Learning to fly a plane is not as hard as you might think. At Attitude Aviation we can help you train from a basic Private Pilot license through ATP (Airline Transport Pilot).  All of our aircraft are equipped with state of the art Garmin GTN 650 or 750 radios and many with glass cockpits.

Let Attitude Aviation Train You

Private Pilot

When you’ve flown your computer all you care to, and it’s time to do it for real … Learn to fly! Get your Private Pilot’s License at Attitude Aviation!

Prices

Be careful when comparing flight schools. We’ll never tell you to totally ignore prices on anything, but price should not be the determining factor when you are looking for a flight school. Learning to fly isn’t like learning golf or tennis. When you learn to fly, you are learning a skill which will allow you to fly yourself, your friends, and your loved ones safely. Choose your training provider carefully. Flight training is not the place to economize.

Prices can be hard to compare. Most people take more than the minimum 40 hours to get their license. The total price is usually somewhere between $8,000 and $12,000, depending mostly on which aircraft you choose to train in and, honestly, how much effort you put into your training.

Realistically, most people take 50 to 60 hours for training, checkride preparation, refresher training, or just having fun. Also, you might choose to train in a higher priced aircraft or with an instructor whose credentials justify a higher instructor fee. We operate on a “pay-as-you-fly” basis, so the costs can be spread out over several months or more to lessen the impact on your budget.

Remember though, safety and quality of instruction should be the major players in your deliberations on which school to choose. You are learning a skill which will keep you and passengers safe. Do not economize on your training. Visit each school under consideration, check out the condition of their aircraft and facilities, talk to the management and the instructors, then make up your mind. Visit Attitude last. You’ll see the difference.

Private Pilot Instruction Aircraft

You should train in the type of aircraft you will usually fly later. Our instructors set their own rates, but they’re generally $70-80 per hour for ground and flight instruction. The price depends on the experience and qualifications of the instructor you choose. By the way, you’ll find the experience level high at Attitude, regardless of the instructor you choose. Also, our instructor force is very stable, without a lot of staff turnover, so you’ll probably fly with only one or two instructors during your training. That’s a good thing.

Requirements

The FAA requires a written test, a practical test (a check ride) and a minimum of 40 hours flying training: 20 hours Dual (with an instructor), 10 hours Solo and 10 hours which may be Dual or Solo. Most students take more than that, however, so the national average is 50-60 hours. In that time, you’ll develop basic flying skills, including how to takeoff and land and maneuver your aircraft, how to fly at night, navigate cross country, and even fly in the clouds. If you train with us at Attitude, you’ll also have the opportunity to receive emergency maneuver training, spin proofing and basic aerobatics in aircraft most schools don’t even have available. And, by the way, you’ll have fun!

Private Pilot Ground School

Our Private Pilot Ground School is a fantastic bargain.  It’s a terrific and efficient way to get the academics you need to prepare for your written test and practical test. It’s 15 weeks long, one night a week, generally two hours per night. The class meets on Wednesdays at 6:30 p.m. This is not a quickie, how-to-pass-the-test course. We want you to really learn the material; you’ll be a better pilot for the experience.

Attitude’s Private Pilot Ground School is very different from those at other flight schools. First of all, once you pay your tuition, you’re a class member forever. You may attend the Attitude classes for as long as you like, repeating any or all classes as many times as you like, and you’ll always be welcome back for refresher training at no additional cost. Also, we have structured the training into discrete blocks. Each class is self-contained and has no prerequisites, so you can join the class at any point in the course and not feel left behind. The schedule of classes and the subjects covered in each class are published, so if you miss a class (who doesn’t?) you’ll know exactly what you missed, and you may pick it up on the next rotation.

Commercial Pilot

Ready to start making some money with your flying? Then you’re going to need a Commercial Pilot License.

Basically, a Commercial Pilot License allows you to be hired and paid for your flying. There’s lots you can do with a CPL:

  • You can become a Certificated Flight Instructor
  • You can fly rides and tours
  • You can become a crop duster or even a fire bomber
  • You can tow banners, fly traffic watch or aerial photography, and mapping
  • You can fly corporate aircraft, including jets for hire
  • You can do anything except fly airliners carrying passengers (you’ll need an Airline Transport Pilot license)

CPL’s are divided into multi engine and single engine types. You can complete your training in either or both; it depends on what you would like to do with your Pilot Certificate on completion. If you want to move toward an Airline Job then a Multi Engine Airplane is what you should train in, and you will wind up with a CPL, Multi engine Land Airplane license. Conversely, if you take your check ride in a single engine aircraft, you’ll get a CPL, SEL Airplane license. If you get a CPL, SEL, you can’t do CPL operations in a MEL airplane, and vice versa. We happen to have both multi engine and single engine aircraft, so you can do either, or both. (You don’t want to limit yourself.)

