A Private Pilot Licence lets you fly an aircraft privately, with passengers and also abroad. For many people, it is a goal in itself, while for others it forms the first step of a modular route to becoming an airline pilot. If you are also a flight instructor, a PPL allows you to give paid instruction for the LAPL and PPL. Whether obtaining a PPL or LAPL beforehand is a good idea depends on your route. If you are aiming for an integrated course or a cadet programme, many experienced pilots say a PPL offers little advantage in the training itself, as you go through the whole programme anyway and in their view classmates without experience reach the same level within a few weeks. It does show motivation, and you find out relatively cheaply whether you really enjoy flying. Gliding is mentioned by several candidates as a cheaper alternative that also provides a valuable foundation. If you choose the modular route, the PPL is simply your first module. Bear in mind that your licence keeps costing money, because to stay current you need to fly regularly. You take PPL training at an approved training organisation (ATO) or a declared training organisation (DTO), as both may offer the PPL. Check which airfield you fly from; if it is day VFR only, this limits your options if you later want a night rating or IR.

With a PPL you may fly without pay as pilot in command on non-commercial flights. It is a recreational licence that lets you fly privately with passengers, but you may not work as a pilot for pay, apart from giving paid instruction as a flight instructor. You may share the costs with passengers, with a maximum of six people including yourself. A PPL does not expire, although your medical and ratings must be kept valid. You obtain a PPL-SEP on an aircraft registered as SEP. The LAPL is a lighter version of the PPL, which allows largely the same, but without the option to add ratings such as a night rating, BIR or IR. A PPL is not a compulsory first step; some airline pilots start directly at an academy. On an integrated course the PPL phase is built in, while on the modular route it is your first licence. Modular training means you can complete the components, often starting with a PPL, at your own pace and in different places. Some flight schools offer modular next steps towards a professional licence. From the CPL onwards, the choice of training location becomes more relevant, and the place where you complete the final module, APS MCC, can open doors. According to an aspiring pilot in 2024, part of the PPL training at Euro Pilot Center (EPC) takes place at Antwerp airport, after which the second part is completed at partner SoCal Pilot Center in California. An introductory flight at a flight school usually has no fixed plan; it typically involves about half an hour of flying around, the view, some explanation and the chance to take the controls yourself for a while. With an aircraft share scheme (2009), you buy a share certificate that you can later sell again. Most of the contribution goes towards buying the aircraft, and participants then fly it at cost price. The FAA term is flight review (FAR 61.56, every 24 months); the old term BFR stands for biennial (once every two years), not biannual (twice a year).1345679

The PPL course starts with obtaining a Class 2 medical and online entrance tests in mathematics, physics and English. In 2024, a PPL course at a flight school on Gran Canaria included these entrance tests, a Class 2 medical, and a deposit of EUR 2,000. In the mathematics, physics and mental arithmetic entrance test of a PPL school on Gran Canaria in 2024, the time pressure was the hardest part, with 1 minute 15 seconds per question without a calculator, according to an aspiring pilot. This is followed by an online theory course, often completed with exams. A PPL distance learning course in 2024 used Pooley's books and slide presentations per subject; each subject required a progress test that had to be passed with 100%, followed by 10 hours of online classroom teaching and a mock exam that had to be passed with 75% before you could sit the Austro Control exams. On a distance learning PPL theory course, you spend online hours per subject, followed by a one-to-one brush-up via MS Teams and practice tests, after which the training organisation signs for the exam application. For PPL theory exams you cannot register yourself; the training organisation must release the student after checking sufficient knowledge, for example with mock exams. The theory exams can be administered by bodies such as Austro Control. Through Austro Control, all nine PPL theory subjects are examined on one day, in English or German. Practical training includes at least 45 to 55 flying hours and takes about 8 weeks on average. A PPL course on Gran Canaria (2025) consisted of a basic programme of 30 lessons, ranging from one hour to cross-country flights of 3.5 hours. Students are expected at the airfield 1.5 to 2 hours beforehand for preparation and briefing. The 150 NM cross-country flight for the PPL is usually flown first with an instructor and then solo, with landings at two other airfields. A solo flight during PPL training is truly solo: there is only a joint briefing beforehand, and the instructor is not available by radio during the flight. During PPL training, students can fly the spin avoidance part of the syllabus in a Fuji, including an introduction to aerobatics such as the falling leaf, spins and rolls, according to an aspiring pilot in 2024.134

