Van Nuys Airport · Los Angeles
Flight School Near Me: You Fly LA At Van Nuys Airport
One flight school, one address: 7900 Balboa Blvd, Main Terminal Unit 108, on the west side of Van Nuys Airport. We are open 9 AM to 9 PM, seven days a week, and your first lesson is a 60-minute discovery flight for $229, with you at the controls.
Parking on site · Headsets provided · No experience needed
The Essentials
What A Nearby Pilot Needs To Know, In Real Numbers
Every figure below is a published You Fly LA price or policy. Tap a tile for the detail.
KVNY Towered Class D Airport. Van Nuys Airport has two parallel runways and a control tower open 6:00 AM to 10:45 PM daily, so you talk to ground and tower on the radio from your first lesson.
Flying Out Of Van Nuys Airport$0 In-Person Consultation. About half an hour at the airport with someone who flies: see the aircraft, get real numbers and leave knowing the next step. Nothing to pay and nothing to sign.
Book A Free Consultation$10,400 Private Pilot · Standard 40 Hr. Forty logged hours with books and training materials included, or $2,500 down plus 4 × $1,975. Comprehensive ($15,400, 60 hours) and Premium ($22,000, 80 hours) log more time.
Private Pilot License$179/hr Aircraft Time · Package Rate. The Piper Warrior and Cessna 162 Skycatcher fly at the package rate. The Diamond DA20-C1 is +$50/hr and the Cirrus SR22 Turbo +$400/hr ($579/hr), added hour by hour. Instruction is $110/hr.
Flight School Cost In Los Angeles100% First Flight Credited. Enroll in a training program within 24 hours of your discovery flight and 100% of what you paid is credited toward it. The logged time counts toward a pilot certificate either way.
Discovery FlightsPart 61 Training Around Your Schedule. You Fly LA trains under FAA Part 61, so your instructor builds the training around the days you can fly. An M-1 student visa needs a Part 141 school, and we say so up front. You Fly LA does not accept the GI Bill.
Part 61 Flight SchoolHow Far Are You?
How Far Are You From Van Nuys Airport?
We have one location: the west side of Van Nuys Airport in the San Fernando Valley, with the 405, the 101 and the 118 all nearby. Pick your neighborhood, tap a pin or type any address for the straight-line distance to our door, directions from where you are, and the page we wrote for your area.
Pick from the list, tap a pin, or type any address for directions.
From Sherman Oaks
5Miles
About 5 Miles From Van Nuys Airport
Straight-line distance from the center of each area to our door. The drive is longer. Open Our Google Business Profile
Every Area With A Page
- Lake Balboa2 mi
- Reseda2 mi
- Northridge2 mi
- Mission Hills & North Hills3 mi
- Panorama City3 mi
- Van Nuys3 mi
- Granada Hills4 mi
- Encino4 mi
- Tarzana4 mi
- Winnetka4 mi
- Sherman Oaks5 mi
- Porter Ranch5 mi
- Canoga Park6 mi
- Pacoima6 mi
- San Fernando6 mi
- Chatsworth6 mi
- Woodland Hills7 mi
- Sylmar7 mi
- North Hollywood8 mi
- Studio City8 mi
- West Hills8 mi
- Calabasas9 mi
- Toluca Lake9 mi
- Westwood11 mi
- Burbank11 mi
- Beverly Hills11 mi
- Brentwood & Pacific Palisades11 mi
- West Hollywood12 mi
- Santa Clarita13 mi
- Hollywood13 mi
- Santa Monica13 mi
- Culver City15 mi
- Glendale15 mi
- Agoura Hills15 mi
- Venice16 mi
- Valencia16 mi
- Marina del Rey16 mi
- Simi Valley17 mi
- Malibu16 mi
- La Cañada Flintridge17 mi
- Westlake Village18 mi
- Los Angeles18 mi
- Thousand Oaks19 mi
- Pasadena21 mi
- Torrance28 mi
- El Monte29 mi
- Long Beach35 mi
- Fullerton41 mi
- Orange County49 mi
- Santa Barbara70 mi
Van Nuys Airport · West Side
How To Find Us
You Fly LA is at 7900 Balboa Blvd, Main Terminal Unit 108, on the western side of Van Nuys Airport. Give your satnav or rideshare driver the street address, not “Van Nuys Airport”: the field has several public gates spread over about a mile of frontage, and the wrong one usually means a locked fence and a detour. Cannot find us on the day? Call (818) 330-1318 and someone will talk you in.
