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Flight Training /

Courses

 

A student for the Private Pilot Licence must be a minimum of 14 years of age to obtain a Student Pilot Permit. From there, an individual may begin training for their Private Pilot Licence, however, one must be a minimum of 17 years old to hold a Private Pilot Licence. A working knowledge of the English language is also a prerequisite for flight training. Flight training for the Private Pilot Licence will consist of a minimum of 45 hours of flight training including:

 

 

 

  • 17 hours dual, including 5 hours Instrument Training, 3 hours Cross-country,
  • 12 hours solo, including 5 hours Cross-country (min 150nm from home base with 2 stops away).

 

Other requirements of the Private Pilot Licence are:

 

  • A Pre Solo written test – PSTAR (administered on site)
  • A Restricted Radio Operators Certificate (administered on site)
  • An Aviation Language Proficiency Test (administered on site)
  • Class 1 or 3 medical obtained from a Civil Aviation Medical Examiner
  • A minimum of 40 hours groundschool including instruction on (Air Law, Meteorology, Navigation and Aeronautical General Knowledge)
  • A Transport Canada Written Test with a 60% pass mark
  • A Transport Canada Flight Test

 

Please keep in mind that the flight training times listed are minimums. Very few candidates are able to meet flight test standards after 45 hours of flight. Budget for 60 hours as a more realistic number.

Written test guide

 

 

Flight test guide 

 

 

Training is at the student’s pace and convenience. The course could take as little as 6 weeks if done full time. Average time to finish would be 4 months based on 3 lessons a week. Keep in mind that the more often you are able to fly generally the less hours it will take to complete your PPL. Flight training is best done concurrently with groundschool.
PPL Kit $225
Groundschool $400
30 Hours Dual flight 30 X $230 $6900
10 hours ground briefing 10 X $60 $600
30 hours Solo Flight 30 X $170 $5100
Flight Test Fee (paid to examiner) $300
Written test fee (paid to Transport Canada) $105
Licencing fee (paid to Transport Canada) $35
Medical Exam (paid to doctors office) $150
Medical Processing Fee (paid to Transport Canada) $55
*Aviation Headset $450
Total $14,320

Optional costs are marked with an asterisk.

The Commercial Pilot Licence (CPL) allows the pilot to fly airplanes for hire and reward and opens the avenue to what can be an exciting and lucrative aviation career. Depending on what type of aviation job you are seeking, you may require additional ratings to be a successful applicant. A CPL may be endorsed with a Multi Engine, Instrument, Float or Instructor rating. A Night and VFR OTT endorsement are included with a CPL.
  • Private Pilot Licence
  • Minimum age 18
  • Working knowledge of English

A minimum of 200 hours total flight time including 100 hours Pilot in Command time, 20 hours of which must be cross country.

All previous flight time counts toward the Commercial Pilot Licence.

The Commercial course consists of 65 hours of flight training and 80 hours of ground school and includes a Night Endorsement.

  • 35 hours of dual instruction
    • 10 hours of advanced dual instruction including at least 5 hours of X-Country
    • 20 hours of instrument time.
    • 5 hours dual night with 2 hours X-country
  • 30 hours of solo flight time
    • 25 hours of general practice and skill building
    • 5 hours solo night (10 take offs and landings)
  • Cross country of at least 300 nautical miles with landings at 3 airports other than the departure airport
  • A minimum of 80 hours ground school including instruction on Air Law, Meteorology, Navigation, and General Knowledge.

A Transport Canada Written Exam with a 70% pass mark

A Transport Canada Flight Test

Class 1 Medical obtained from a Civil Aviation Medical Examiner

Please keep in mind that the flight training times listed are minimums. Very few candidates are able to meet flight test standards after 35 hours of dual instruction. Budget for 45 hours as a more realistic number.

 

CPL:
Written test guide
Flight test guide 
Training is at the student’s pace and convenience. The course could take as little as 6 weeks if done full time (not including solo build up time to reach 200 hours). Average time to finish would be 6 months based on 3 lessons a week.
Here is a breakdown of costs associated with the CPL course assuming it is done right after a PPL which was accomplished in 60 hours. Optional costs are marked with an asterisk.

