Frequently Asked Questions

Where is 1001 Flights actually located?

We are Napa-based, but we contract with a few other flight schools/rental operations throughout Northern California, and regularly provide instruction out of Watts-Woodland Airport (O41) and Livermore Municipal Airport (KLVK). Beyond that we are happy to come to you! If you want to train out of anywhere within a reasonable distance of Napa (we have trained at Vacaville (KVCB), Petaluma (O69), Davis (KEDU), Angwin (2O3), Watsonville (KWVI) and Tracy (KTCY) in the past), we can work it out!

Wait but aren’t you guys in Tucson?

Well…we were. 1001 Flights had a fun (albeit brief) tenure in Marana. But life has a funny way of happening, and as most of us are originally from California, we thought we’d move back there.

What kinds of planes do you teach on?

Pretty much all of your standard single engine trainer aircraft. Our fleet is generally pretty Cessna-centric (gotta love them Skyhawks), but we also train on the whole range of Pipers, and have been known to branch out to Beechcraft Musketeers, Grumman Tigers, Rockwell Commanders, and even the occasional Diamond.

Do you offer spin training?

No. But our partners at XL Aviation in KLVK are more than happy to do any spin or aerobatic training that you desire. We will happily make the necessary introductions.

I hear there is a DPE shortage in CA? How are you dealing with that?

Well we aren’t going to lie to you. Getting checkrides in California is hard, but between our personal relationships with out-of-state traveling DPEs, and careful planning with our local folks, we feel confident that across the course of your training we can get you a checkride.

I want to get flight training but I don’t know where to start.

Start by calling us. Look, getting into this stuff is hard, and we’ve made a lot of mistakes already so that you don’t have to. Obviously we’d like to train you, but we are also happy to direct you to businesses and instructors that are more appropriate to your particular training needs or locale. Even if you are just looking for information or to chat about aviation training in general, give us a ring. We got where we are largely by random pieces of free advice offered by many different people. We are happy to help you get started on your aviation journey too.

I haven’t flown in ages and want to get current again. Is that something you can help with?

Absolutely. Frankly, you guys are sometimes our favorite students. We are happy to work out a customized solution for any rusty pilots that come our way.

Ok but how much is it going to cost me to get my Private Pilot Certificate?

Wow. Great question. Look, the answer is pretty specific to you as a person. If you are coming to us with zero experience, and are going hard, flying 3-6 times a week, actually doing your homework, doing a couple hours of ground school a week with us. It’s going to be cheaper than if you’re flying every Saturday for a year, and never study. We have a student that just got his license—it took him 70 hours flight, about ten hours ground, and the checkride. All in that cost about $17,000. That’s pretty cheap, airplane rentals are going up, the price of fuel is going up, and he was a pretty dedicated student. Realistically most students are ready at around the 100 hour mark so depending on the DPE, rental price, etc. we are probably looking at the $20,000-$25,000 mark. No one said flying was going to be cheap, but we promise—when you get that feeling of actually flying when the world drops away below you and you cruise off into a gorgeous California sunset—you won’t be thinking about the price.

Can you guys do like a ‘zero to hero’-style program for me?

We can, mostly. We are solidly equipped to take students through their Private, Instrument and Commercial licenses, but if you want your CFI or CFII ratings we are happy to arrange those through a third party.

Do you do tailwheel training?

No. We don’t. While all of our CFIs are tailwheel endorsed, we don’t offer training. We place a really serious emphasis on safety, and since we spend most of our time flying tricycle planes, none of us can really bring the level of confidence we’d like to bring in order to do tailwheel training. However, our colleagues over at XL are more than happy to help, and we are happy to make introductions.

What sets your apart from other flight schools?

Two things, but they’re quite important; listen up!

1) We are CFI-owned. Basically we are in this business because we want to be, not because of some career-path nonsense. 100% of what you pay goes to your CFI. They do the work, they should get paid for it.

2) We are all career educators. 1001 Flights is a collection of former school teachers, summer camp managers, university faculty, and life-time flight instructors. We take teaching seriously, and you can see the results in our work. This isn’t any of our first career. We chose this life, and we think you should too.