Find Us
You Fly LA
7900 Balboa Blvd, Main Terminal Unit 108Van Nuys, CA 91406
Van Nuys Airport (KVNY), west side of the field
Open 7 Days9:00 AM – 9:00 PM
Before You Leave Home
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Navigate To 7900 Balboa Blvd
From the 405, take the Sherman Way exit west about a mile and a half to Balboa. From the 101, exit at Balboa Blvd and drive north. From the 118, come south on Balboa.
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No Car? Take The G Line
The Metro G Line busway crosses Balboa at the south end of the airport, and Van Nuys Metrolink station is a short ride away. Rideshare works fine with the street address.
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Allow For Valley Traffic
Give yourself more time than the map says between 4 and 7 PM on a weekday. Running late? Call from the road; we can often shift things around.
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Park On Site
There is parking on site at 7900 Balboa Blvd, Main Terminal Unit 108. Not sure where to pull in? Call (818) 330-1318 before you set off.
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Arrive 15 Minutes Early
Bring government photo ID (a passport if you are visiting from outside the US) and wear closed-toe shoes. Headsets are provided. Allow about two hours at the airport for a 60-minute flight.
Everything At One Airport
What You Can Do Near You At Van Nuys
A first flight, a first certificate, the ratings that lead to a flying career, and flights for people who simply want to go up. All of it starts from the same ramp. Filter by where you are starting.
- First Flight
Discovery Flight Near Me
Sixty minutes over Los Angeles with your hands on the controls and an FAA-certificated instructor beside you.From $229 60 MinDiscovery Flight Near Me - First Flight
Flying Lessons Near Me
What a first lesson includes, what it costs, and how lessons turn into a pilot certificate.From $229 First LessonFlying Lessons Near Me - First Flight
Full-Motion Simulator
An FAA-approved Redbird with an instructor beside you. No weight limit, never canceled by weather.$189 60 MinThe Simulator - First Flight
Free Consultation
About half an hour at the airport: see the aircraft, ask everything, get real numbers. Nothing to sign.$0 About 30 MinBook It - Learn To Fly
Pilot School Near Me
Every certificate from Private Pilot to the airlines, with every hour and every dollar listed.From $10,400 Private PilotPilot School Near Me - Learn To Fly
Private Pilot License
The license everything starts from: Standard, Comprehensive and Premium packages, books included.From $10,400 40 HrPrivate Pilot - Learn To Fly
Sport Pilot License
Fly for fun, faster, in the Cessna 162. A U.S. driver’s license in place of a medical.$8,400 28 HrSport Pilot - Learn To Fly
Teens Pilot Course
Ages 10 to 15: ten hours of flight training, three in the simulator and seven in the classroom.$4,200 Ages 10–15Teens Course - Licensed Pilots
Instrument Rating
Real IFR over Los Angeles plus twenty hours in the full-motion simulator.$11,700 40 HrInstrument Rating - Licensed Pilots
Multi-Engine Rating
Start Monday in the Piper Seminole, checkride that weekend. Reserve at least a month ahead.$5,100 7 DaysMulti-Engine - Go Pro
Commercial Pilot License
Advanced maneuvers, complex and high-performance aircraft, and full checkride preparation.$15,400 130 HrCommercial Pilot - Go Pro
Flight Instructor: CFI, CFII, MEI
All three instructor ratings in about four weeks, at one fixed price.$15,400 3 RatingsInstructor Ratings - Go Pro
Airline Pilot Career Program
Zero experience to CFI, CFII and MEI: 260 logged hours in one fixed, all-in program.$84,000 260 HrAirline Career - Experiences
Airplane Rides In Los Angeles
A ride where you fly: past the Hollywood Sign, Griffith Observatory and the downtown towers.From $229 60 MinAirplane Rides - Experiences
Gift Cards
They never expire, arrive by email within minutes, and work on any flight or simulator session.From $189 Never ExpireGive A Flight
Nothing in this group yet.
