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

NexGen Aviation publishes $230 per hour for the Diamond DA40 Diamond Star and $90 per hour for instruction on it, checked August 17, 2026. Applied to those published rates, PilotBound estimates a private pilot certificate at about $25,895, in a range of $22,300 to $29,500. 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 NexGen Aviation.

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

Flying twice a week, PilotBound estimates about 6 months at NexGen 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 NexGen Aviation a Part 61 or Part 141 flight school?

NexGen 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 NexGen Aviation's aircraft rates include fuel?

NexGen Aviation publishes $230 per hour for the Diamond DA40 Diamond Star, 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 17, 2026.

What ratings can you train for at NexGen Aviation?

NexGen Aviation trains Private Pilot, Instrument Rating, Commercial Pilot, Flight Instructor and Instrument Instructor. Instruction is $90 per hour across the ratings it teaches. PilotBound's estimator on this page prices any of these paths on NexGen Aviation's own published rates.

PilotBoundEvery hour. Every dollar.

PilotBound estimate · Lexington, KY · Checked August 17, 2026

What flight training at NexGen Aviation costs

Website flynexgen.com

Your plan

Estimate cost to reach

Flying

Which airplane?

Five tails, all G1000.

PilotBound estimate · Private

Examiner data

Cost of your Private at NexGen Aviation

$25,895

range $22.3K – $29.5K · about 6 months at 2×/week

Priced on NexGen's published rates: Diamond DA40 Diamond Star at $230/hr + $90/hr instruction, checked August 17, 2026.

Against a minimums quote

at the FAA legal minimums$12,945

at the hours students actually take$25,895

+$12,950 on NexGen's own rates. Quotes usually price the 35-hour minimum; almost nobody finishes there.

Where it goes

$22.3K – $29.5K

Aircraft rental$17,940

Instruction$5,580

One-time costs$2,375

Aircraft + instruction$23,520

78 hrs in Diamond DA40 Diamond Star @ $230/hr + 62 dual @ $90/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 NexGen Aviation's published rates. About $2,375 of this is one-time fees (written test, examiner/DPE checkride, medical, gear), typical national estimates, not NexGen 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 NexGen publishes

checked August 17, 2026

Diamond DA40 Diamond Star (N232BB, N571DS, N614DS, N624DS, N655NA)Five tails, all G1000.$230/hr wet

Diamond DA40 NGThe school calls this "The Flagship". G1000.$290/hr wet

Instruction$90/hr

NexGen's rates are all-inclusive: the school states they already cover fuel, maintenance and taxes, with no surcharges. Its fleet page gives the ground instruction rate twice, once as $90/hr and once as $50/hr; flight instruction is $90/hr in both. A Redbird FMX is $90/hr and is not modeled.

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

See the published rates→Source 2→

Step 2

Turn this into a plan.

Your $25,895 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

What turns an hourly rate into a real bill.

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.
Does the instructor rate change for the Instrument, Commercial, or CFI, or is it flat across everything?
Plenty of schools charge more for advanced instruction. A flat rate quoted for the Private can climb later.
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 NexGen Aviation's published Diamond DA40 Diamond Star and instructor rates (checked August 17, 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 NexGen 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 NexGen Aviation

How much does it cost to get a private pilot license at NexGen Aviation?: NexGen Aviation publishes $230 per hour for the Diamond DA40 Diamond Star and $90 per hour for instruction on it, checked August 17, 2026. Applied to those published rates, PilotBound estimates a private pilot certificate at about $25,895, in a range of $22,300 to $29,500. 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 NexGen Aviation.
How long does it take to get a private pilot license at NexGen Aviation?: Flying twice a week, PilotBound estimates about 6 months at NexGen 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 NexGen Aviation a Part 61 or Part 141 flight school?: NexGen 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 NexGen Aviation's aircraft rates include fuel?: NexGen Aviation publishes $230 per hour for the Diamond DA40 Diamond Star, 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 17, 2026.
What ratings can you train for at NexGen Aviation?: NexGen Aviation trains Private Pilot, Instrument Rating, Commercial Pilot, Flight Instructor and Instrument Instructor. Instruction is $90 per hour across the ratings it teaches. PilotBound's estimator on this page prices any of these paths on NexGen Aviation's own published rates.

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