PilotBound estimate · Allentown, PA · Checked August 17, 2026
What flight training at Ace Pilot Training costs
Website acepilot.com
Your plan
Estimate cost to reach
Flying
Two-seat.
PilotBound estimate · Private
Examiner dataCost of your Private at Ace Pilot Training
range $15.2K – $20.1K · about 6 months at 2×/week
Priced on Ace Pilot Training's published rates: Cessna 152 IFR at $160/hr + $65/hr instruction, checked August 17, 2026.
Against a minimums quote
+$6,810 on Ace Pilot Training's own rates. Quotes usually price the 40-hour minimum; almost nobody finishes there.
Where it goes
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
Examiner records (DPE dataset).
The hourly flying is priced on Ace Pilot Training's published rates. About $2,375 of this is one-time fees (written test, examiner/DPE checkride, medical, gear), typical national estimates, not Ace Pilot Training'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 Ace Pilot Training publishes
checked August 17, 2026Ace publishes a rate per tail and a rate per instruction tier: $65/hr primary, $70/hr advanced and $75/hr multi-engine, with ground charged at the same figure as flight in each tier. Instruction in a customer's own aeroplane is $80 to $90/hr and does not apply here. Simulator instruction is $45 to $50/hr. The site does not say whether fuel is included.
Not published: the examiner's checkride fee, whether rates include fuel. Listed as missing rather than guessed.
Step 2
Turn this into a plan.
Your $17,665 is the starting line. Turn it into a route to your checkride, every step in order with this cost built in.
Add to my planWhat to ask when you call
The marked one is what Ace Pilot Training'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 Ace Pilot Training's published Cessna 152 IFR 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 Ace Pilot Training. 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 Ace Pilot Training
- How much does it cost to get a private pilot license at Ace Pilot Training?
- Ace Pilot Training publishes $160 per hour for the Cessna 152 IFR and $65 per hour for instruction on it, checked August 17, 2026. Applied to those published rates, PilotBound estimates a private pilot certificate at about $17,665, in a range of $15,200 to $20,100. That covers roughly 72 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 Ace Pilot Training.
- How long does it take to get a private pilot license at Ace Pilot Training?
- Flying twice a week, PilotBound estimates about 6 months at Ace Pilot Training to reach the private pilot checkride, at roughly 72 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 Ace Pilot Training a Part 61 or Part 141 flight school?
- Ace Pilot Training trains under both Part 61 and Part 141, so you can pick the structured FAA-approved course or the flexible path. Part 141 is the one that matters for VA benefits and for the lower paper minimum on the private certificate; Part 61 is the one that bends around a full-time job.
- Do Ace Pilot Training's aircraft rates include fuel?
- Ace Pilot Training publishes $160 per hour for the Cessna 152 IFR, 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 17, 2026.
- What ratings can you train for at Ace Pilot Training?
- Ace Pilot Training trains Private Pilot, Instrument Rating, Commercial Pilot, Multi-Engine (AMEL), Flight Instructor, Instrument Instructor and Multi-Engine Instructor. Instruction runs $65 to $75 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 Ace Pilot Training's own published rates.
Other Pennsylvania flight schools
- ACES Aviation · Beaver Falls
- Aero-Tech Services · Lititz
- AFAF Aviation · Philadelphia
- AirQuest Aviation · Butler
- Armstrong Aviation Services · Freeport
- Arner Flying Service · Lehighton
- Aviation Technologies · Avoca
- Borzoya Aero · Slatington
- Braden Aviation · Easton
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.