I wan to get a piolts license and i want to know how?

Question

I am 15 years old and i live in Fair Lawn NJ. (norther NJ) i heard the legal age to start laking lessons was 16 or 17 i want to know how, when, and where i can learn to fly

Answer 1

No minimum age for getting flight instruction.  Visit local airports.

Answer 2

You can start taking lessons TODAY!  There is no minimum age for taking lessons if you can find an instructor who's willing to teach you...  You can fly solo under an instructor's supervision at age 16, and get your private pilot's certificate at age 17.

Now for the BAD NEWS...  It's going to cost you about $125-$150 per flight hour to rent an airplane and pay an instructor, and you need a MINIMUM of 40 hours (Most people take 55-60 hours) to get your license.  Start saving your pennies!

Answer 3

The vocation colleges sometimes offer ground school at much lower cost that the flight schools. you need the 40 hours of classroom signed of to take the written. It is likely much more cost effective to get the written out of the way first.  When you start flying you don't have to stop to catchup class room (my opinion). You can go to any flight school and buy the books. It aint easy or fun but we all had to do it.

Answer 4

Where?

It is usually hard to find someone on Answers who is coincidentally familiar with the schools in your particular area. You will have to do some shopping around to find the best school for you. You can search for schools in your area on the following sites:

http://www.flightschoollist.com/

http://flighttraining.aopa.org/learntofl...

http://www.bestaviation.net/

http://www.aviationschoolsonline.com/sch...

You can learn more about flying in general here:

http://flighttraining.aopa.org/learntofl...

http://www.beapilot.com/

http://www.faa.gov/pilots/become/

Many smaller airports will have flight training available. If you visit them you may be able to find flight schools that are unlisted elsewhere. You can search for these "local airports" here:

http://www.airport-data.com/airport-find...

When?

You can start your training at any age. You must be 16 to fly solo under instructor supervision, and you must be 17 to get your private license. So you can definitely start now, but you will be waiting until your 17th birthday to get your license.

How?

The first thing you should do is take an introductory lesson from a flight school near you to make sure you like it, and to get familiar with the school and its instructors. Your first lesson will last about 30 minutes and you will actually get to be on the controls during that time.

Prior to beginning your training in earnest, you should obtain at least a third class medical certificate. You can view the medical requirements here:

http://ecfr.gpoaccess.gov/cgi/t/text/tex...

You can find an Aviation Medical Examiner here:

http://www.faa.gov/pilots/amelocator/

For a private pilot certificate, you will need to have a minimum of 40 hours of flight time, including at least 10 hours solo. You will also take a written test, and a practical test (checkride). To prepare for these, you will also do ground school with your instructor in addition to the flight training.

Most people go beyond the minimum flight time requirement. An average student may expect to take from 60-80 hours depending on how frequently and consistently you train. Try to plan ahead so you can fly consistently, and minimize your costs.

Duration:

How long it will take depends on how frequently you fly. I've seen some people complete all of their ratings (private, instrument, commercial, CFI, CFII) in as little as 8 months. I have also seen others take several years just to get their private. 3-4 months would not be unreasonable for a private certificate if you train at a modest pace.

How often you fly will depend on three things: your schedule, the flight school's schedule, and the availability of funds. Any one of those may cause you to get stuck, and to take longer. Do some research, and plan ahead carefully to minimize delays created by any of these.

Costs:

Flight time is the bulk of the expense. If the average rate in your area is $140 per hour, for example, then 60 hours will cost $8,400. Your ground lessons, medical exam, books, supplies, written tests, examiner fee, etc. will be in addition to that. You might spend another $1000 or so on these.

Good luck and have fun!

Answer 5

You may start taking flying lesson at any age, however you must be 16 years of age to get a FAA medical (physical) and to solo.    You must have a minimum of 40 flight hours before you can take the private pilot written exam and once you have passed the written you have to take a check ride with a FAA flight examiner.  

Go to AOPA.org (Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association) for additional information and a list of flight schools that offer discovery flights.  A discover flight last about 1/2 an hour and is a brief introduction to aviation.  I soloed when I was 16 years old and it was the greatest accomplishment of my life.  Please go for it!  Talk to pilots, hang out at small airports, try to get a job at an airport,  just being around airplanes and pilots is a wonderful learning experience.  Most pilots will answer your questions, encourage you and listen to them...they are a wealth of information.