Instrument Rating Cost

Instrument Rating Itemized Cost

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

This itemized cost gives the breakdown for a student obtaining their Instrument Rating 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.

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

These flights are conducted "under the hood", meaning the student wears a visor that obstructs their outside vision and forces them to rely upon the aircraft instruments. Some of this flight time may also be in actual Instrument conditions depending on the weather.

Welcome to Inter-State Aviation

You may have just finished your Private Pilot Certification, or you finished it a long time ago and now feel it is time to move on to the next. Instrument flying is the most challenging aspect of flying due to human physiological factors, frequent changes in weather and cockpit task saturation. This will most likely be the most difficult rating you obtain.

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!

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

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.

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

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

This is the Minimum Flight Time multiplied by the Flight Instruction Rate.

Since Instrument Flying requires a Certified Flight Instructor to be in the cockpit with you during each flight, the number of "Dual" hours of flight is equal to the Minimum Flight Time.

The ground instruction price is determined from both the "Ground Instruction Time" and "Flight Brief and Debrief Time"

Both these Ground Times are added together and multiplied by the Ground Instruction Rate.

This consists of the Flight Manual, Pilot Operating Handbook, FAA Written Test Examination Questions, Instrument Rating 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 an Instrument Rating.

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 Instrument Rating.

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 Instrument Rating Requirements are covered within the Oral and Flight Examination.

When you pass this examination you will be an Instrument Rated Pilot!

Itemized Instrument Rating Cost for a: Cessna 172 - $6,687.45

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


Minimum Flight Time:	35.00 Hours
Ground Instruction Time:	35.00 Hours
Brief and Debrief Time:	10.00 Hours

Estimated Costs:

Aircraft Rental Cost:	$3,377.50
Flight Instruction Cost:	$1,225.00
Ground Instruction Cost:	$1,395.00
Pilot Supplies:	$299.95
FAA Written Examination:	$90.00
FAA Flight Examination:	$300.00