PilotBound
PilotBound

PilotBound estimate · Carlsbad, CA

What flight training at Blade & Wing Aviation costs

Your plan

Estimate cost to reach

Flying

The solo rate, confirmed three times including a one-hour checkride rental.

PilotBound estimate · Private

Examiner data

Cost of your Private at Blade & Wing Aviation

$17,525

range $15.1K – $20K · about 6 months at 2×/week

Priced on Blade & Wing's published rates: Cessna 172 at $150/hr + $75/hr instruction, checked August 6, 2026.

Against a minimums quote

at the FAA legal minimums$10,775
at the hours students actually take$17,525

+$7,000 on Blade & Wing's own rates. Quotes usually price the 40-hour minimum; almost nobody finishes there.

Where it goes

$15.1K – $20K
Aircraft rental$10,800
Instruction$4,350
One-time costs$2,375
Aircraft + instruction$15,150
72 hrs in Cessna 172 @ $150/hr + 58 dual @ $75/hr

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
Hours at a steady pace72 hrs

Examiner records (DPE dataset).

The hourly flying is priced on Blade & Wing Aviation's published rates. About $2,375 of this is one-time fees (written test, examiner/DPE checkride, medical, gear), typical national estimates, not Blade & Wing Aviation's prices, and several 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 →

What Blade & Wing publishes

checked August 6, 2026
Cessna 172The solo rate, confirmed three times including a one-hour checkride rental.$150/hr wet
Piper ArrowRetractable, so this covers the Commercial's complex time. Derived from $255/hr dual minus the $75 instruction rate.$180/hr wet
Instruction$75/hr

Blade & Wing does not publish an hourly rate card. It publishes course cost breakdowns, and these figures are divided out of them: 30 hours dual in the C172 at $6,750 gives $225/hr, 10 hours solo at $1,500 gives $150/hr, and the difference of $75/hr is the instruction rate, which the school separately confirms by pricing ground instruction at $75/hr. Rates include fuel, and the school states that a fuel surcharge may apply when fuel prices are abnormally high. Blade & Wing also trains helicopters, which is priced separately and not modeled here.

Not published: the examiner's checkride fee. Listed as missing rather than guessed.

See the published rates→

Step 2

Turn this into a plan.

Your $17,525 is the starting line. Turn it into a route to your checkride, every step in order with this cost built in.

Add to my plan

Estimates use Blade & Wing Aviation's published Cessna 172 and instructor rates (checked August 6, 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 Blade & Wing Aviation. 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 Blade & Wing Aviation

How much does it cost to get a private pilot license at Blade & Wing Aviation?
Blade & Wing Aviation publishes $150 per hour for the Cessna 172 and $75 per hour for instruction on it, checked August 6, 2026. Applied to those published rates, PilotBound estimates a private pilot certificate at about $17,525, in a range of $15,100 to $20,000. 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 Blade & Wing Aviation.
How long does it take to get a private pilot license at Blade & Wing Aviation?
Flying twice a week, PilotBound estimates about 6 months at Blade & Wing Aviation 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 Blade & Wing Aviation a Part 61 or Part 141 flight school?
Blade & Wing Aviation does not state on its own website whether it trains under Part 61 or Part 141, so we do not list one. It is worth asking directly before you enroll: Part 141 follows an FAA-approved syllabus and is generally what VA benefits require, while Part 61 is more flexible on scheduling.
Do Blade & Wing Aviation's aircraft rates include fuel?
Blade & Wing Aviation publishes $150 per hour for the Cessna 172, 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 checked August 6, 2026.
What ratings can you train for at Blade & Wing Aviation?
Blade & Wing Aviation trains Private Pilot, Instrument Rating and Commercial Pilot. Instruction is $75 per hour across the ratings it teaches. PilotBound's estimator on this page prices any of these paths on Blade & Wing Aviation's own published rates.

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.