How much did you spend on your PPL?

FBO: Munley Smith Aviation in Bay City, MI
Amount "Quoted" (if any): Not a clue
Amount paid: A lot? $7,000+?
Time period: 3 years, 86 hours
How was your overall experience?: I ain't crashed yet!
 
FBO: Exec 1 Aviation (KIKV, Ankeny, Iowa, just outside of DSM)
Amount "Quoted" (if any): $5500.00 (in 2001)
Amount paid: $6100.00
Time period: 2 Months
How was your overall experience?: I had a great CFI who is no longer there. The other CFI's took very little time for ground instruction. They had/have nice equipment, but their complex a/c is a Lance and they have no Multi engine trainer.
 
FBO: Suburban Aviation, KDUH
Amount "Quoted" (if any): ...
Amount paid: Around $8k, 44 hrs
Time period: Nov 05 - Dec 06
How was your overall experience?: Excellent, the only thing was the fact that I had 5 different instructors. Wish I could've flown more than once a week.
 
FBO: Rhoaeds aviation to start, IndyAero to finish
Amount quoted myself about 6k
Amount paid: Around $8k 60TT
Time period: 9months
How was your overall experience?: Best place I could be training! I dont think there's a better FBO out there!
 
Nice thread, hopefully I can contribute to it in a few months.

I'm still waiting for someone to say Date: 1967. Amount Paid: $700.
 
FBO: RAS inc. Columbus, MS
Amount "Quoted" (if any): ??
Amount paid: 3200
Time period: Nov 03-June 04
How was your overall experience?: Incredible! I loved every bit of it, although I was working myself to death. Tues Thurs was no class so it was work the line at the FBO from 5am-130pm and fly at 2....I loved the "FBO Route" bc of all the diff. people I would run into...
 
FBO: Justice Aviation
Amount "Quoted" (if any): No quote
Amount paid: 6K
Time period: Dec 2003 - Apr 2004
How was your overall experience?: The instructors were very knowledgable, but made learning to get a PPL seem like training for a job thus not being fun at all to go up. Since I was totally green regarding costs, I was in this super-expensive brand-new 172. In regards to the cost I would say my overall experience sucked for three reasons. #1 they knew how much money I had, since I had a Sallie Mae loan, and milked me for every penny by not being upfront about the lower costing planes and putting me in that expensive 172. If they were truly in it to get me finished they would have seen how much I had and tried to get it done under or as close as possible to that loan amount. #2 Lots more could have been accomplished with that loan amount and #3 ultimately I had 2 different instructors without much difference in regards to having fun learning to get my PPL.
 
FBO: Pinnacle Aviation Academy (CRQ)
Amount "Quoted" (if any): $3500
Amount paid: $5000
Time period: 1.5 years '01-'02
How was your overall experience?: I started April 01 and got my PPL in Oct 02. Great instructor (got on at SKW just after I started Inst) Had to work on landings a bit so it took a little bit more time ot solo. 9/11 put a big hamper on completion as well as working almost seven days a week to support oversea deployments for OEF. Great airplane fleet and mx. Would go again in a heartbeat.
 
FBO: Hillsboro Aviation (Hillsboro, OR)
Amount "Quoted" (if any): $5000
Amount paid: $4200
Time period: January '06 to August 06'
How was your overall experience?: Pretty decent, had a fantastic instructor.
 
FBO: UND
Amount "Quoted" (if any): 6500
Amount paid: 7800
Time period: January '02 to early June '02
How was your overall experience?: OK, i had an instructor who wouldn't let me make a mistake so it took me about 15 hours more than it should have because i couldn't learn FROM my mistakes. total time was 60.0 after the checkride
 
FBO: McAir Aviation, Denver-Jeffco
Amount "Quoted" (if any): I think around $6,000 to $8,000
Amount paid: Around $6,000
Time period: April 03-Jan 04
How was your overall experience?: Very good, loved the school, older airplanes being phased out to a brand new fleet of 172s. Started trying to fly 2-3 days a week, WX usually cancelled one of those. Brand new instructor at the time so he tried hard. I did not count on having to pay the CFI for time before and after the flight though. That made the costs go up a bit. In the end, I didn't finish there as I ran out of money around the time where I started to do the solo cross countries and checkride prep. Ended up not flying much during the fall of 03 and then flew maybe once a month in the winter. After that I gave up and decided to go do the private and 90 day at ATP.

FBO: ATP private in Jax
Amount "Quoted" (if any): I think it was $5000 for 85 hrs
Amount paid: As quoted
Time period: 3 weeks in July 04
How was your overall experience?: Very fast paced, I finished very quickly. It was not as satisfying as if I had finished back in Denver but I got it done. I used the rest of the 85 hrs to fly with a CFI on IFR cross countries and got a bunch of actual IFR experience like this which proved to be very valuable when I started the 90 day twin training.

In all I loved the McAir experience even though I didn't finish there I know I easily could have if I stayed there. I liked it so much I went back and became an instructor there. After flying all over the country, I can say it is unlike any other flight school out there.

ATP is the no frills gets it done place. If you want to be an airline pilot this is the place to be.
 
Timbuff10 said:
FBO: McAir Aviation, Denver-Jeffco
Amount "Quoted" (if any): I think around $6,000 to $8,000
Amount paid: Around $6,000
Time period: April 03-Jan 04
How was your overall experience?: Very good, loved the school, older airplanes being phased out to a brand new fleet of 172s. Started trying to fly 2-3 days a week, WX usually cancelled one of those. Brand new instructor at the time so he tried hard. I did not count on having to pay the CFI for time before and after the flight though. That made the costs go up a bit. In the end, I didn't finish there as I ran out of money around the time where I started to do the solo cross countries and checkride prep. Ended up not flying much during the fall of 03 and then flew maybe once a month in the winter. After that I gave up and decided to go do the private and 90 day at ATP.

