Flight School Loans | LendingTree (2024)

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Unlike college students who often pay for their studies with a combination of private and federal student loans, pilots in training may be more limited in their funding options. Many flight school programs aren’t affiliated with a degree-granting college or university, so their students aren’t eligible for federal student loans.

That said, students getting aviation degrees from accredited universities like Embry-Riddle or the University of North Dakota may be eligible for federally subsidized flight loans.

To find out what kinds of loans you may qualify for, speak directly with administrators at your flight school. They will be familiar with the types of funding available to their students.

Private student loans for flight school

You can pay for flight school with a loan from traditional private student loan lenders like Sallie Mae or College Ave, who have low starting rates for borrowers with good or excellent credit. There are also lenders and institutions like Meritize and the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association, which specialize in loans for trade school students or pilots in training.

Many private student loan lenders allow you to prequalify for a loan, a process that allows you to check your potential rates and terms without damaging your credit. Be sure to check your rates with several lenders to ensure you’re getting the lowest ones for your flight training loans.

Federal student loans for flight school

Since many flight schools are not degree-granting institutions that provide college coursework, students may not be able to use federal student loans to pay for flight school. However, if you attend an accredited flight school, you may qualify for federal student aid.

Federal student loans come with several benefits over private loans. Federal student loan interest rates are fixed, meaning they won’t change over time, and you won’t have to go through a hard credit inquiry to qualify. You also don’t need to make payments on your federal loans until you graduate, whereas some private lenders require payments before graduation.

Personal loans for flight school

Most personal loan lenders don’t allow you to use your loan funds for school, but Upstart is an exception. Unless you live in California, Connecticut, Illinois, Washington or Washington, D.C., you may be able to use an Upstart loan for flight school.

Upstart’s loans come with fixed annual percentage rates (APRs) of 7.80% to 35.99%, and you’ll have 36 or 60 months to pay back your loan. You can cover from $1,000 to $50,000 in flight school expenses with an Upstart loan.

Flight school grants and scholarships

Unlike pilot training loans, flight school scholarships and grants don’t need to be repaid, making them an ideal choice for flight school funding. You’ll need to apply to each scholarship individually, and they are typically awarded based on merit and other restrictions, like age or location.

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) keeps a list of reputable aviation scholarships.

Airline pilot training reimbursem*nt

Some airlines provide scholarships or tuition reimbursem*nt to promising students. These scholarships are often available to students at a particular flight school that partners with airlines.

For instance, ATP flight school partners with dozens of airlines, that provide tuition reimbursem*nt, typically in exchange for a contract to work with the airline when you’ve finished school.

The cost of flight school runs from around $22,000 to $29,000 for a private pilot certificate to $105,000 to $110,000+ to get an airline transport pilot certificate with no previous experience. Why is flight school so expensive? It all comes down to expenses for plane rentals, instructors’ time, supplies and exam fees.