Land & Sea Aviation

Flight training at Merrill Field.

Checked September 13, 2026 by Samip Shah

At a glance

  • 2 aircraft types.

Basics

Websitelandandseaaviationalaska.com
Phone(907) 274-2544

Aircraft and rates

2 types

A Cessna 152
A Cessna 152 (N6490L), not this school’s aircraft. Photo: ZLEA, CC BY-SA 4.0.

Cessna 152

A two-seater.

Rate (wet)
$145/hr
InstructionNot published

Both aircraft are wet. A $300 annual membership takes $20/hr off the 172P, which pays back in fifteen hours. A dual-only special on a brand-new technically advanced aircraft prices airplane and instructor in one figure.

Checked September 13, 2026 · Land & Sea Aviation rentals page

Airport

Merrill Field PAMR

Home field · 3 runways · longest 4,000 ft · asphalt and gravel

View on the map

Weather

322
flyable days a year
Mar to Aug
most flyable months
22 of 28
in February, the fewest
Flyable 322Low clouds or poor visibility 44
What counts as a flyable day

Clouds no lower than 3,000 feet and visibility of 5 miles or more (VFR weather) for at least half the hours between 9 am and 5 pm. Hourly observations from the airport's own weather station, 2016 to 2025. Source: Iowa Environmental Mesonet ASOS archive, Iowa State University.

Paying for it

Two ways to pay for it.

Win what you can first, then borrow only what is left.

Money you keepScholarships you could apply for43 open to anyone, plus 1 in Alaska. Top awards reach $22,200.
44
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

What to ask when you call

907-274-2544

Not on their website

  1. What do you charge per hour for flight instruction, and is ground instruction billed at the same rate?

    Ground instruction is often billed at a different rate.

  2. What does the instructor alone cost per hour?

    The only flight-training figure published is a combined rate that includes the aircraft, and the only separate hourly instruction price is for ground.

Also ask

  1. Do you offer block rates or prepay discounts, and what is the refund policy if I stop partway?

    Block discounts are rarely published, and the refund terms matter more than the discount.

  2. What do you charge for the written test, the checkride, and the examiner's fee?

    The examiner's fee alone runs $800 to $1,200 in most of the country.

  3. How many trainers and how many full-time instructors do you have right now?

    Availability sets your pace, and pace drives your total more than the hourly rate.

Called them? Send us what they said.

Send the number over and Land & Sea Aviation gets a full listing with an estimate, marked as sourced by phone on the date you called.

Send what they told you

In the app

Track your training at Land & Sea.

Land & Sea Aviation is in the PilotBound app. Choose Land & Sea when you set up and enter the rates it gives you; the app prices your training on them and tracks every flight you log against the projection.

Download on the App Store

Is this your school?

Send Land & Sea's rate card and this page gets an estimate. Or have it removed.

Send your instruction rate

Sources

That the school exists
Land & Sea Aviation rentals pageChecked September 13, 2026
Rates
Land & Sea Aviation rentals pageChecked September 13, 2026

PilotBound is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by Land & Sea Aviation. School names are used only to identify the school. Rates shown are the school's own published figures with the date they were checked. This page carries no PilotBound estimate, because the school does not publish enough for one. Disclaimer & removal policy.

Plan the money before you commit.

A program price only makes sense next to what each rating costs on its own, what scholarships exist, and what borrowing actually looks like.

What each rating costs

Per-rating ranges, with the fees most quotes leave out.

Scholarships 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.