PilotBound

Rates partly published · Columbia, MO

Flight training at ExcelAir8

No instructor rate. ExcelAir8 publishes rates for all 3 of its airplanes and nothing for instruction, so there is no total on this page.

Checked August 13, 2026 against ExcelAir8 flight training page.

Based at
Columbia Regional Airport(COU)
FAA part
Not stated on their site
Website
excelair8.com

Section 1What is published

ExcelAir8's own figures

Checked August 13, 2026 · Source

ExcelAir8 published aircraft rates
AircraftPublished rateNotes
Piper Tomahawk (N2516C, 1978)$145/hrTwo-seat, IFR capable, Garmin 345.
Piper Cherokee 140 (N1712J)$165/hrGarmin 430W, IFR capable.
Piper Cherokee 140 (N4130J)$165/hrGarmin 430W, IFR capable.

All three aeroplanes are priced per wet hour. ExcelAir8 also sells fixed-price programmes: about $65,000 zero to hero including the multi-engine add-on, $51,000 starting from an instrument rating and $39,000 starting from a commercial certificate.

Section 2Why there is no total

An estimate needs an instructor rate.

A training total is hours multiplied by rates. With instruction unpriced there is nothing to multiply, and we will not fill the gap with a plausible number: every figure on this site carries a link that shows it today.

  • Instructor rateMissing from their site

    Instruction is the second biggest line on a training bill, after the airplane.

What to compare their answer against

Not ExcelAir8's rates. The middle of what 6 Missouri schools charge, to hold your phone quote against.

Trainer, medianWhat the airplane costsRange $81 to $184 per hour.
$150
Instruction, medianWhat the instructor costsAcross 6 schools with published rates.
$65

From the schools here that publish full rate cards, the same sample behind the Flight Training Cost Report. ExcelAir8 is not in it.

Section 3Paying for it

Two ways to pay for it.

Win what you can first, then borrow only what is left. Neither figure assumes anything about you: one is what our scholarship directory holds, the other is what the lenders publish.

Money you keepScholarships you could apply for46 open to anyone. Top awards reach $22,200.No Missouri-only awards in the directory yet.
46
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
See scholarshipsCompare lenders

Section 4What to ask

What to ask when you call

The marked ones are what ExcelAir8's site never answers. The rest are what turns an hourly rate into a real bill.

  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. 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. What does instruction cost per hour outside the fixed-price programmes?Missing from their site

    Three aeroplane rates are published and no instruction rate, so a pay-as-you-go student cannot work out an hourly cost.

  4. What do the programme prices include and exclude?

    Three programme totals are published as single numbers with no breakdown of hours, checkrides or written tests.

  5. 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.

  6. 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.

  7. 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.

Called them? Send us what they said.

Send the number over and ExcelAir8 gets a full listing with an estimate, marked as sourced by phone on the date you called.

Send what they told you

Section 5Nearby schools

One other school flies from Columbia Regional Airport.

It does not publish a rate either, so that one is a phone call too. COU is the identifier to give when you ask.

    Every school in the state

    6 Missouri schools publish a full rate card.

    Each one has an estimate built on its own published rates. Listed alphabetically, because ordering them by price would be a ranking this page is not making.

    All Missouri flight schools

    Section 6Sources

    That the school exists
    ExcelAir8 flight training pageChecked August 13, 2026
    The rates above
    ExcelAir8 fleet pageChecked August 13, 2026

    Are you ExcelAir8? Send your rate card and this becomes a full listing with an estimate, free. Or have it removed.

    PilotBound is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by ExcelAir8. School names are used only to identify the school. Rates shown are the school's own published figures with the date we checked them. This page carries no PilotBound estimate, because the school does not publish enough for one. Disclaimer & removal policy.

    Other Missouri flight schools

    All Missouri flight schools

    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.