FBO: ATP private in Jax
Amount "Quoted" (if any): I think it was $5000 for 85 hrs
Amount paid: As quoted
Time period: 3 weeks in July 04
How was your overall experience?: Very fast paced, I finished very quickly. It was not as satisfying as if I had finished back in Denver but I got it done. I used the rest of the 85 hrs to fly with a CFI on IFR cross countries and got a bunch of actual IFR experience like this which proved to be very valuable when I started the 90 day twin training.

In all I loved the McAir experience even though I didn't finish there I know I easily could have if I stayed there. I liked it so much I went back and became an instructor there. After flying all over the country, I can say it is unlike any other flight school out there.

ATP is the no frills gets it done place. If you want to be an airline pilot this is the place to be.
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And I'm Timbuff10 ... and I Approve this message. ;)

Just playin'

HS
 
ComplexHiAv8r said:
I didn't know (or remember) you went to Delta State! GO OKRAS!!
Ok, I didn't go there (except for some MBA stuff), but lived there working at Baxter Healthcare for 6 years!

Were they still using the twin to spray for Mosiqutos when you were there??
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They used a baron to do the spraying when I was there. Some unsmart people begged to fly right seat in that thing and was given the sole responsibility of turning the sprayer on and off.:insane: Way to build that multi time.:sarcasm: I hope there kids come out alright with them being around all those chemicals and all. Hell I hope my kids come out alright from me being sprayed by all those chemicals.
 
FBO: Spirit Mountain Aviation KCOD
Amount "Quoted" (if any): 6500
Amount paid: $4,500, 42 hours
Time period: 6 months
How was your overall experience? Learned at a small uncontrolled airport. It was a big adjustment going down south to the bigger airports with ATC
 
FBO: Hollywood Aviators (KVNY)
Amount "Quoted" (if any): about $7k
Amount paid: $8,500, 78 hours
Time period: 1 year. Would have been sooner but had many wx delays
How was your overall experience? Learned at a controlled field with busy airspace. Overall was happy with the experience but will probably try to find someplace cheaper for the rest of my ratings.
 
FBO: Aerotech (Louisville, KY)
Amount "Quoted" (if any): $4000
Amount paid: $8K
Time period: 6 months
How was your overall experience? Hated it. Instructor used me as a stepping stone.
 
FBO: UND
Amount "Quoted" 5500
Amount paid: $~5000
Time period: 4 Months
How was your overall experience? Great. My ppl instructor are great friends to this day (and golly gee whiz, he wasn't a master CFI or even a gold seal CFI)
 
jrh said:
FBO: PS Air at the Eastern Iowa Airport in Cedar Rapids, Iowa (KCID).
Amount "Quoted" (if any): I don't remember.
Amount paid: About $5,000.
Time period: About 10 weeks during the summer of 2003
How was your overall experience?: Fantastic. I had a really nice, professional, competent CFI, the FBO treated me well, the plane was well maintained, the rental rates were reasonable, the weather was good....I could go on and on and on. I have nothing bad to say. I had a ton of fun and a lot of good memories from that summer.
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MQAAord said:
FBO:- Wings USA, Janesville WI (JVL)

Amount "Quoted" (if any):- No quote

Amount paid:- $5200

Time period:- 4 weeks. Yup, 4 weeks :D

How was your overall experience?:- Very good. I trained at the same FBO where my dad was the DOM, so I knew the airplanes were well-maintained ;) Shortly after I finished my PPL, (Nov 2001) my dad went full time teaching the AMT program at BTC in Janesville. My instructor loved me, I read what he told me to, I studied, I practiced, and it paid off in a quick license. I trained full-time, 4 days a week for 4 weeks. I aimed to train 5 days a week, but this was Wisconsin and I got weathered out of 1 day every week.

This was during my first furlough, immediately following 9/11. I was my instructor's only student, so he was darn happy to have a full-time student. I think during those 4 weeks I paid his rent and kept food on his table :) He went to Ram Air freight, then Chicago Express, and he's now at Sky West. I had the opportunity to keep going full-time with my ratings, but that's where life takes one of those 'forks in the road'. Instead of keeping going and pursuing a pilot career, I got married and accepted my (AA F/A) recall & displacement to LGA. I was furloughed again 6 months later and along came the kids. Family meant more to me than flying, and I chose the family route instead of the pilot career route. A choice I do not regret, as airplanes will always be there for me to fly, and my career (whatever I choose it to be) will still be there for me to get back into when the kids are older. :bandit:
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Yep, I'm hoping my training is something between these.
I wanna finish by June. I want to be able to fly friends around this summer :p

I just gotta convince GDP's other job to let me borrow him more often during the week :p
 
FBO: Pacific Coast Flyers (flying club at KCRQ SoCal)
Amount "Quoted" (if any): N/A
Amount paid: roughly $4,000
Time period: Discovery flight at Pinnacle Aviation at KCRQ in January, First actual lesson with PCF in April and got license in November so 7 months at 51 hours
How was your overall experience? It was mediocre to good. My first instructor was a dud and after solo he sprained his ankle and couldnt fly for a week so it gave me a great excuse to ditch him. My second and final instructor was a total nut but a good dedicated guy with 7000+ hours so he was not a timebuilder. He was too nutty to get hired because no one would want to spend 8 hours in a cockpit with him. He got the job done though and we had a good time doing it
 
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