulations (FARs). Today, a person has a choice of pilot certificates based on their goals and personal needs.

Contact Us Schedule To Your Discovery Flight Today!

Primary Pilot Certificates

Student Pilot Certificate

This is the required start line for people who want to become pilots. This certificate is a pre-requisite for the student learner to fly alone in the aircraft, or solo. You can start an application once you turn 13 years old, but you can’t complete it until you’re within 90 days of your 14th birthday, or older. Your flight school instructor will walk you through the application process. During this early stage of training you will officially be termed a “learner.”

  1. Private Pilot Certificate – This, the most fundamental of all certificates, provides the pilot with the most pre-commercial flight flexibility. It beats out the other two primary certificates in versatility. The pilot can carry passengers for non-revenue in a variety of aircraft. This permits flight during day- and night-time hours and flight during both Visual Flight Rule (VFR) and Instrument Flight Rule (IFR) conditions — flight into clouds (if you also hold an instrument rating). This certificate requires a person to hold a FAA medical certificate of at least the Third Class. FSANA recommends the Private Pilot Certificate as the most efficient and effective pathway to get started.
  2. Sport Pilot Certificate – A limited alternative to the Private Pilot Certificate. This certificate allows a pilot to enjoy limited flight privileges. A valid drivers license is required. An FAA medical certificate is not required — that fact and its lower cost to attain make it an attractive alternative to some. Of these two notable primary certificate pathways, a Private Pilot Certificate costs a bit more but wins out in versatility. Which fits you best?
  3. Recreational Pilot Certificate
- A less popularized and limited alternative to the Private Pilot and Sports Pilot Certificates. This certificate allows a pilot to enjoy very limited flight privileges. This certificate requires a person to hold a FAA medical certificate of at least the Third Class. Its lower cost to attain is its main attraction.

Career Pilot Certificates

Commercial Pilot Certificate

Now you can earn money when flying an aircraft. Every pilot that earns money to fly ANY type of aircraft is required to have a Commercial Pilot Certificate. This certificate requires a person to hold a FAA medical certificate of at least the Third Class. This certificate is not specific to flying for an airline. To operate commercially as anything other than a flight instructor, you need at least a Second Class medical certificate.

Certified Flight Instructor Certificate

Now you can teach others how to fly. This certificate requires a person to hold a FAA medical certificate of at least the Third Class.

Certified Flight Instructor Instrument Certificate

Now you can teach others how to fly on instruments. This certificate requires a person to hold a FAA medical certificate of at least the Third Class.

Air Transport Pilot Certificate

The pilot certificate with the most complex requirements to be earned in the pilot world. This certificate is required by the airlines and many corporate aircraft operators. This certificate requires a person to hold a FAA medical of the First Class.

Begin Your Flight Training

Once you have selected a flight school, the real fun and educational transfer can begin. FSANA recommends that you try to fly at least 1-2 times every week as your schedule and funds permit. There is no rule that requires a student learner to fly once, twice or more per week. Studies have shown that the best learning and retention takes place during the early days of flight training when the learner has higher levels of engagement with the training environment.

Training timetable

There is no regulation or rule that states that your flight training must be completed in so many days or months. Some people take a year or more to earn their first pilot certificate. In the end, you need to do what is best for you. Learning to fly is not a sprint. It should be fun and the beginning of a road to lifelong learning.

Let’s Go

Thumbs up, you have made the decision that you want to learn to fly. Now it’s time to take your first aero step — an introductory flight with a certified flight instructor. You may be totally comfortable as a passenger in a 150-seat airliner but being in the front seat will provide a whole new dimension for you. Maybe you will decide that flying is simply not your cup of tea. That’s OK, at least you know you tried and had the experience. But we’re betting on you falling in love. 

The cost of an introductory flight averages $200 depending on the flight school.

 Just so you know, a quality flight school will not conduct an introductory flight if the weather is not conducive for a reasonably comfortable experience. High winds, rain, poor visibility and/or turbulent conditions are not conducive for a first flight in the cockpit.

Cost

Beg, borrow, fly

The cost to acquire your first Pilot Certificate can range anywhere between $5,000-$13,000. This range is established based on a selection of criteria including but not limited to:

  • Type of pilot certificate (Private or Sport)
  • Type of training aircraft
  • School proximity and locality
  • Your ability to learn and to fly the aircraft
  • Your frequency of flight lessons
  • Because each person learns and onboards education at different rates there is no guarantee of the final costs.

Advance deposits

It is not recommended that people place large deposits in advance during their flight training pathway. Many schools will offer some level of discount when a student places a deposit on the account. FSANA recommends that students limit advanced deposit levels to between $1,000-$2,000 per deposit.

 Exceptions to this guideline include flight schools that provide accelerated training where a person earns a pilot certificate or rating in a short time period, which can be 2-6 weeks. Schools that provide this type of training will require larger advanced deposits since the student is flying 5-6 days each week.
 
Schools that supply foreign flight training may also require larger deposits since their customers are non-residents of the United States and money management is more challenging due to physical distance.

More questions? Contact us to talk more about costs, career options, and how to get started.