Your First Visit
What Happens On Your First Visit
A 60-minute discovery flight is about two hours door to door. It is a real first lesson, not a sightseeing ride: bring a pilot logbook and your instructor signs it. What to expect walks through it minute by minute.
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Step 1
Book Online
Only open times show on the calendar, and your confirmation arrives by text and email the moment you pay. Weekend mornings and the last slot before sunset go first, so book about a week ahead for those.
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Step 2
Arrive 15 Minutes Early
Park on site at 7900 Balboa Blvd, Main Terminal Unit 108, and bring government photo ID. Your instructor introduces themselves and asks what you want out of the hour before anything else happens.
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Step 3
Briefing And Walk-Around
A briefing of about 5 minutes: what the controls do, what the instruments say and what the plan is. Then the pre-flight inspection every pilot does before every flight, with your instructor: fuel, oil, control surfaces and tires.
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Step 4
You Fly The Airplane
Your instructor handles the takeoff and the radios. Once you are established in the climb the controls are yours: heading, altitude, turns and power changes. The instructor flies the landing.
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Step 5
Debrief And Logbook
What went well, what comes next, and a signed entry in your own logbook if you bring one. Enroll in a training program within 24 hours and 100% of what you paid is credited toward it.
The Airport
Why Van Nuys Is A Good Place To Learn
Van Nuys Airport is one of the busiest general aviation airports in the world, and for a student pilot that is an advantage rather than a warning. It is a towered Class D field, so from your first lesson you talk to ground and tower on the radio, sequence with other traffic and hold short like every other pilot on the frequency. By the time you fly solo, a busy radio is normal.
Two Runways And A Long Tower Day
The field has two parallel runways: 16R/34L at about 8,000 feet with an ILS, and 16L/34R at about 4,000 feet, which carries much of the light training traffic. The tower is open 6:00 AM to 10:45 PM daily, and our day runs 9 AM to 9 PM, so a lesson after work is a normal booking.
Airspace Worth Learning Early
Van Nuys sits beneath the Burbank Class C shelf and just north of the Los Angeles Class B. Your instructor handles all of it on a first flight, but you will see why you level off at a set altitude. Pilots who learn here absorb that discipline in their first few hours, and the practice areas over the Santa Susana and Santa Monica mountains are close to the runway.
Two Local Realities
Los Angeles gets a real marine layer in May and June that can hold low cloud over the basin until midday; Van Nuys, about fifteen miles inland behind the Santa Monica Mountains, often clears earlier than the coast. On hot summer afternoons, high density altitude reduces climb performance. Neither stops training. Both change how a lesson is planned, and both are taught from the start. More on flying out of Van Nuys Airport and flight training at Van Nuys.
The Fleet
The Aircraft You Train In
Twenty airplanes in the fleet and a full-motion simulator on one ramp, so you never have to change schools to finish a rating. Most discovery flights are flown in the Piper Warrior, and every private pilot package flies the Cessna 162 and the Warrior at the standard rate. The two airplanes without an hourly figure are priced as part of their course.
| Aircraft | Used For | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Cessna 162 Skycatcher | Sport and Private Pilot | $179/hr package rate |
| Piper Warrior PA-28-161 | Discovery flights, Private Pilot | $179/hr package rate |
| Diamond DA20-C1 | Private Pilot upgrade, bubble canopy | +$50/hr |
| Piper Arrow PA-28R | Commercial, complex aircraft | Part of the $15,400 commercial course |
| Piper Seminole PA-44-180 | Multi-engine rating | Part of the $5,100 multi-engine package |
| Cirrus SR22 Turbo | Glass cockpit, high performance | +$400/hr ($579/hr) |
| Redbird full-motion simulator | Procedures in every program | $120/hr in training · $189 experience |
Weight limits are set by the manufacturer: 180 lb per person and 360 lb combined in the Warrior, 200 lb and 400 lb in the Cirrus SR22, and no limit in the simulator. Close to a limit? Call before you book. Specifications for each airplane are on the airplanes you will fly.
Before You Commit
How To Choose A Flight School Near You
Distance matters, but it is not what decides whether you finish. Wherever you train, check these five things before you pay for more than a first flight.