Requirements

To obtain a CPL, you must be able to read, speak, and understand English, must be at least 18 years old and hold a current FAA Medical Certificate and a Private pilot Certificate.

You must also have logged

  • 100 hours as pilot-in-command
  • 20 hours of VFR cross-country flight time as pilot-in-command, including a cross-country flight totaling at least 300 NM with full-stop landings at two aerodromes different from the aerodromes of departure
  • 10 hours of instrument training
  • 5 hours of night flying including one cross-country flight
  • 5 solo take-offs and 5 landings
  • 5 hours in a complex airplane
  • You have to have at least 250 hours logged by the time you take your check ride

If you don’t want any limitations on your license, you should also have and Instrument Rating, and you should take your check ride in a complex aircraft. We have those.

The CPL written test is basically just a Private Pilot test with additional questions about what you can or cannot do with your CPL and more in depth questions on weight & balance, aircraft performance, etc. Oral exams on the practical test (check ride) are basically the same. The flight portion of the check ride is flown to higher standards than the Private Pilot check ride, and there are four new maneuvers to learn: Chandelle, Lazy 8, 8’s Around Pylons, and Precision Landings. While very few check rides are actually fun, with a little training and practice, it should be an easy pass.

Flight Instructor

Be a pilot maker!

There is no position in aviation more important than that of the Certificated Flight Instructor. Nobody else has as much effect on the aviation world. The Flight Instructor is the person who trains the pilots who will share the skies with all of us.

Do you want to be the Pilot Maker who shapes our aviation world. Become a CFI. Schedule an appointment to talk about your training.

You must have 200 hours of Pilot in Command (PIC) time, an Instrument Rating and a Commercial Pilot’s License. You’ll take two written tests: Fundamentals of Instruction and Flight Instructor. No endorsement is required to take these tests. You must pass a practical test (checkride). You’ll take the checkride in a complex aircraft (one with retractable landing gear, flaps and a controllable pitch propeller).

Instrument Training

Tired of cancelling your flying plans due to a little bit of fog? Want to tackle your next flying challenge? Want to be a “Complete” Pilot? Take your license to the next level with an Instrument Rating!

The Instrument Rating is a significant addition to your Private Pilot or Commercial Pilot license. With it, you are safer and more capable, and less limited in your flying.

  • You won’t be stuck on the ground due to fog or overcast
  • You won’t be tempted to “scud run” when the ceilings are low
  • You can launch when conditions are marginal for VFR (Visual Flight Rules), knowing that you can pick up an instrument clearance en route if you need to
  • You can fly confidently in visual conditions above a cloud deck, knowing that, if the destination forecast is wrong, you can fly an instrument approach to penetrate the cloud deck and land safely
  • You can fly in Class A airspace above 18,000′ with the Big Guys
  • You can even fly Special VFR, at night

An Instrument Rating is an addition to a Private Pilot or Commercial Pilot License which allows you to operate under Instrument Flight Rules (IFR). It is required if you want to fly in weather less than that required for Visual Flight Rules (VFR) or fly above 18,000 feet. For most pilots, the most significant value of flying under IFR is the ability to penetrate cloud decks and fly in the weather. Additionally, you can operate in Special (reduced) VFR conditions at night.

The Instrument Rating is a significant undertaking, probably even harder than your Private License, but the benefits are huge, and worth the effort. And it’s satisfying, knowing you are a fully qualified pilot, safer and more capable than ever.

Livermore is an ideal place to do your instrument flying training. There are a wide variety of instrument approaches here and within a short flying distance due to the high concentration of airports within the San Francisco Bay Area.

Requirements

Under the FAA’s regulations in Part 61.65, you must receive and log ground training from an authorized instrument flight/ground instructor, or have completed a home study course to prep for the written and practical tests. The written test covers regs, air traffic control, IFR navigation, instrument approaches, weather and decision making. You must log 40 hours of instrument flight training, 20 of which may be accomplished in an approved flight simulator. Attitude happens to have one of these approved simulators. You must have at least 15 hours of dual instruction, 3 of which must be logged within the two months before your check ride.

Multi-engine Rating

We do our training in a Piper Seneca 1. A great training airplane. Once you get your rating come fly the Seneca and build your time and experience up and then transition to our Cessna 414A Chancellor. We have multi engine planes for every skill level.