Middle & High School Pilot Academy

Designed especially for middle and high school students, this class is a great way for them to jump-start their flying careers!

The Middle & High School Pilot Academy is designed to be a three "school year" (September-May) long course with a summer break between each consecutive level (1, 2, and 3). Students who are in 7th-9th grade will start off their pilot training with the Level I Pilot Academy and then progress upwards into levels II and III of the program. Once they successfully complete all three levels, students will then progress to one-on-one training where they will be signed-off to fly solo!

All classes are taught by FAA-certified flight and ground instructors and are designed to be interactive, engaging, as well as fun! All of the classroom and flight time earned in the course is logged in your student’s very own pilot logbook and counts towards the requirements for earning an FAA private pilot certificate!

Pilot Academy Curriculum (in a snapshot)

 Level I

Ground Lessons:

  • Aircraft Structure

  • Theories of Flight

  • Aircraft Weight and Balance

  • Performance Calculations

  • Airport Traffic Pattern Procedures

  • Intro to Aviation Weather Reports

  • V-Speeds


Flight Lessons:

  • Aircraft startup, taxi and run-up procedures

  • Take-off, climb and cruise

  • Fundamental flight maneuvers

  • Ground reference maneuvers

  • Descents and normal landings

  • Basic avionics usage

  • Towered and pilot-controlled airport operations

  • Intro to ATC communications

Level II

Ground Lessons:

  • ATC Communications

  • Aviation Weather

  • Basic flight planning

  • Using VFR sectional and aviation charts

  • Types of Airspace

  • Intro to visual navigation

  • Aircraft equipment and systems


Flight Lessons:

  • Performance Maneuvers

  • Slow Flight, Stalls, and Steep Turns

  • In-flight Emergency Procedures

  • Night flight operations

  • CRM (crew resource management)

Level III

Ground Lessons:

  • Advanced Weather (Charts)

  • Obtaining Pilot Briefings/FSS

  • Regulations

  • Advanced Flight Planning

  • GPS and electronics-aided navigation

  • Advanced Aerodynamics

  • Aeromedical Factors

  • FAA Knowledge Exam Prep

Flight Lessons:

  • Radio and GPS based Navigation

  • Class B and C Airport Operations

  • Traffic Pattern Procedures

  • Normal and crosswind takeoffs and landings

  • Traffic Pattern Emergency Procedures

Pilot Academy Details

***The CAA Pilot Academy program is a rigorous program that requires students to be highly self-motivated to be successful. Students in the program must pass both midterm and final exams with at least an 80% in order to continue to the next level of training***

 Class Times: (more info to come after registration)

2-3 Saturday or Sunday Classes per month (Total of 13 classes/semester) and one additional day of your choice for a flight

Tuition: $399/mo plus 3.5% CC Fee (if paying by card)

The monthly fee includes all scheduled weekend class sessions and one flight (which includes about 45 minutes of logged front-seat pilot time


Registration Fee: (one time per year)

Level 1: $299 (covers all course materials below and all administrative fees)

*Level 1 materials include: CAA custom pilot's wings, CAA polo shirt, white button-up pilot shirt, black zipper tie, pilot epaulets, engraved name tag, engraved pilot logbook*

Level 2 & 3: $199 (only includes new polo & epaulets and all administrative fees)

Other Fees:

  • Pilot Academy Make-up/Extra Class (Private): Normal hourly CFI Rate

  • Pilot Academy Exam Retake/Makeup Fee: $75

  • Out of uniform fee: $50

  • Pilot Academy Early Termination Fee: $399

  • No Show for Pilot Academy Flight = Loss of Flight Credit or $150 to reinstate flight credit