 

Groundschool $900
Medical Exam and ECG (paid to doctors office) $230
Medical Processing Fee paid to Transport Canada) $55
*Aviation Headset $450
45 Hours Dual flight 45 X $230 $10,350
10 hours ground briefing 10 X $60 $600
30 hours Solo Flight practice 30 X $170 $5,100
65 hours Solo build up time 65 X 170 $11,050
Flight Test Fee (paid to examiner) $300
Written Test Fee (Paid to Transport Canada) $105
Licencing Fee (Paid to Transport Canada) $35
Total $29,175

The Commercial Pilot Licence is GST exempt and is fully income tax deductible.

A pilot begins their training flying under Visual Meteorological Conditions (VMC) which means always having an outside reference and flying in good weather conditions. An Instrument Rating allows the pilot to fly without reference to the ground and in Instrument Meteorological Conditions (IMC). This gives the pilot the ability to fly into areas of marginal weather and allows greater flexibility when flight planning. The Instrument Rating is also useful if pursuing a career in aviation as for most jobs it will be a requirement. The instrument training may be conducted in either a single engine aircraft (group 3) or a multi engine aircraft (group 1). A group 1 is a requirement for an Airline Transport Pilot Licence.
  • Either a PPL or CPL Licence
  • 50 Hours PIC Cross Country flight time
  • A multi engine rating (if group 1)
  • A valid Medical

A minimum of 40 hours of instrument flight training:

  • Including a cross-country flight in actual or simulated IFR conditions of not less than 100 nautical miles, and including instrument approaches to specified approach altitude minima at two locations.
  • Up to 20 hours may be in an approved flight simulator
  • Instrument hours acquired in PPL, CPL, night rating or VOTT may be counted towards this total.

80 hours Ground school instruction on the following subjects:

  • Air Law
  • Meteorology
  • IFR Rules and Procedures
  • Instruments
  • Radio Systems
  • Navigation

A Transport Canada Flight Test

A Transport Canada Written Test with a 70% pass mark

 

 

Training is at the student’s pace and convenience. The course could take as little as 3 weeks if done full time. Average time to finish would be 2 months based on 3 lessons a week. Keep in mind that the more often you are able to fly generally the less hours it will take to complete your training. Groundschool should be commenced first, followed by simulator time then flight time in the appropriate category of aircraft.
Here is a breakdown of typical costs associated with the IFR course. These cost assume the student has 5 hours instrument training from the PPL. These costs to not include GST. Optional costs are marked with an asterisk.

 Group 3
(Single Engine)		  Group 1
(Multi-Engine)
Books and Supplies  $100  $100
Groundschool  $400  $400
20 hours Simulator  20 X 100  $2000  20 X 100  $2000
15 hours Dual flight  15 X 230  $3450  15 X 340  $5100
5 hours ground briefing  5 X 60  $300  5 X 60  $300
Flight Test Fee (paid to examiner)  $300  $300
Transport Canada Written Test Fee  $35  $35
Transport Canada Licensing Fee  $35  $35
 Total  $6620  $8270

The cost of training is contingent on the student meeting the flight test standards of Transport Canada. As the skill and knowledge of students varies, so do the training costs. Instrument Rating students should allow for this and are encouraged to retain additional funds in reserve so as provide for varied rates of learning and varied levels of skill.

A PPL or CPL licence allows a pilot to fly any single engine non high performance aircraft. If a pilot wishes to fly larger aircraft with more than one engine, a multi engine rating is required. This will allow you to fly larger and faster aircraft and increase your range and skill as a pilot. A Multi engine rating is also a prerequisite for a group 1 instrument rating which will be a requirement for most jobs should you decide to pursue a career in aviation. A multi engine rating is required for an Airline Transport Pilot Licence.

Flight test guide
 

  • Either a PPL or CPL Licence
  • Valid Medical
Flight training

  • As required to pass flight test

Ground school

  • As required to pass flight test

A Transport Canada Flight Test

Training is at the student’s pace and convenience. The course could take as little as 1 week if done full time. Average time to finish would be 3 weeks based on 2 lessons a week. Keep in mind that the more often you are able to fly generally the less hours it will take to complete your training. There is no formal groundschool so flight training may be commenced at any time.
Here is a breakdown of typical costs associated with the Multi engine course. These costs to not include GST. Optional costs are marked with an asterisk.

