(818) 399-9905 · Open 9 AM–9 PM, 7 Days a Week · ★★★★★ 4.9 · 500+ Reviews · Van Nuys Airport
All types of pilot licenses — technically "certificates" in FAA language — stack like rungs on a ladder, from your first solo endorsement to the airline flight deck. This guide from LA Flight School at Van Nuys Airport explains each one, what it lets you do, and which rung to aim for first.
Each certificate builds on the one below it — you never start over, you add privileges. Here's the whole ladder as the FAA defines it in 2026:
Your learner's permit. Free to apply for through the FAA, it lets you fly solo under an instructor's endorsement while you train.
Just 20 hours minimum. Fly light-sport aircraft with one passenger during daylight — the fastest, cheapest legal path to piloting, no FAA medical required.
A 30-hour middle step limiting you to nearby flying with one passenger. It exists, but so few pilots choose it that most schools point students straight to private.
The certificate most people mean by "pilot license." From 40 hours under Part 61: carry friends and family day or night, nationwide. Our private pilot program is built around it.
At 250 hours and age 18, you may be paid to fly — charter, aerial photography, pipeline patrol, and more. Precision maneuvers and a complex-airplane skill set come with it.
The summit: 1,500 hours, age 23, first-class medical. Required to captain scheduled airline flights — every major-airline pilot holds one.
There's also the Certified Flight Instructor (CFI) certificate — technically an instructor rating on top of commercial privileges. It's how most career pilots build their 1,500 hours while earning income, teaching the next generation at schools like ours.
Certificates define whether you can fly for hire; ratings define what and when you can fly. Added to an existing certificate, the big three are:
A typical airline-bound student at Van Nuys strings these together in order: private, instrument, commercial, multi-engine, CFI — each stage flying progressively more capable aircraft from the same ramp.
For nine students out of ten, the answer is the Private Pilot License. It's the only certificate that leaves every door open: keep it for weekend flying, or use it as rung one of an airline career without repeating anything. Choose Sport only if budget is the deciding factor and light-sport aircraft limits suit your goals — you can upgrade later, though some training must be repeated in heavier aircraft.
Career-minded? Work backward from the airlines: every hour and rating between private and ATP is a known quantity, which makes the whole journey plannable — and financeable through our financing page. Still weighing goals against budget and timeline? Compare what each license costs and how long each takes, or ask us anything through the FAQ.
Whether you're after weekend freedom or an airline seat, the first rung is the same — a single flight over Los Angeles from Van Nuys Airport.
Real students, real first flights, real ratings — straight from Google and Yelp.
The fastest way to know if the left seat is for you is to stand on the flight line. Book a free consultation — or reach us whichever way you like.
Tour the school, meet your instructors, sit in the cockpit, and leave with a personal training plan and exact pricing. Your Discovery Flight fee is credited toward training when you enroll within 24 hours.
One minute, a few details, fast answers from a real person on our team.
