The number 1 way to ensure your success in becoming a pilot is by properly managing your time and money.
And the easiest way to properly manage your time & money is by doing ground school before it’s too late and ACTUALLY understanding the material
5 years ago I saw NO ONE mentoring unsuspecting students on the traps in flight training that was costing them $1000s.
This is why I created the Part Time Pilot Online Ground School.
The ground school was created with these ideas at the heart of our mission statement:
- Mentoring students from start to finish
- Providing content that saves time & money & provides a deep understanding
How does Part Time Pilot compare to other Online Ground Schools?
I went to the website of each of the Top 10 Online Ground Schools and gathered ALL the relevant info a student pilot like you needs to make an informed decision.
Things like cost, student ratings, lifetime access or not, types of lessons, bonuses included, scholarships included, support available and more.
Then, I lined them all up and compared them all in a single table so that student pilots could make the best, most informed decision on their training.
Ultimate Training: What's Inside the Private Pilot Online Ground School
Watch the video below to get a detailed toured of the Part Time Pilot Private Pilot Online Ground School. Our Sport Pilot and IFR Online Ground Schools are built the same way with the same combination of features but tailored to those certificates.
Here is a list of just some of the things included in the Part Time Pilot Private Pilot Online Ground School.
- Full Ground School & Written Test Prep (covers entire Airmen Certificate Standards (ACS))
- Written, Video & Audio lessons for all learning styles
- In-depth and plain English explanations
- Visual aids, mnemonic devices & step-by-step examples
- Access to VIP Podcast with all ground lessons, ad free & able to download for offline learning
- FAA Written exam endorsement
- Complete on your own schedule
- Lifetime access
- 100% mobile friendly on all devices
- 100% money-back guarantee if you don’t pass
- Quizzes on every lesson
- FAA Written Practice Tests & custom Practice Test report from CFI
- Downloadable & Digital Flash Cards with over 1000 FAA ?s
- Online Study Groups
- Live Lessons & Live Q&As for members
- Trained AI Instructor chat on every lesson
- ATC Communications Voice-to-Voice practice simulator
- 7 Day a week support
- BONUS Ultimate Test Prep book PDF
- BONUS Cross-Country Planning guide, checklist, nav-log & eBook
- BONUS How to Become a Pilot & Save Money course
- BONUS 5 Step Study Hack course
- BONUS kneeboard downloads
- Recordings of all live lessons
- Mobile App with Practice Test Generator, E6B & soon to come offline lessons!
- Eligible to apply for our 4 yearly $1000 scholarships
- 33% off Military & Veteran Discount (click here to request discount)
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Here are some frequently asked questions about the topic of online ground school.
Can you do Ground School online?
Yes! You can do ground school online. The vast majority of online ground schools will also provide you with an endorsement for your FAA Written Exam upon completion of the course as well. You will need this endorsement, as well as a valid ID in order to be able to take the exam. The endorsement just needs to be signed by a certificated ground or flight instructor that knows that you have done the necessary studying and are ready to take the exam.
At an online ground school, such as Part Time Pilot, you will go through a series of practice tests and test prep to determine whether you are ready for the exam before receiving your endorsement straight to your email.
Online Ground Schools are very popular because of the fact that you can study at the convenience of your own home or wherever you have internet. Some Online Ground Schools, like Part Time Pilot, even provide access to instructors in study groups, over the phone, or over email for you to get your questions answered when you have them.
What are the best Online Ground Schools?
There are many options for Online Ground School these days. The best online ground school is the one that works best at helping you understand that content. Students should look at the type of lessons provided (written lessons, video lessons and audio lessons), the ability to get their questions answered from a real-life instructor, and reviews from student pilots when looking into the best online ground school for themselves. Many Online Ground Schools provide free trials (like Part Time Pilot’s here) that you can try out before purchasing.
There are many good options out there for Online Ground School but only one has the combination of features, ability to get your questions answered 7 days a week, and is the #1 rated in terms of customer reviews – Part Time Pilot. Other options include Pilot Institute, Kings, Gold Seal and FinerPoints.
How long does it take to finish Online Ground School?
The amount of time it takes to finish an Online Ground School is up to you, the student. Each online ground school is required to teach you all the knowledge from the Airmen Certificate Standards from the FAA. This document details all the knowledge, skills and areas of proficiency required to achieve a pilot certificate.
The amount of time it will take you to finish learning all the required content depends on how quickly you learn and how much time you can dedicate each day to studying. On average, is takes students about 3 months to complete online ground school with some students completing it in as quickly as 1 month and others taking 6 months to even a year.
Part Time Pilot provides each of our students with study tracking calendars they can download to keep track of their progress. There are different calendars based off of how much time a student can dedicate each day to studying (30 min, 1 hour or 2 hour) and each calendar shows the lessons the student should complete each day to stay on track.
How much does FAA Ground School cost?
There are many options for FAA Ground Schools. Ground Schools can be held in person with lectures at a flight school or college where they cost anywhere from $400 to $1400 or more.
Ground Schools can be in the form of 1-on-1 instruction with an instructor that charges a student $40,$50, $60 or even $70 an hour depending on the local market for instructors. Students typically need 30 to 40 hours or more of ground school which puts the price of 1-on-1 instruction anywhere from $1200 to $2800.
Finally, Ground Schools can be Online. Online Ground Schools range from $150 to $500.
In the grand scheme of your training, the cost of ground school is rather insignificant to the total cost of flight training (~$10,000 or more for private pilot). It is more important to find a ground school with good instruction, good features, lifetime access and the ability to get your questions answered, like Part Time Pilot.
Do you have to complete Ground School before Flying?
No! However, it is highly recommended that you do it before flight training or before getting too far along in your flight lessons, but there is no requirement to do ground school before flight training.
The only requirement is that you have your FAA Written exam passed prior to your final Checkride flight test, and in order to take the FAA Written test you need to have an endorsement from a certified instructor who performed the ground training (or an online ground school) and believes you are ready for the test.
What does Ground School consist of?
Any Ground School whether it is in-person instruction or online instruction should consist of all the required knowledge in the FAA’s Airmen Certificate Standards. This document details every piece of knowledge and every skill a student must become proficient at in order to earn their pilot certificate.
The ground school content changes depending on what pilot certificate the ground school is teaching (private, sport, IFR, commercial, etc.). For Private Pilot, students should be learning the following subject categories (these are the subjects included in the Part Time Pilot Online Ground School):
- Operation of Aircraft Systems
- Pilot Certifications, Qualifications & Regulations
- Aircraft Airworthiness Regulations
- Weather Theory, Charts & Information
- National Airspace System
- Fundamentals of Aerodynamics
- Human Factors & Medical
- Aircraft Weight & Balance
- Aircraft Performance
- Cross-Country Flight Planning
- Aircraft Procedures
- Airport Operations; Takeoff, Landing, Taxiing, etc.
- Pilot Control and Maneuvering
- Emergencies
- Navigation
- Night Operations
For online ground schools this content can be taught in the form of written lessons, video lessons or even audio lessons and should be reinforced with examples, visual aids, memory aids and quizzes. A good online ground school should teach the fundamental principles of each topic as well as provide test prep to prepare students for the FAA Written Exam.
