An entry · Work · Life
Pilot
A hand on the controls, bringing a plane full of strangers home through the dark.
From curious to committed
Your first steps.
A first visit can be enough. It can also be the beginning.
Meet the craft
A first lesson at the controls with an instructor beside you; most airfields offer one.
Explore experiences →Give it another afternoon
Notice what you want to come back to. Ask the teacher what regular practice would look like, and what support you would need.
Keep a note for next time →See the working day
Log the hours toward a private, then a commercial, license.
Explore ways into the work →These are starting points. A workshop is not a professional qualification. Entry requirements and recognised training depend on the work and the country.
Before you walk in
A few things worth asking the host before you book.
- Is this session suitable for someone who has never tried it?
- What should I bring, wear or prepare?
- What is included, and are there any extra costs?
- Can you accommodate my access needs?
- What could I try next if I enjoy it?
Teach this craft? Share what beginners ask you →
Showing Los Angeles
Show every city →Work it
Do the work.
Jobs, apprenticeships, and training that put a person in the room.
Places to begin
Ways in
- Route in
Flight school
Log the hours toward a private, then a commercial, license.
- Route in
Airline cadet program
Sponsored ab-initio schemes that take beginners to the right seat.
- Certification
Instrument and multi-engine ratings
The ratings that stack toward flying for a living.
Ways in, gathered by hand.
Add yours to the atlasLive it
Live the hour.
Experiences, classes, and places where the presence is the whole point.
Places to begin
- Visit
AOPA
Take a discovery flight
United States
Find a school near you and book a first flight at the controls with an instructor, often around a hundred dollars.
- Booking
Santa Monica Flyers
Discovery Flight
Santa Monica, Los Angeles
A certified instructor takes you up over Malibu or Hollywood and lets you take the controls, and the hour counts toward a pilot certificate.
Ways in
- Class
Discovery flight
A first lesson at the controls with an instructor beside you; most airfields offer one.
- Open day
Airfield open day
Small aerodromes open the ramp; talk to pilots and sit in a cockpit.
Ways in, gathered by hand.
Add yours to the atlasWhy the human is the point
Modern planes can very nearly fly themselves, and still we insist on a person in the seat. Automation flies the routine, and it is the non-routine that kills you: the windshear, the failed engine, the judgment call at minimums with the fuel running down. A pilot spends a whole career training for the few minutes a machine cannot be trusted with. A plane full of strangers sleeps behind them, and someone human is awake, hands ready, deciding. We keep the pilot on purpose.
Kept nearby
