Learn To Fly · Van Nuys Airport · KVNY

Discounts, Specials And Referral Credits

Read the guide, then see it from the left seat. A $229 discovery flight puts you on the controls over Los Angeles with an FAA-certificated instructor.

$229Discovery Flight, 60 Min
$349First Lesson, 2 Hours
FreeConsultation
10AM–7PMDiscovery Flights, 7 Days
Four Cessna 162 Skycatcher trainers parked in a row on the ramp at Van Nuys Airport

You Fly LA runs two kinds of price reduction, and we publish both rather than holding them back for people who ask. The first is built into the course prices: $500 off the Private Pilot Standard, Comprehensive and Premium courses, and $5,000 off the Airline Pilot Career Program, against the prices those courses carried before. The second is the discovery flight credit: book a discovery flight at $229 and if you enroll in a course within 24 hours, the whole $229 comes off the course price.

That is the honest list. We do not run flash sales, we do not inflate a price so we can discount it, and we do not have a coupon code hidden behind an email pop-up. If you are shopping for a gift rather than for training, our flight gift certificates page explains how the thirteen amounts work and what each one buys. The private course itself, from $10,400 for the Standard package, is set out on our private pilot license in Los Angeles page.

First-time flyer standing beside a Cirrus at sunset before a discovery flight from Van Nuys

The Package Reductions, In Full

These are the current course prices and what each was before the reduction. Books and materials are included in every package, and every package can be paid on a deposit and interest-free installments.

Current Course Prices And The Reduction Applied
Course Previous price Current price Reduction
Private Pilot, Standard $10,900 $10,400 $500
Private Pilot, Comprehensive $15,900 $15,400 $500
Private Pilot, Premium $22,500 $22,000 $500
Airline Pilot Career Program $89,000 $84,000 $5,000

Courses not in that table — Sport Pilot at $8,400, Instrument at $11,700, Commercial at $15,400, Multi-Engine at $5,100, the Flight Instructor program at $15,400 and the Teens Pilot Course at $4,200 — are at their standard prices with no reduction applied. We would rather say that than imply everything is on sale. The full price list and what each package includes is on our flight school cost page.

The 24-Hour Discovery Flight Credit

This is the one that saves the most money for the most people, and it is the least advertised because it is not framed as a discount. A discovery flight is a real lesson: you fly the airplane from the left seat with an instructor beside you, and the time is logged as dual instruction toward your certificate. If you enroll in a training course within 24 hours of that flight, we credit the full amount you paid against the course.

Discovery Flight Prices And What The Credit Is Worth
Flight 60 min 90 min 120 min
Discovery flight, one person flies $229 $299 $399
For two over Downtown Los Angeles $299 $399 $499
Malibu coast for two $299 $399 $499
Luxury Cirrus SR22 Discovery Flight $499 $649 $799
Luxury Cirrus SR22 Discovery Flight, With A Passenger $599 $849 $1,049
Full-motion simulator session $189 — —

So a 60-minute discovery flight effectively costs nothing if you decide to train the next day, and the hour is in your logbook either way. Tell your instructor you are thinking about the course before you fly, so the lesson is taught as the first lesson of a syllabus rather than as a sightseeing hour. More on what the flight involves is on our what is a discovery flight page.

How To Actually Reduce What You Pay

Most of the money in flight training is not saved with a coupon. It is saved by flying in a way that keeps the total hours down.

Buy A Package Rather Than Paying Hourly

The package rate for an aircraft is $179 an hour on the Cessna 162 and Piper Warrior, and $229 on the Diamond DA20. Our page on block time versus pay-as-you-go works the comparison in full.

Fly Twice A Week

The single largest cost variable in flight training is the gap between lessons. Fly twice a week and a 40-hour course tends to land near its quoted hours. Fly twice a month and you spend the first twenty minutes of every lesson recovering what you had last time, and the same certificate costs several thousand dollars more. Nothing on this page saves as much as that does.

Use The Simulator

The Redbird MCX full-motion simulator is $120 an hour, and the Redbird TD2 desktop trainer is included free with packages. Procedures, instrument scan and emergency drills learned in the sim are learned at a fraction of the aircraft rate, and some sim time is creditable toward certificates. See simulator hours that count for which hours the FAA allows.

Apply For Scholarships

National aviation organizations award real money to flight students every year, and they do not care whether your school holds Part 141. An award is worth more than any promotion we could run. Our aviation scholarships page lists the bodies worth an application.

Gift Certificates And Balances

Training aircraft lined up on the ramp at Van Nuys Airport at dusk

A gift certificate is a stored value rather than a fixed flight, so nothing is wasted when the amount does not match the flight the recipient chooses. Spend $229 of a $299 certificate and the remaining $70 stays on the balance; choose a more expensive flight and pay the difference at checkout. Full terms are on the gift certificates page.

Military, First Responder And Referral Credits

We are asked about these constantly, so here is the current position, plainly. You Fly LA does not currently publish a military, veteran, first responder, student or referral discount rate. We are not going to invent one on a web page. If you are serving, a veteran, a first responder, a teacher or a returning family, call (818) 330-1318 and ask the office directly — that conversation is with a person, not a coupon field, and it is the honest way to handle it. You Fly LA does not accept the GI Bill.

