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For Many, Sport Pilot Is the More Affordable Ticket to the Sky

Mid Island Air Service on New York’s Long Island has found success training new sport pilots in modern BRM Aero Bristell LSAs. [Courtesy: MIAS]
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Key Takeaways:

  • Mid Island Air Service (MIAS) has found success by offering more affordable sport pilot training using modern light-sport airplanes (LSAs), addressing the high cost that deters many aspiring pilots.
  • Sport pilot certification offers a significantly cheaper and quicker path to flying compared to a private pilot license, with MIAS students typically spending about $12,000 and 40 hours versus ~$22,000 and 65 hours.
  • MIAS minimizes student washouts and maintains high first-attempt pass rates by utilizing technologically advanced LSA aircraft and a transparent, student-focused training approach.
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We all know many people who express an interest in learning to fly, but when they finally decide to walk into a flight school that only teaches private pilot and above, the sticker shock of earning a private pilot certificate can often scare them right back into the parking lot.

It is this high cost of admission to the sky that has propelled Long Island’s Mid Island Air Service (MIAS) to find success training new sport pilot students in modern light-sport airplanes. Because of the lower cost and shortened FAA flight time requirements for a sport pilot certificate, prospective student pilots can stretch a smaller budget to achieve their dream to fly. 

Dan Pimentel

Dan Pimentel is an instrument-rated private pilot and former airplane owner who has been flying since 1996. As an aviation journalist and photographer, he has covered all aspects of the general and business aviation communities for a long list of major aviation magazines, newspapers and websites. He has never met a flying machine that he didn’t like, and has written about his love of aviation for years on his Airplanista blog. For 10 years until 2019, he hosted the popular ‘Oshbash’ social media meetup events at EAA AirVenture Oshkosh.

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