East Bay Flight School: Begin Your Adventure In Aviation
If you have ever dreamed of flying as a career or a hobby, but aren’t quite sure how to get started, we’ve got two words for you – flight school. At East Bay Flight, we can make your dreams of becoming a private pilot or a commercial pilot a reality and it may not take as long as you think.
The First Step – Take A Discovery Flight
Whether you are 100% set on becoming a pilot or you simply want to determine your aptitude for flying, a discovery flight is a great first step to take. We charge just $299 for this 1.5-hour introductory flight experience, which includes a 60-minute flight. Believe it or not, after we take off, you’ll do most of the flying and get a taste of what it’s like to pilot an aircraft.
Step Two – Earn Your Private Pilot License
Depending on your availability for licensing and compiling flight hours, it can take as little as six months to earn your private pilot’s license. During flight school, you will complete flight training with a certified flight instructor as well as attend ground school, where you will learn about navigation, flight planning, regulations and much more.
While the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) requires only 40 flight hours for your private pilot’s license or PPL, it’s more common for students to spend 60-70 hours in the air before taking your FAA Private Pilot Knowledge Test and your practical test, which includes a flight and oral exam.
Step Three – Instrument Rating
While you don’t need this for a PPL, we usually recommend that all of our private pilots earn their instrument rating, even if they never plan on becoming commercial pilots. During this training, you will be focused on flying solely by reference to instruments inside the airplane. Because of this, the instrument rating requires more precise knowledge of weather, aircraft systems and human factors than the PPL. This increased knowledge will help you make safer decisions as a pilot. Also, the instrument rating allows you to fly in a wider range of weather conditions, making your private pilot license more useful.
Much like the PPL, the instrument rating requires you to pass a knowledge test, and a practical test. The practical test will include an oral exam and a flight test.
If you do wish to become a commercial pilot, the hours you fly for the instrument rating will count towards your commercial license and the increase in required knowledge of weather, systems and human factors will get you started on the knowledge required for the commercial license.
Step Four – Commercial Pilot Certificate
At our pilot school, we don’t focus just on those wanting a PPL. We offer flight training and aviation courses for those who wish to earn their Commercial Pilot License (CPL). The CPL course will continue to build your skills and knowledge as a pilot. The main focus will be increasing your knowledge of human factors, weather and aircraft systems and using that knowledge to mitigate risks associated with cross country flight. During the CPL course you will take the airplane on flights of more than 250 miles from the starting airport and you will fly more advanced and complicated airplanes.
The CPL requires 250 hours of total flight time and the completion of a knowledge test, and a practical test, much like the IR and PPL.
Step Five – Become A Flight Instructor
After completing your CPL, becoming a flight instructor is a great way to get paid as a pilot while gaining the experience you need for more advanced certifications. Learning how to teach others can help you become a better pilot. Helping someone else grow and achieve their goals can be incredibly rewarding and some people choose to become career flight instructors. Even if you don’t want to become a career flight instructor, you will get paid for this work as you gain experience to move on to the next step. East Bay Flight offers this level of flight instruction and for those people who make it through our flight instructor program we generally offer them a place to start teaching.
Step Six – Work Toward Earning Your ATPL
If you truly want to make aviation a career, it’s wise to work toward earning your Air Transport Pilot License, or ATP. This, of course, will take you several years to complete and includes completing a total of 1,500 hours of flight time. This number must include 500 hours of cross-country flight time, 100 hours of night flying, 75 hours of instrument flight time and 250 hours serving as pilot-in-command. Other steps include a written knowledge test, an FAA practical test as well as earning your multi-engine rating.
The ATP is generally a requirement for flying with an airline. Some airlines may even help you get your ATP as long as you have the general flight time requirements and have passed the knowledge test. Once you’ve earned your ATP, you can begin working as a first officer at a commercial airline. Often, new pilots will be able to find work at smaller regional airlines. Here you can gain flight experience and eventually work toward becoming a captain.
10 Job Opportunities For Commercial Pilots
When you think about commercial pilots, you might simply think about pilots on large civilian aircraft working for Southwest or other major airlines. However, that’s just one option for pilots. Here’s a look at some of the many career options you have as a commercial pilot and many of these only require your CPL and not an ATP. These roles offer diverse career paths for those with a commercial pilot's license, each with its unique challenges and rewards.
1. Corporate Pilot
These pilots fly private jets for corporations, transporting executives and VIPs to various destinations around California and the world.
2. Charter Pilot
These professional pilots operate flights for charter companies, flying clients on private or semi-private aircraft for business or leisure.
3. Agricultural Pilot
As an agricultural pilot or crop duster, you will be able to fly specialized aircraft for agricultural purposes, such as spraying crops with pesticides, herbicides or fertilizers.
4. Flight Instructors
Teaching aspiring student pilots how to fly can be very rewarding and it can serve as a great way to log flying hours as well as use it as a stepping stone toward becoming a commercial airline pilot.
5. Air Ambulance Pilot
Want a career where you truly help others? As an air ambulance pilot, you’ll transport medical patients, organs for transplant, or emergency medical teams in specialized air ambulance aircraft.
6. Freight/Cargo Pilot
As a cargo pilot, you could be tasked with transporting goods, mail, or specialized equipment for logistics companies.
7. Aerial Survey Pilot
These pilots conduct aerial surveys for mapping, environmental monitoring, or geological exploration by flying low-altitude missions.
8. Firefighting Pilot
With wildfires now so common, this career is in high demand, and you’ll be flying aircraft equipped for firefighting missions, dropping water or fire retardant to combat wildfires.
9. Banner Towing Pilot
This can be a fun option, towing advertising banners behind aircraft for promotional purposes at events or over populated areas.
10. Tour/Scenic Flight Pilot
These pilots operate flights for tourism companies, providing scenic tours over natural landmarks, cities, or tourist destinations. You might even save up for your own personal aircraft and start a tourism business.
Get Started At East Bay Flight
Whether you just want to learn to fly for fun or you wish to become a pilot as a career, we can help you make those dreams a reality. We offer quality, affordable pilot training at our Oakland-based flight school. Contact us at any time to set up an appointment and take off on your new career as a pilot.