Rates partly published · Anchorage, AK
Flight training at Birch Creek Aviation
No instructor rate. Birch Creek publishes rates for all 5 of its airplanes and nothing for instruction, so there is no total on this page.
Checked September 13, 2026 against Birch Creek Aviation flight training page.
- Based at
- Merrill Field(MRI)
- FAA part
- Not stated on their site
- Trains
- PPL · IR · CPL · Multi · CFI · CFII · MEI
- Phone
- 907-343-9886
- Website
- birchcreekaviation.com
Section 1What is published
Birch Creek's own figures
Checked September 13, 2026 · Source
| Aircraft | Published rate | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Cessna 150F (N8006S, 1966)1965 | $140/hr | 100 HP with KLN87 GPS. $130/hr on the club rate. A two-seater. |
| Cessna 172M (N5339H, 1975)1975 | $180/hr | 150 HP, Garmin 430 WAAS, IFR certified. $170/hr club. |
| Cessna 172M (N21403, 1974)1974 | $180/hr | 150 HP, Garmin 430 WAAS, IFR certified. $170/hr club. |
| Cessna 172M (N6863T, 1975)1973 | $210/hr | All glass with autopilot. $200/hr club. |
| Piper Seneca III (776MF, 1981) | $465/hr | Full IFR, de-ice, turbocharged. The twin. $455/hr club. |
Airframes built 1965 to 1975. Years of manufacture from the FAA aircraft registry, read September 20, 2026.
Every aircraft is published at a standard rate and a lower CLUB rate, roughly $10/hr apart, and the site does not say whether fuel is included. Birch Creek also sells whole-certificate packages rather than hourly instruction: a Private is quoted at $10,400 in the 172M or $8,800 in the 150F, an Instrument at $8,400, a Commercial at $4,725 or $3,550, a multi-engine add-on and CFI, CFII, MEI and a float rating each at their own price. A further aircraft appears at $375/hr standard and $365/hr club.
Section 2Why there is no total
An estimate needs an instructor rate.
A training total is hours multiplied by rates. With instruction unpriced there is nothing to multiply, and we will not fill the gap with a plausible number: every figure on this site carries a link that shows it today.
Instructor rateMissing from their site
Instruction is the second biggest line on a training bill, after the airplane.
What to compare their answer against
Not Birch Creek's rates. The middle of what 5 Alaska schools charge, to hold your phone quote against.
- Trainer, medianWhat the airplane costsRange $120 to $180 per hour.
- $160
- Instruction, medianWhat the instructor costsAcross 5 schools with published rates.
- $60
From the schools here that publish full rate cards, the same sample behind the Flight Training Cost Report. Birch Creek is not in it.
Section 3Paying for it
Two ways to pay for it.
Win what you can first, then borrow only what is left. Neither figure assumes anything about you: one is what our scholarship directory holds, the other is what the lenders publish.
- Money you keepScholarships you could apply for46 open to anyone, plus 1 in Alaska. Top awards reach $22,200.
- Joe Stancil Jr. Flight Training Scholarship$3,000 · Check dates
- 47
- Money you pay backLenders that fund flight trainingSix lenders, compared on the limits and rates they publish. That is what is on offer, not whether you would be approved.
- 6
Section 4What to ask
What to ask when you call
The marked ones are what Birch Creek's site never answers. The rest are what turns an hourly rate into a real bill.
What do you charge per hour for flight instruction, and is ground instruction billed at the same rate?Missing from their site
This is the number that is missing from the site. Ground is often billed separately and at a different rate.
Does the instructor rate change for the Instrument, Commercial, or CFI, or is it flat across everything?Missing from their site
Plenty of schools charge more for advanced instruction. A flat rate quoted for the Private can climb later.
Do the published aircraft rates include fuel, or is fuel billed separately?
The site does not say, and it is the difference between two rates that look identical and are not.
What does an instructor cost per hour in the air, as opposed to the $75/hr you quote for ground?Missing from their site
The packages bundle the flying, and the only hourly instruction figure published is for ground training. Anyone paying by the hour rather than by package has no figure at all.
What does the club membership cost, and does it pay for itself?
Every aircraft has a club rate about $10/hr below the standard one, and the price of joining is not published.
Do you offer block rates or prepay discounts, and what is the refund policy if I stop partway?
Block discounts are common and rarely published. The refund terms matter more than the discount.
What do you charge for the written test, the checkride, and the examiner's fee?
The DPE fee alone runs $800 to $1,200 in most of the country and is almost never in a quoted hourly rate.
How many trainers and how many full-time instructors do you have right now?
Availability decides your pace, and pace decides your total more than the hourly rate does.
Called them? Send us what they said.
Send the number over and Birch Creek Aviation gets a full listing with an estimate, marked as sourced by phone on the date you called.
Send what they told youSection 5Nearby schools
One other school flies from Merrill Field.
It publishes at least one rate, so there is something to compare before you call. MRI is the identifier to give when you ask.
- Land & Sea AviationPublishes Cessna 152 at $145/hr, no instructor rateAnchorage
5 Alaska schools publish a full rate card.
Each one has an estimate built on its own published rates. Listed alphabetically, because ordering them by price would be a ranking this page is not making.
- Arctic FlyersAnchorage (Lake Hood), AK · Checked September 8, 2026$170/hr$70 to $80/hr instruction
- Blue River AviationPalmer, AK · Checked September 10, 2026$150/hr$75/hr instruction
- Kenai Aviation Training AcademyKenai, AK · Checked September 5, 2026$180/hr$60 to $70/hr instruction
- Kirst AviationFairbanks, AK · Checked September 5, 2026$120/hr$55/hr instruction
- Missionary Aviation Repair CenterSoldotna, AK · Checked September 8, 2026$160/hr$60 to $70/hr instruction
Section 6Sources
- That the school exists
- Birch Creek Aviation flight training pageChecked September 13, 2026
- The rates above
- Birch Creek aircraft rentals pageChecked September 13, 2026
Are you Birch Creek Aviation? Send your rate card and this becomes a full listing with an estimate, free. Or have it removed.
This page says one thing is not stated on your site. Send us where it is published and it shows here instead.
- What instruction costs per hourSend it
PilotBound is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by Birch Creek Aviation. School names are used only to identify the school. Rates shown are the school's own published figures with the date we checked them. This page carries no PilotBound estimate, because the school does not publish enough for one. Disclaimer & removal policy.
Other Alaska flight schools
- Alaska Float & Tailwheel Training · Sterling
- Alaska Float Ratings · Moose Pass
- Alaska Floats And Skis · Anchorage
- Angel Aviation Alaska · Anchorage
- Angle of Attack · Homer
- Arctic Flyers · Anchorage (Lake Hood)
- Beluga Air · Homer
- Blue River Aviation · Palmer
- Elmendorf Aero Club · Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson
Plan the money before you commit
A program price only makes sense next to what each rating costs on its own, what free money exists, and what borrowing actually looks like.
What each rating costs
Honest per-rating ranges, with the fees most quotes leave out.
Free money first
Verified flight training scholarships. Every scholarship dollar is a dollar you never finance.
If you borrow
Compare lenders and see the real monthly payment before you sign.