What We Will Not Do

  • Raise a price so we can advertise a reduction from it.
  • Run a countdown timer on a training course.
  • Quote a package price that excludes books, materials or the simulator hours listed in it.
  • Promise a discount that depends on you booking before you have flown with us.

Flight training is a multi-thousand-dollar decision that takes months. Anything that pressures you to commit before you have sat in the aircraft is working against you.

Related Reading

Discounts And Specials FAQ

Does You Fly LA Have A Discount Code?

No. Our reductions are built into the published prices rather than applied at checkout with a code: $500 off the Private Pilot Standard, Comprehensive and Premium courses, and $5,000 off the Airline Pilot Career Program.

Is The Discovery Flight Really Free If I Enroll?

The full amount you paid is credited toward your course if you enroll within 24 hours of the flight, so in effect the flight costs nothing and the hour is still logged in your book as dual instruction. A 60-minute discovery flight is $229.

Do You Offer A Military Discount?

We do not currently publish one. Call (818) 330-1318 and speak to the office about your situation. You Fly LA does not accept the GI Bill.

Do You Have A Referral Program?

There is no published referral credit at present. If you have sent us students, call the office and tell us.

Is There A Student Or Teen Discount?

The Teens Pilot Course at $4,200 for ages 10 to 15 is priced as its own program rather than as a discounted adult course. There is no separate student rate.

What Is The Cheapest Way To Get A Pilot Certificate Here?

The Sport Pilot course at $8,400 is the lowest-cost route to a real FAA pilot certificate, with limits on passengers, night flying and airspace. If you want the full private certificate, the Standard package at $10,400 flown twice a week is the cheapest realistic path.

Can I Combine The Discovery Flight Credit With A Gift Certificate?

A gift certificate is stored value and can be used to buy the discovery flight, and the credit rule then applies to the amount paid for that flight. Call (818) 330-1318 before you book so the office can set it up correctly.

Ask Us What Your Training Will Actually Cost

The most useful discount is an accurate quote. Book a free consultation and we will price your course against your schedule, including how many hours you are realistically likely to need. Or start with the hour that pays for itself: a discovery flight is $229 for 60 minutes, you fly it from the left seat, and the full amount is credited if you enroll within 24 hours. Call (818) 330-1318 any day from 9 AM to 9 PM. We are at 7900 Balboa Blvd, Main Terminal Unit 108, Van Nuys, CA 91406.

Pick Your Flight

Choose Your Flight And Book It

Every flight leaves from Van Nuys Airport with an FAA-certificated instructor. The $229 discovery flight is credited in full toward training if you enroll within 24 hours.

Piper Warrior N3034Q, front quarter, beside an open hangar at Van Nuys Airport
PIPER WARRIOR · 160 HP · LOW WING
The Classic 60–120 Min

Discovery Flight For One

Credited in full toward your training if you enroll within 24 hours.

One seat, one instructor, no audience. You take the controls once we are clear of the Van Nuys pattern, and your instructor signs the time into your logbook if you bring one.

  • Hands-on stick time
  • Pre-flight briefing and walk-around
  • Hollywood Sign and downtown
  • One-on-one with an FAA-certified instructor
  • Bring your logbook, we sign it

Flight Length

$229all-in · one flyer · 60 minutes

Book For One

Weight limit 180 lb for the person flying.

Or gift it →
Piper Warrior N6312C, a four-seat low-wing trainer, parked on a sunny ramp
PIPER WARRIOR · FOUR SEATS
★ Most Popular 60–120 Min

Discovery Flight For Two Over Downtown

Logged as dual instruction toward the 40-hour minimum for a private license.

One of you flies while the other rides on the intercom and ends up as the photographer. The route runs past the Hollywood Sign and around the downtown towers.

  • Two seats in the Piper Warrior
  • Headsets for both of you
  • Hollywood Sign and the downtown towers
  • Hands-on flying for one of you
  • Pre-flight briefing and walk-around

Flight Length

$299all-in · two seats · 60 minutes

Book For Two

Weight limit 360 lb combined.

Or gift it →
A student flying the Redbird MCX full-motion simulator at You Fly LA, Van Nuys Airport
REDBIRD MCX · FAA-APPROVED AATD
Never Cancelled 60 Min

Full-Motion Simulator Session

An FAA-approved AATD, so an instructor can log the hour with you.

The one that never leaves the ground. A Redbird MCX on full motion with an instructor beside you, and no weather call to make in the morning.

  • Redbird MCX on full motion
  • An instructor in the seat beside you
  • Never cancelled for weather
  • No weight limit

Flight Length

$189all-in · one seat · 60 minutes

Book The Simulator

No weight limit, and nothing to cancel if the marine layer sits on the Valley.

Or gift it →

Take The Controls Over Los Angeles

Sixty minutes in the left seat from Van Nuys Airport, with an FAA-certificated instructor beside you, for $229. The two-hour first lesson is $349, and the consultation is free.