We’re a Part 61 flight school following a Part 141-style syllabus, with stage checks at each phase and a planned home base at Windham Airport (KIJD) in Connecticut. We just don’t look or run like most flight schools you’ve seen — no leaseback aircraft, and a curriculum built by an active airline captain.
No. This program is built to take you from zero flight experience to a Commercial Pilot certificate and CFI/CFII ratings in 12 months. No degree required.
Efficiency and modern technology. It burns roughly half the fuel of a traditional Cessna trainer (about 3.7 gallons per hour vs. about 9.0), and has a real glass cockpit built in. Flying one aircraft type also means simpler maintenance and a more consistent training experience — and it’s part of why tuition is meaningfully lower than at legacy schools.
Yes. The factory-built RV-12iS is approved for all FAA commercial single-engine maneuvers — chandelles, lazy eights, steep spirals, eights-on-pylons — and its glass cockpit qualifies as a Technically Advanced Aircraft, so you can train and test in the same airframe the whole way through.
When weather keeps the aircraft grounded, your lesson moves to our AATD (advanced aviation training device) instead of getting canceled outright. You’ll log real instrument time and keep moving. Simulator time can count toward instrument training within FAA limits.
We're working on financing options with independent third-party providers and will share details with applicants before enrollment. VNAV Flight Labs is not a lender. Approval, rates and repayment terms are set by the provider and disclosed to you before you sign.
Not automatically, and we won’t tell you otherwise. As our fleet grows, we expect CFI openings, and our own graduates get priority consideration for them. But one instructor can only take on a handful of students at a time, so our own hiring will never keep pace one-for-one with every graduating class. If we can’t place you here, we’ll help you find instructing or other flying work elsewhere. Either way, you leave with a real credential and real support finding your next step.
Yes. Your CFI/CFII training includes a multi-engine rating and spin endorsement, delivered through our training partners, at no additional cost beyond your tuition.
Your tuition already includes a buffer beyond the FAA's minimum hours for each certificate (see the extra-time policy above). If you still need more time, additional instruction is billed at $315/hour rather than ending your program.
Not currently. VNAV Flight Labs is not able to sponsor F-1 or M-1 student visas at this time. International applicants training in the U.S. on their own visa status are welcome to apply.