Additional ratings offered & our estimated cost
Instrument
To earn your Instrument Rating, you must log a minimum of 50 cross-country flight hours. You must also have a minimum of 40 hours of simulated or actual instrument time, 15 of which must come from an authorized instructor. 20 hours of training in our RedBird AATD Simulator counts towards your Instrument rating. Complete requirement details can be found here - CFR 61.65
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Our estimated total cost for an Instrument Rating at CFC is $16-19,000, with a completion timeline of 3-6 months. Note that winter months make IFR training tougher, as the risk of icing is higher.
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Instrument:
Cessna 172: 60 Hours - $10,500
Flight Instruction: 60 Hours - $3,900
Ground Instruction: 30 Hours - $1,950
Written Exam & Check Ride: $925
Total estimate: $17,275
Commercial
To earn your Commercial License, you must log a minimum of 250 total flight hours, 100 of which must be as Pilot-In-Command. You are also required to accumulate 50 cross-country hours, as well as 10 hours in a Technically Advanced Aircraft, Complex Aircraft, or a Turbine-powered Airplane. 30 hours of training in our RedBird AATD Simulator counts towards your Commercial license. Complete requirement details can be found here - CFR 61.129
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Our estimated total cost for a Commercial License at CFC is $33-36,000 if you do not split time with another pilot. Total costs can be significantly reduced by time-splitting with other Commercial students. Our time-spit total cost estimate is $20-24,000.
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Commercial:
Cessna 172: 150 Hours - $26,250
Complex/TAA: 10 Hours - $3,800
Flight Instruction: 20 Hours - $1,300
Ground Instruction: 20 Hours - $1,300
Written Exam & Check Ride: $925
Total estimate (no time split): $34,425
Total estimate (time split): $22,875
Certified flight instructor (CFI)
CFI Initial:
Flight Prep & Ground Training: $4,000
Written Exam (2): $350
Check Ride: $1,200
Total estimate: $5,550
Certified flight instructor instrument (CFIi)
Total estimate: $4,000
multi-engine instructor (MeI)
Total estimate: $4,000