Flight training at NW Wings Aviation

Wet, but with an unquantified surcharge: "All rental rates are wet rates. A fuel surcharge is applied as a percentage of each hour charge to account for fluctuations in fuel prices." A Cirrus SR20 G7+ is in the fleet with "Contact for more information" in place of a rate.

1. 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. 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. 3

   What does instruction cost per hour, and is multi-engine instruction in the DA-42 priced differently?Missing from their site

   Every aeroplane on the fleet page carries a rate and none of the fifteen other pages on the site prices an instructor.

4. 4

   What is the fuel surcharge percentage, and what does the Cirrus SR20 rent for?

   The surcharge is described as a percentage of each hour charge and never given a number, and the Cirrus is the one tail with no price.

5. 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. 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. 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.

What to compare their answer against

Not NW Wings's rates. The middle of what 8 Oregon schools charge, to hold your phone quote against.

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

What we checked

The most complete fleet in this state's partial pool and the least complete pricing: five aeroplanes to the dollar, a Diamond DA-42 twin among them, and no instructor rate anywhere. The fuel surcharge is a percentage rather than a per-hour figure, which makes even the aeroplane rates approximate.