A minimum of 45 flying hours is required to obtain a PPL. For a PPL you must be at least 17 years old. EASA sets these minimum ages for pilot licences. Under EASA Part-FCL you may fly solo from the age of 16. There is no upper age limit for obtaining a PPL. A Class 2 medical certificate is required for a PPL. The Class 2 medical is the standard medical for private pilots and is required for various non-commercial licences. The requirements for the Class 2 medical are set out in EASA Part-MED. This medical is carried out by an approved aeromedical examiner (AME). The medical requirements for a PPL are lower than for a professional licence, which requires a Class 1 medical.128

The Class 2 medical is needed at the latest before the first solo flight. The medical examination usually takes 1 to 2 hours. Many flight schools advise getting the medical before the start of training. It is advisable to obtain the medical before practical training, especially if you have medical doubts. Your school must confirm that you have satisfactorily completed all parts of the theory syllabus before you may sit the exams, and a DTO may use classroom teaching or distance learning for this. Schools can set their own requirements, such as a number of mandatory classroom or online lessons. You largely decide the order yourself, in consultation with your school, and you can ask your instructor which order fits your flying training. One PPL candidate named meteorology as the hardest theory subject. A PPL holder in 2025 did the PPL theory through self-study with textbooks and his flying club's question bank, and found the exams manageable. A PPL student in 2025 reports that knowing the questions from question banks, such as the free PPLexamtrainer, helps with the Austro Control theory exam. One PPL candidate studied about 3 hours a day, 6 days a week for the theory in 2024. A PPL student in 2025, who does not consider himself a natural learner, passed all theory exams at the first attempt after a two-week full-time theory course, with lessons during the day and assignments in the evening, having first read the textbooks. In November 2024, one candidate passed all 9 PPL theory exams at the first attempt with an average of 96%, with navigation lowest at 80%.13

Prices depend on the school, the aircraft and above all the number of hours you actually need. Published prices cannot be compared like for like, as some schools only quote the flying hours and landings, while others provide a total price including theory, exams and fees. Candidates warn that schools are not always transparent about the total in advance; an overview of all cost items gives clarity. When comparing PPL and rental prices, it matters whether block time or flight time is charged; according to a club pilot, the difference is about 20% on flights of around an hour (according to pilot discussions in 2023). A flying club usually does not have lower hourly rates than a rental operator, but it does have a more favourable ratio between booked hours and flying hours, for example three hours booked per flying hour against two at a rental operator. According to a club pilot, a model PPL student with plenty of availability, commitment and an eye for special offers need not spend much more than EUR 15,000 (according to pilot discussions in 2023). Less flexibility or slower learning makes it more expensive. One aspiring pilot estimated the cost of the first phase of a PPL in 2008 at EUR 13,000. One PPL student paid EUR 19,388 all-in in 2023-2024 for 50 hours and 10 minutes of flying, including the skill test flight and 121 landings. According to two pilots in 2025, buying a share in an aircraft and then taking PPL lessons in that aircraft can save a few thousand, although the upfront investment is larger. A pilot with a PPL, IR, MEP and CPL estimated the cost in 2025 at about EUR 11,000 for an LAPL and another EUR 12,000 to 15,000 to then obtain a PPL. With an LAPL, IFR and night flights are also not possible. Converting an LAPL into a PPL is possible, but costs a fair number of extra lesson hours. According to a student in 2024, whether it makes sense to get a PPL first depends on your budget, because staying current costs a lot of money.234

If you obtain a PPL full-time abroad, a cheap hourly rate is not the whole story. You should budget for conversion time with an instructor back home, typically 5 to 6 hours, for unfamiliar airspace and procedures, because flying is a skill that fades quickly and weeks without flying after training can affect your solo standard. A Spanish medical costs about EUR 150 and a Spanish licence about EUR 200. Issuing a PPL licence already cost about EUR 500 in 2012, and according to pilots the amount was even higher in 2024. After the first issue of the licence, adding a rating cost EUR 163 in 2024. Separate RT training with a real air traffic controller can save money, because struggling with RT during expensive flying lessons is distracting and costs extra flying hours. One aspiring PPL holder budgeted about EUR 350 a month for flying after the PPL, based on 24 flying hours a year, including medical, LPE, instructor and travel costs in 2023.4

