Accelerated academy · Des Moines, IA
What Vertical Vision Flight Academy's program costs
A full-time, integrated career program sold at a fixed price, not an hourly rate. Every figure below is Vertical Vision Flight Academy's own published price, with the source and the date we read it. This is the published sticker, not a personalized quote.
Vertical Vision campuses in Iowa
Des Moines (DSM)
Published program price
$87K
Career Track Pilot Program (zero to CFI)
Published as an average. Your real cost rises if you fly more than the average hours.
Vertical Vision publishes its career-path figure as an approximation ("about $87,000") rather than a guarantee, with medicals (about $175) and written and checkride fees extra. Expect the real total to vary with your progress.
The academy's own published price. It does not reduce the 1,500-hour airline minimum (only a qualifying degree does). Prices change. Confirm current figures with Vertical Vision Flight Academy.
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Add to planThe programs, with sources
Published as about $87,000 for the full career path to the airlines on a planned 14-month timeline. Excludes medical (about $175) and written and checkride fees. A multi-engine add-on is advertised starting at $3,855.
Des Moines International Airport (DSM) academy. Does not reduce the 1,500-hour airline minimum.
See how an academy stacks up against Part 61, Part 141, and a 2-year or 4-year degree.
Compare the pathsCommon questions about Vertical Vision Flight Academy
- How much does Vertical Vision Flight Academy cost?
- Vertical Vision Flight Academy publishes $87,000 for its Career Track Pilot Program (zero to CFI), as listed on the academy's own pricing page (July 2026). That is the published sticker for the program, not a personalized quote, and it is what the academy asks before the fees the sticker excludes.
- What is included in Vertical Vision Flight Academy's program price?
- Vertical Vision Flight Academy's published programs cover Private Pilot, Instrument Rating, Commercial Pilot, Multi-Engine (AMEL), Flight Instructor, Instrument Instructor and Multi-Engine Instructor. The academy states about 14 months to finish. On what it excludes, the academy states: Published as about $87,000 for the full career path to the airlines on a planned 14-month timeline. Excludes medical (about $175) and written and checkride fees. A multi-engine add-on is advertised starting at $3,855.
- What happens if you need more hours than Vertical Vision Flight Academy's program includes?
- Published as an average. Your real cost rises if you fly more than the average hours. Vertical Vision publishes its career-path figure as an approximation ("about $87,000") rather than a guarantee, with medicals (about $175) and written and checkride fees extra. Expect the real total to vary with your progress. This is the question worth asking hardest at any accelerated academy, because the published price and the price a student who flies over the plan actually pays are two different numbers.
- Does going to Vertical Vision Flight Academy lower the 1,500-hour airline requirement?
- No. An accelerated academy does not reduce the 1,500-hour ATP minimum. Only a qualifying aviation degree does, under 14 CFR 61.160, which lowers it to 1,000 hours for a bachelor's or 1,250 for an associate's. What an academy sells is speed and a fixed price to the commercial certificate and instructor ratings, not a shortcut to the airlines. Most graduates then instruct to build the remaining hours.
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Figures are Vertical Vision Flight Academy's own published program prices, shown with the date we read them. They are not a personalized quote, and a student's actual cost will differ with location premiums, the fees the sticker excludes, and pace. Published prices generally assume the program's planned hours; flight training often runs over the FAA minimums, and how extra hours are billed varies by academy (some hold a truly fixed cost, others charge an hourly rate for additional time). Confirm the overage policy with the academy. An accelerated academy does not lower the 1,500-hour airline minimum; only a qualifying degree does, under 14 CFR 61.160. PilotBound is not affiliated with Vertical Vision Flight Academy. Disclaimer & removal policy.
Primary sources: verticalvisionflight.com·verticalvisionflight.com