Rates partly published · Cleveland & Elyria, OH
Flight training at Zone Aviation
No instructor rate. Zone publishes rates for all 2 of its airplanes and nothing for instruction, so there is no total on this page.
Checked August 7, 2026 against Zone Aviation costs page.
- Based at
- Burke Lakefront Airport, and Lorain County Regional(BKL)
- FAA part
- Not stated on their site
- Trains
- PPL · IR · CPL · Multi
- Website
- zoneaviation.com
Section 1What is published
Zone's own figures
Checked August 7, 2026 · Source
| Aircraft | Published rate | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Piper Warrior II | $179/hr | Six of them across Burke Lakefront and Lorain County, all 1978 to 1981, Garmin 430 and G5 HSI with ADS-B. $159/hr for members. |
| Piper PA-28R Arrow IV | $249/hr | Retractable, so the complex trainer. Garmin 530 WAAS, autopilot, Stormscope. $219/hr for members, and its membership tier costs $800 a year rather than $600. |
Rates are published in member and non-member pairs, per tail, and the non-member figure is the one shown here. Membership is annual and priced BY AIRCRAFT CLASS rather than as one fee: $600 a year to get the member rate on the Warriors, $800 on the Arrow. Zone also flies a Cirrus SR20, a Cirrus SR22, a Beechcraft D95A Travel Air twin and a Flight Design CTLS light sport, and describes the Travel Air as a good aeroplane to earn a multi-engine rating on. The cost page says all listed prices include applicable taxes.
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 Zone's rates. The middle of what 13 Ohio schools charge, to hold your phone quote against.
- Trainer, medianWhat the airplane costsRange $109 to $195 per hour.
- $150
- Instruction, medianWhat the instructor costsAcross 13 schools with published rates.
- $55
From the schools here that publish full rate cards, the same sample behind the Flight Training Cost Report. Zone 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, plus 2 in Ohio. Top awards reach $22,200.
- ORBAA Scholarship$5,000 – $8,500 · Check dates
- Mitchell Cary and Don Gum Memorial Aviation Scholarship$1,500 · National Aviation Heritage Area counties · Check dates
- 48
- 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
Section 4What to ask
What to ask when you call
The marked ones are what Zone's site never answers. The rest are what turns an hourly rate into a real bill.
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.
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.
What is the hourly instructor rate? Your Private estimate implies about $65 but never says it.Missing from their site
The cost page gives 25 dual hours at $5,925 and 15 SOLO hours at $2,580. The solo line is aircraft only, so subtracting gives roughly $65/hr of instruction. It does not reconcile to a round number, so it is worth confirming rather than assuming.
Do I need the $600 annual membership to train, or only to get the member rate?
The Private estimate on the site includes the $600 fee as a line item, which suggests it is expected, but the rates page presents it as optional.
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.
Called them? Send us what they said.
Send the number over and Zone Aviation gets a full listing with an estimate, marked as sourced by phone on the date you called.
Send what they told youSection 5Nearby schools
One other school flies from Burke Lakefront Airport, and Lorain County Regional.
It publishes at least one rate, so there is something to compare before you call. BKL is the identifier to give when you ask.
- T&G Flying ClubPublishes a $80/hr instructor rate, no aircraft rateCleveland
13 Ohio 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.
- Avit Flight AcademyWadsworth, OH · Checked August 7, 2026$145/hr$55 to $80/hr instruction
- Blue Sky Flight TrainingHamilton, OH · Checked September 8, 2026$151/hr$47 to $53/hr instruction
- Capital City AviationColumbus, OH · Checked September 5, 2026$185/hr$80 to $105/hr instruction
- Golden Eagle AviationSidney, OH · Checked September 5, 2026$150/hr$55/hr instruction
- GPE Flight Training CenterWilmington, OH · Checked September 8, 2026$155/hr$40 to $50/hr instruction
- Hogan Flying ServiceHamilton, OH · Checked September 5, 2026$130/hr$55 to $60/hr instruction
Section 6Sources
- That the school exists
- Zone Aviation costs pageChecked August 7, 2026
- The rates above
- Zone Aviation aircraft rental rates pageChecked August 7, 2026
Are you Zone Aviation? 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 Zone Aviation. 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 Ohio flight schools
- Access Flight Training Services · Willoughby
- Avit Flight Academy · Wadsworth
- Blue Ash Aviation LLC · Cincinnati
- Blue Sky Flight Training · Hamilton
- Bluffton Flying Service · Bluffton
- Capital City Aviation · Columbus
- Capital City Jet Center, Inc · Columbus
- Dayton Aviation Services · Dayton
- Flamingo Air Academy · Cincinnati
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.