Commercial Pilot Certification

Commercial Pilot Certfication Itemized Cost

This itemized cost is provided based on the current Aircraft Rental Rates, Instruction Rates and other mandatory costs for obtaining your Commercial Certification. This is intended as an estimate and prices are subject to change.

This itemized cost gives the breakdown for a student obtaining their Commercial Certification at the "FAA Minimum Requirements" and for the "Average Flight Student". Depending on what you know your aptitude to be, you should be able to get a great estimate of how much you will actually pay for your Instrument Rating.

If you have any questions about the requirements or itemized cost, hover your mouse over the aircraft images to get a complete description.

Please click "Proceed" if you understand that prices are subject to change, and while you are obtaining your Instrument Rating, the prices may vary.

Commercial Pilot Training requires the use of a complex aircraft for a certain amount of training. Please Select the Aircraft you would like to use for training not requiring a complex aircraft. Please also select the complex aircraft you would like to use for training. The exact estimated rate will be calculated based on this information.

Select Cost Analyses:
Select Normal Aircraft:
Select Complex Aircraft:

Hover your mouse over these images to view a full description of the item.

Welcome to Inter-State Aviation

If you are interested in a Commerical Pilot Certification you are most likely interested in making a career out of aviation. A Commercial Certificate allows you to fly passengers for compensation or hire while following certain requirements under the Federal Aviation Regulations. We have the flight line and instructors to get you your certification in a short time and with competitive rates.

This webpage should be able to answer some of your questions especially in regards to cost. If you have any questions about the flight requirements, or the itemized costs, please hover your mouse over the

image next to the item you would like more information about to view a full description.

We hope you are able to find this information useful. Happy Flying!

This is the minimum time a student must fly with a Certified Flight Instructor to meet all training requirements set forth by the FAA.

During these flights you will practice certain flight maneuvers such as Chandelles and critique many of the flying skills you have already learned.

This is the minimum time a student must solo the aircraft practicing certain commercial certification maneuvers. This flight time may be conducted in the aircraft of you choice and is not required to tbe a complex aircraft.

This is the amount of time a student must fly a complex aircraft, meaning the aircraft must have retractable landing gear and a controllable pitch propeller.

It is required that this minimum complex time is flown with a certified flight instructor practicing the commercial certification maneuvers. Beyond this minimum amount of time, the student may choose to fly this complex aircraft for other portions of the training, but is not required.

Ground Instruction Time consists of your one-on-one time with your flight instructor reviewing and teaching you the fundamental aspects of your commercial certification.

This time refers to the Pre-Flight Briefing and Post-Flight Briefing. For each flight, the instructor needs to give instruction on the ground covering learning objectives for the flight. Afterwards the debrief is used for feedback on the flight.

There is no FAA requirement for this instructional time, but it is a necessity in flight training. For some flights the brief and debrief may be longer than others, but you can expect anywhere from 15-30 minutes per flight.

The Normal Aircraft Rental Cost is determined using all flight hours other than those flown in the Complex Aircraft.

Aircraft Rental Cost calculation:
Minimum Flight Time × Normal Aircraft Rental Rate.

Aircraft Rental Rate is a "wet" rate, meaning Fuel and Oil are included within the rate.

The Complex Aircraft Rental Cost is determined using the flight hours required to fulfill the Complex Aircraft Training Requirements.

Complex Aircraft Rental Cost calculation:
Complex Flight Time × Complex Aircraft Rental Rate.

Aircraft Rental Rate is a "wet" rate, meaning Fuel and Oil are included within the rate.

This cost is determined using the Flight Time to fulfill training requirements minus the Solo Flight Time.

Since the Flight Instruction Rate does not vary depending on the aircraft, the Complex Aircraft Flight time is also included in this calcuation.

Flight Instruction Cost Calculation:
(Flight Time - Solo Flight Time) × Flight Instruction Rate

The ground instruction price is determined from combining the "Ground Instruction Time" and "Flight Brief and Debrief Time" because the Ground Instruction Rate is the same for both.

Ground Instruction Cost Calculation:
(Ground Instruction Time + Brief and Debrief Time) × Ground Instruction Rate

This consists of the Flight Manual, Pilot Operating Handbook, FAA Written Test Examination Questions, Commercial Certification Practical Test Standards.

The FAA Written Examination is a computer based test consisting of 60 questions pulled from the FAA Written Question Bank covering all aspects of a Commercial Certification.

Your Flight Instructor will ensure you are prepared for this test.

This test is administered here at Inter-State Aviation.

The FAA Flight Examination is your final examination and check-ride before obtaining your Commercial Certification.

It consists of an Oral Examination and Flight Examination with an FAA Certified Flight Examiner. The Oral Examination typically takes 2 1/2 hours, and the Flight Examination 1 1/2 hours.

All aspects of a Commercial Certification Requirements are covered within the Oral and Flight Examination.

When you pass this examination you will be a Commercial Certified Pilot!

Itemized Commercial Certification Cost: $9,977.50

Selected Normal Training Aircraft: Cessna 172		Selected Complex Aircraft: Piper Cherokee Arrow



Normal Aircraft Rental Rate:	$96.50 per Hour
Complex Aircraft Rental Rate:	$124.00 per Hour
Ground Instruction Rate:	$31.00 per Hour
Flight Instruction Rate:	$35.00 per Hour

Minimum Flight Time:	55.00 Hours
Minimum Solo Flight Time:	10.00 Hours
Minimum Complex Flight Time:	10.00 Hours
Ground Instruction Time:	35.00 Hours
Brief and Debrief Time:	15.00 Hours

Estimated Costs:

Normal Aircraft Rental Cost:	$4,342.50
Complex Aircraft Rental Cost:	$1,240.00
Flight Instruction Cost:	$1,575.00
Ground Instruction Cost:	$1,550.00
Pilot Supplies:	$300.00
FAA Written Examination:	$270.00
FAA Flight Examination:	$700.00