Flight training at American Helicopters

1. 1

   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.

2. 2

   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.

3. 3

   What is the hourly rate on your cheapest trainer, and which airplane is that?Missing from their site

   This is the number that is missing from the site, and it is the largest line on your bill.

4. 4

   Is that rate wet or dry, meaning does it include fuel?Missing from their site

   A dry rate and a wet rate are not comparable. Dry rates can run $40 to $60 an hour lower for the same airplane.

5. 5

   What airplane would I train in for the Private, and what does it rent for per hour?Missing from their site

   The site says it trains airplanes as well as helicopters and never names a single aircraft or price.

6. 6

   Is instruction the same rate for airplane and helicopter students?Missing from their site

   Schools that do both often price rotary instruction higher, and the site gives separate phone numbers for each side.

7. 7

   You are Part 141 approved. Is that approval for the airplane courses, the helicopter courses, or both?

   Part 141 changes the minimum hours, and on a mixed school the approval does not always cover everything.

8. 8

   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.

9. 9

   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.

10. 10

    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.

What to compare their answer against

Not American Helicopters's rates. The middle of what 60 California schools charge, to hold your phone quote against.

From the schools here that publish full rate cards, the same sample behind the Flight Training Cost Report. American Helicopters is not in it.

What we checked

The name says helicopters and the school says it trains "both helicopters and airplanes", running private, instrument and commercial on each side, with separate phone numbers for the two. It is FAA-approved under Part 141, which is rarer than it should be and is stated outright. Not one aircraft or rate is named anywhere. Listed for the airplane side only. Checked August 6, 2026.