The legal minimum for a PPL is 45 flying hours, but almost nobody completes it in that time; an experienced private pilot recommends expecting 55 to 60 hours (according to pilot discussions in 2023). One PPL student needed 57 flying hours and 160 landings, including the skill test. Glider, TMG or LAPL hours count to a limited extent, but you must always fly the solo requirements yourself. A former instructor estimates that a full-time PPL can be completed in 3 to 4 weeks, with two training flights of 1.5 hours a day, five days a week. According to a pilot in 2025, a full-time student in the US can normally complete a PPL in 4 to 5 weeks. One modular pilot completed his PPL in 21 days in 2004. Another modular student obtained his PPL in 7 weeks in 2025, considerably shorter than the 10 weeks he had originally planned, a plan for which members of his flying club had laughed at him and considered a long time. A PPL course of about a year has the advantage that you train in all seasons. One student obtained the PPL in about a year, from April 2023 to May 2024, with one or two lessons a week. Weather can cause considerable delays, and if you are grounded for weeks, you also quickly lose your solo standard. An aspiring pilot found in 2024 that many lessons were cancelled because of weather or technical issues, and the cross-border flight was cancelled twelve times, so it took 2.5 months to schedule.346

When choosing a PPL school, candidates advise asking about aircraft availability, a fixed instructor, instructor experience, a fixed syllabus, briefing time included in the lesson rate and a full cost overview. Candidates recommend doing a trial lesson at two or three schools. If you are considering professional training, get a Class 1 medical straight away instead of a Class 2, to check your medical fitness before you spend a lot of money. For the English-language route of the PPL theory, AFE and Pooley's books are mentioned. Practical flight training requires essential equipment, such as a pilot logbook, a headset, a kneeboard and sunglasses. At one flight school, the PPL course takes about one to one and a half years. A modular pilot training course, including the PPL, takes about 2 to 4 years. In 2024, one PPL student reported paying EUR 250 per block hour, including briefing, plus about EUR 11.45 per landing at weekends. If you obtain a PPL abroad, you need to add travel, accommodation, VAT, examiner and theory to the hourly price.14

The workload during flying lessons stays high, because instructors gradually add tasks such as radio and checklists as soon as the student has capacity. One PPL student recommends doing at most one lesson a day at the start, and if you do two lessons, not scheduling them back to back. Having time to process a lesson makes the next flying hour more effective than on a crash course. After about 20 hours and 50 landings, including 3 in the simulator, a PPL student on Gran Canaria still had two test flights to go before his first solo in April 2025. A modular student in 2024 found that years of sailing experience gave him an advantage on the PPL, because subjects such as meteorology, navigation, VHF radio and visually compensating for crosswind were familiar from the second lesson.34

After the PPL skill test, issuing the licence takes a few weeks; in the meantime an instructor can give a solo authorisation, without passengers and not outside the country. After obtaining the PPL licence, pilots reported in 2023 that you need to do a checkout with a different rental operator, because the insurance requires it. Directly after training such a checkout takes about an hour, but on a different aircraft type it can take up to three hours. Pilots report that about half of the planned PPL flying hours are cancelled because of the weather. If a Class 1 medical turns out not to be achievable, recreational flying with a Class 2 or LAPL medical is often still possible. The standards for these lower medical classes are more lenient on some points, so that, for example, reduced depth perception may be acceptable for Class 2. A private pilot who flew about 30 hours a year on a DA40 share in 2023 reckons on an average of EUR 150 per flying hour, including landing fees and taxi time. With annual costs, medical and charts, this comes to about EUR 5,000 a year according to this pilot. On the modular route after the PPL, the course includes a night rating, hour building, ATPL theory, instrument rating, multi-engine flying, the CPL with a minimum of 200 hours in total and finally the MCC. An alternative route is to obtain a PPL part-time in Europe, then an FAA instrument rating in the US, later EASA ATPL theory, a CPL in the US and a CPL conversion in Europe; this arrangement can considerably reduce the training hours required. According to one pilot in 2025, modular training is a last option after failing selection for a solid ATPL/MPL course with strong airline links. The chance of a job at a good airline is small after that, and you often have to pay for the type rating yourself. According to this pilot, spending money on a PPL is a waste if you want to become an airline pilot.1345