Books and Supplies $50
8 hours Dual flight  8 X 340 $2720
5 hours ground briefing  5 X 60 $300
Flight Test Fee (paid to examiner) $300
Transport Canada Licensing Fee $35
Total $3405

The cost of training is contingent on the student meeting the flight test standards of Transport Canada. As the skill and knowledge of students varies, so do the training costs. Multi engine students should allow for this and are encouraged to retain additional funds in reserve so as provide for varied rates of learning and varied levels of skill.

 

A Night rating allows you to fly during the hours of legal darkness which can be useful during the short days of winter in the North. A Night rating may be endorsed on a Private Pilot Licence after the training has been completed, there is no written or flight test required.
  • Private Pilot Licence
A minimum of 15 hours of flight training:

  • 10 hours dual
    • 5 hours instrument
    • 5 hours night of which 2 hours will be cross country
  • 5 hours solo night
    • 10 take offs and landings

There is no groundschool requirement however there will be some ground briefings on instrument flying, navigation, radio navigation aids, and aircraft and airport operations during the hours of darkness.

This assumes that the student completed 5 hours of instrument training during the PPL.

Training is at the student’s pace and convenience. The course could take as little as 2 weeks if done full time. Average time to finish would be 1 month based on 3 lessons a week. Due to lack of night during the summer, plan to complete the night rating in Fall, Winter or early Spring.
Here is a breakdown of costs associated with the Night Rating. These costs to not include GST.

10 Hours Dual flight 10 X $230 $2,300
5 hours ground briefing 5 X $60 $300
5 hours Solo Flight practice 5 X $170 $850
Transport Canada Licencing Fee $35
Total $3,485
The VFR Over-the-Top Rating (VOTT) increases the versatility of your pilot licence by allowing you to fly in clear air above a cloud layer and out of sight of ground, provided that your destination is under a clear sky or scattered clouds, and is forecast to remain so for a period of time after your intended time of arrival. A VOTT rating may be endorsed on a Private Pilot Licence.
  • Private Pilot Licence
A minimum of 10 hours of instrument flight training

There is no groundschool requirement however there will be some ground briefings on instrument flying, radio navigation aids and weather.

This assumes that the student completed 5 hours of instrument training during the PPL.

Training is at the student’s pace and convenience. The course could take as little as 2 weeks if done full time. Average time to finish would be 1 month based on 2 lessons a week.
Here is a breakdown of costs associated with the VOTT Rating. These costs to not include GST.

10 Hours Dual flight 10 X $230 $2,300
5 hours ground briefing 5 X $60 $300
Transport Canada Licencing Fee $35
Total $2,635
The Professional Pilot Program is intended to be a full time intensive program that will lead to a Commercial Pilot Licence with a Multi-Engine Instrument Rating at the end of a 9 month period. Students will complete 200 hours of flying and over 200 hours of groundschool, 3 written examinations and 4 flight tests.

If possible, trainees will be paired up with another student at the same level. Students will ride along in the back seat of each others flights when possible to increase exposure to the training environment.

Private Pilot Licence

The first 8 weeks of the program will consist of the Private Pilot training. Training will be scheduled for five days per week with a combination of flying and groundschool. By the end of week 6, students will complete the written exam followed by a flight test in week 8.

Commercial Pilot Licence

Commercial training will begin in week 10. Again, training will be scheduled for 5 days a week with a combination of flight and ground training. During this time, several flights will be allotted to solo time building. The groundschool portion will be completed by week 20 with a written exam in week 21 and the commercial flight test shall follow in week 24.

Multi Engine Instrument Rating

Week 26 will be the start of the Multi IFR training. Weeks 26- 30 will consist of combined groundschool and simulator instruction. At week 31 the student will start instruction in the aircraft and week 33 will include the multi flight test. The instrument written exam will be scheduled for week 34 and the flight test on week 37.

Week 38-40 are contingency weeks if extra time is needed due to weather issues or student performance.

Students can expect to spend at least 6 hours per week flying (as PIC) and 4 hours per week riding along with another student. There will be 6 hours per week groundschool and another minimum of 6 hours per week self study and exam preparation.

Flight Time
PPL $10300
CPL $10850
Multi Engine $2720
IFR $8800
Time Building $8500
Total $41170

Additional costs for groundschool, briefings, medicals, Transport Canada fees, books and supplies are not included in this total. GST will be added to all applicable items.