PilotBound estimate · Tuskegee, AL
What flight training at Red Tail Flight Academy costs
Their published rates: $185/hr aircraft (wet) + $50/hr instructor·verified July 30, 2026 SourceSource 2Source 3
Rates are wet. Red Tail also quoted a $150 discovery flight (30 minutes) by email; that price is not published on its site. The school publishes course estimates of its own (about $15,000 Private, $15,500 Instrument, $14,000 Commercial ASEL instruction with time building billed separately, $4,000 single-engine add-on, $3,250 for the group CFI course, about $4,000 CFII) and charges a $60 cancellation/no-show fee. Its Redbird TD2 simulator is $100/hr with an instructor and can count toward 3 hours of Private and 10 hours of Instrument training.
Estimate cost to reach
Flying
Fully IFR capable: GNS 530W, ADS-B out.
PilotBound estimate · Private
Cost of your Private at Red Tail Flight Academy
Most likely around $18,575, about 6 months at 2x/week. A range, not a promise.
Where it goes
One-time fees ($2,375)
- Knowledge (written) test$175
- Checkride / DPE fee$800
- Medical certificate$150
- Headset$700
- Ground school / test prep$300
- Books, charts & supplies$250
Typical national figures, not the school's prices. The FAA written test and examiner (DPE) fees are set by third parties.
Examiner records (DPE dataset).
Your first certificate. Fly passengers, day or night, in good weather.
The hourly flying is priced on Red Tail Flight Academy's published rates. Each rating also folds in its one-time fees (written test, examiner/DPE checkride, medical, gear), about $3,550 across the path. Those are typical national estimates, not Red Tail Flight Academy's prices, and several (the FAA written test and examiner fees) are set by third parties.
Estimates use PilotBound's own completion-hours model, examiner-completion data where it exists and FAA minimums where it does not, applied to each school's published rates. They are PilotBound estimates, not the school's quote, and will differ from a school's own figures. Full methodology and sources →
Step 2 · Plan
Your $18,575 is the starting line. Turn it into a route to your checkride, every step in order with this cost built in.
Add to my planEstimates use Red Tail Flight Academy's published Piper Archer II and instructor rates (verified July 30, 2026), shown in USD for planning only. Real cost varies by student, weather, and pace. An honest range, not a quote.
PilotBound is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by Red Tail Flight Academy. School names are used only to identify the school. Estimates use PilotBound's own completion-hours model, examiner-completion data where it exists and FAA minimums where it does not, applied to each school's published rates. They are PilotBound estimates, not the school's quote, and will differ from a school's own figures. Disclaimer & removal policy.
Common questions about Red Tail Flight Academy
- How much does it cost to get a private pilot license at Red Tail Flight Academy?
- Red Tail Flight Academy publishes $185 per hour for the Piper Archer II and $50 per hour for instruction on it, verified July 30, 2026. Applied to those published rates, PilotBound estimates a private pilot certificate at about $18,575, in a range of $16,000 to $21,200. That covers roughly 72 hours of flying and instruction plus the one-time fees most quotes leave out, including the written test, the examiner's checkride fee, a medical, and study materials. It is a PilotBound estimate built on the school's published rates, not a quote from Red Tail Flight Academy.
- How long does it take to get a private pilot license at Red Tail Flight Academy?
- Flying twice a week, PilotBound estimates about 6 months at Red Tail Flight Academy to reach the private pilot checkride, at roughly 72 hours. Pace is the single biggest variable: flying once a week typically stretches the timeline and raises the total, because time between lessons gets spent re-learning. Weather, aircraft availability, and instructor turnover all push the same direction.
- Is Red Tail Flight Academy a Part 61 or Part 141 flight school?
- Red Tail Flight Academy trains under Part 61, the flexible path. There is no FAA-approved syllabus to follow, so lessons can be scheduled around your life and adapted to your pace. The tradeoff is a slightly higher paper minimum for the private certificate (40 hours versus 35) and, for most students, no VA benefit eligibility.
- Do Red Tail Flight Academy's aircraft rates include fuel?
- Red Tail Flight Academy publishes $185 per hour for the Piper Archer II, a wet rate, so fuel is included in the hourly figure. A wet rate is the easier one to compare, because the number you see is the number you fly on. Rates verified July 30, 2026.
- What ratings can you train for at Red Tail Flight Academy?
- Red Tail Flight Academy trains Private Pilot, Instrument Rating, Commercial Pilot, Flight Instructor and Instrument Instructor. Instruction is $50 per hour across the ratings it teaches. PilotBound's estimator on this page prices any of these paths on Red Tail Flight Academy's own published rates.
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