Flight training at RMB Academy

Flight instruction: $50/hr

Flight instruction is $50/hr. The airplane is priced twice and the figures disagree: the rentals page gives both Cessna 172s at $150/hr and the flight school page gives $175/hr, so no aircraft rate is recorded. The FAQ says fuel and landing fees may be billed on top and that time is billed on the Hobbs.

1. 1

   What is the hourly rate on your cheapest trainer, and which airplane is that?Missing from their site

   This is the number that is missing from the site, and it is the largest line on your bill.

2. 2

   Is that rate wet or dry, meaning does it include fuel?Missing from their site

   A dry rate and a wet rate are not comparable. Dry rates can run $40 to $60 an hour lower for the same airplane.

3. 3

   Is the 172 $150 or $175 an hour, and does that include fuel?Missing from their site

   Two pages give two different rates for the same airplane and the FAQ says fuel may be extra.

4. 4

   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.

5. 5

   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.

6. 6

   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 RMB Academy's rates. The middle of what 16 Pennsylvania 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. RMB Academy is not in it.

What we checked

A school at Seamans Field with a clear instruction rate and two contradictory rates for the same Cessna 172. Crawled September 5, 2026.