- Published prices: a fixed package with every hour listed, or at least published hourly rates. Ask what sits outside it, such as the FAA knowledge test, the examiner’s fee, your medical and a headset.
- Aircraft you can actually book: a low rate on an airplane that is never available costs more than a fair rate on one you can fly twice a week.
- The instructor you will fly with: meet them first, and ask whether you keep the same one through a certificate.
- A schedule that fits your life: frequency, not talent, decides whether you finish in forty-five hours or eighty, and Part 61 training can follow the days you can fly.
- The airport: a towered field teaches radio work from lesson one.
Our free consultation exists for exactly this: about half an hour at the airport, real numbers and nothing to sign. The full framework is on how to choose a flight school in Los Angeles, and the questions worth taking on any visit are on questions to ask a flight school.
Honest Distances
When Another Airport Is Closer
A page that claims to be near everybody is near nobody. If you live in Orange County, Fullerton and John Wayne are far closer than Van Nuys. In the South Bay, Torrance and Hawthorne are the local general aviation fields; in Ventura County it is Camarillo or Oxnard, and in the Antelope Valley, Fox Field or Palmdale.
If a particular airplane, lessons that run until 9 PM or the seven-day multi-engine rating is worth the drive to you, training from Orange County and training from the South Bay explain how it works. If not, start with the airport nearest you and take the five checks above with you.
Life At Van Nuys Airport
A Day At You Fly LA
Our aircraft, and the view from them over Los Angeles. Tap any photo for the full-screen viewer.
The Line At Sunset · Van Nuys · 1 / 10
Questions
Flight School Near Me: Your Questions
Still unsure? Call (818) 330-1318, 9 AM to 9 PM, seven days a week. An instructor or the owner answers.
You Fly LA has one location: 7900 Balboa Blvd, Main Terminal Unit 108, on the west side of Van Nuys Airport (KVNY). In a straight line our door is about 2 miles from Northridge, 4 from Encino, 5 from Sherman Oaks, 7 from Woodland Hills, 8 from Studio City, 11 from Burbank and 13 from Santa Monica. Pick your neighborhood in the locator above for directions from where you are.
Navigate to 7900 Balboa Blvd, Main Terminal Unit 108, Van Nuys, CA 91406, not to “Van Nuys Airport”: the field has several public gates over about a mile of frontage. From the 405, take the Sherman Way exit and head west about a mile and a half to Balboa. There is parking on site, and if you cannot find us, call (818) 330-1318 and someone will talk you in.
9:00 AM to 9:00 PM, seven days a week, including weekends and holidays. Lessons and simulator sessions run in those hours, discovery flights and consultations from 10:00 AM to 7:00 PM, and the phone is answered by an instructor or the owner.
$229 for a 60-minute discovery flight, which covers the airplane, the fuel and the instructor, with nothing added at checkout. Ninety minutes is $299 and 120 minutes is $399. An in-person consultation is free, and the Private Pilot certificate starts at $10,400 for the Standard 40-hour package.
No. Your instructor is the pilot in command, so you need no license, no medical certificate and no experience. There is no minimum age to take a lesson; anyone under 18 needs a parent or legal guardian who signs, and the person flying must be able to see over the panel and wear a headset comfortably.
Yes. We fly 9 AM to 9 PM every day, and as a Part 61 school we build your training around the days you can fly. Twice a week is the pattern most working adults use successfully; how often to fly explains why.
Part 61. The certificate, the standards and the checkride are the same either way; the difference is that your instructor sequences the training around you. If you need an M-1 student visa, you need a Part 141 school, and we will tell you that up front. You Fly LA does not accept the GI Bill. More on our Part 61 flight school page.
If the weather says no, you do not pay: we move you to a new slot at no cost and your purchase stays valid. You can also move a booking at no charge with at least 24 hours’ notice. In June the marine layer can hold low cloud until midday, so an afternoon slot is the safer choice then.
No question matches. Call (818) 330-1318 and ask us directly.
Van Nuys Airport · Open 7 Days
Come Fly At Van Nuys This Week
Sixty minutes, $229, any day from 10 AM to 7 PM. You fly the airplane, we sign your logbook if you bring one, and nothing is added at checkout. Rather talk first? The consultation is free.
Open 7 Days9:00 AM – 9:00 PM