How much does it cost to get a private pilot license at Griffith Aviation?

Griffith Aviation publishes $132 per hour for the Cessna 152 and $60 per hour for instruction on it, checked August 13, 2026. Applied to those published rates, PilotBound estimates a private pilot certificate at about $16,391, in a range of $14,100 to $18,700. That covers roughly 78 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 Griffith Aviation.

How long does it take to get a private pilot license at Griffith Aviation?

Flying twice a week, PilotBound estimates about 6 months at Griffith Aviation to reach the private pilot checkride, at roughly 78 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 Griffith Aviation a Part 61 or Part 141 flight school?

Griffith Aviation trains under Part 141, an FAA-approved syllabus with a structured course of study. Part 141 can finish the private certificate in fewer required hours on paper (35 versus 40), though in practice most students at either kind of school fly past the minimum. Part 141 also matters if you plan to use VA benefits, which generally require an approved 141 course.

Do Griffith Aviation's aircraft rates include fuel?

Griffith Aviation publishes $132 per hour for the Cessna 152, a rate that does not say whether fuel is included. Ask before you budget: if the rate turns out to be dry, fuel adds roughly $30 to $60 per hour on top. PilotBound's estimate uses the rate exactly as published. Rates checked August 13, 2026.

What ratings can you train for at Griffith Aviation?

Griffith Aviation trains Private Pilot, Instrument Rating, Commercial Pilot, Multi-Engine (AMEL) and Flight Instructor. Instruction runs $60 to $70 per hour depending on the rating and the aircraft, since advanced and type-specific instruction is priced above the standard rate. PilotBound's estimator on this page prices any of these paths on Griffith Aviation's own published rates.

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PilotBound estimate · Griffith, IN · Checked August 13, 2026

What flight training at Griffith Aviation costs

Website griffithaviationinc.com

Your plan

Estimate cost to reach

Flying

Which airplane?

Two-seat trainer. $118.80/hr with the pre-pay discount.

PilotBound estimate · Private

Examiner data

Cost of your Private at Griffith Aviation

$16,391

range $14.1K – $18.7K · about 6 months at 2×/week

Priced on Griffith's published rates: Cessna 152 at $132/hr + $60/hr instruction, checked August 13, 2026.

Against a minimums quote

at the FAA legal minimums$8,675

at the hours students actually take$16,391

+$7,716 on Griffith's own rates. Quotes usually price the 35-hour minimum; almost nobody finishes there.

Where it goes

$14.1K – $18.7K

Aircraft rental$10,296

Instruction$3,720

One-time costs$2,375

Aircraft + instruction$14,016

78 hrs in Cessna 152 @ $132/hr + 62 dual @ $60/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 pace78 hrs

Examiner records (DPE dataset). Note: Part 141 typically runs higher, not lower.

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

checked August 13, 2026

Cessna 152 (N157SK, N48SU)Two-seat trainer. $118.80/hr with the pre-pay discount.$132/hr fuel basis not stated

Piper Warrior PA-28-151/161 (4 tails)$152.10/hr with the pre-pay discount.$169/hr fuel basis not stated

Beechcraft Duchess BE-76 (N2009X)Multi-engine trainer. $315/hr with the pre-pay discount.$350/hr fuel basis not stated

Instructionstandard $60/hr · multi-engine instruction $70/hr$60 – $70/hr

Griffith publishes every rate twice, with and without a pre-pay discount. The figures here are the standard rates without the discount; pre-paying takes about 10% off both the aeroplane and instruction. Griffith is also VA approved and hosts FAA PSI testing.

Not published: the examiner's checkride fee, whether rates include fuel. Listed as missing rather than guessed.

See the published rates→

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Your $16,391 is the starting line. Turn it into a route to your checkride, every step in order with this cost built in.

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What to ask when you call

The marked one is what Griffith's site never answers. The rest are what turns an hourly rate into a real bill.

Do the published aircraft rates include fuel, or is fuel billed separately?Missing from their site
The site does not say, and it is the difference between two rates that look identical and are not.
What gets billed on top of the hourly rates, and roughly how much per hour does it add?
The site notes extras beyond the hourly figures. Ask for the all-in number per hour, not the base rate.
Which instructor rate applies to each rating I plan to do, and does the higher tier start on day one of that rating?
This school prices some instruction above its primary rate. Knowing when the step-up starts keeps the later ratings from surprising you.
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.

Estimates use Griffith Aviation's published Cessna 152 and instructor rates (checked August 13, 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 Griffith 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 Griffith Aviation

How much does it cost to get a private pilot license at Griffith Aviation?: Griffith Aviation publishes $132 per hour for the Cessna 152 and $60 per hour for instruction on it, checked August 13, 2026. Applied to those published rates, PilotBound estimates a private pilot certificate at about $16,391, in a range of $14,100 to $18,700. That covers roughly 78 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 Griffith Aviation.
How long does it take to get a private pilot license at Griffith Aviation?: Flying twice a week, PilotBound estimates about 6 months at Griffith Aviation to reach the private pilot checkride, at roughly 78 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 Griffith Aviation a Part 61 or Part 141 flight school?: Griffith Aviation trains under Part 141, an FAA-approved syllabus with a structured course of study. Part 141 can finish the private certificate in fewer required hours on paper (35 versus 40), though in practice most students at either kind of school fly past the minimum. Part 141 also matters if you plan to use VA benefits, which generally require an approved 141 course.
Do Griffith Aviation's aircraft rates include fuel?: Griffith Aviation publishes $132 per hour for the Cessna 152, a rate that does not say whether fuel is included. Ask before you budget: if the rate turns out to be dry, fuel adds roughly $30 to $60 per hour on top. PilotBound's estimate uses the rate exactly as published. Rates checked August 13, 2026.
What ratings can you train for at Griffith Aviation?: Griffith Aviation trains Private Pilot, Instrument Rating, Commercial Pilot, Multi-Engine (AMEL) and Flight Instructor. Instruction runs $60 to $70 per hour depending on the rating and the aircraft, since advanced and type-specific instruction is priced above the standard rate. PilotBound's estimator on this page prices any of these paths on Griffith Aviation's own published rates.

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