/ For aspiring pilots · Updated October 2026

Flight school checklist for Indonesia: what to ask before you enrol.

Take this to every flight school you visit in Indonesia, whether you want to fly for fun or for an airline. Fill it in from the brochure first, then ask the school for whatever is still blank. Type your answers here and save them, or print the page and write on it. One sheet per school makes them easy to compare afterwards.

Read: what flight school costs

What to ask a flight school in Indonesia, at a glance

Whether you can get in: age, height, eyesight, English score and medical class, before you pay any test fee. Check yours in a minute.
The real price, not the brochure: what's included, the price of one extra flight hour, and the cost of paying in instalments.
How the hours split: dual, solo and mutual, plus simulator. The split changes the true cost. Check a brochure's hours against the rules.
Aircraft actually flying this week, cadets in training and full-time instructors. More than about 5 cadets per flying aircraft usually means waiting.
Time: 4–5 months for a PPL and 12–18 months to a commercial licence in Indonesia, and when the last on-time group started.
Maintenance, culture and airspace: inspection downtime, semi-military or civilian, training areas and other schools sharing them.
After training: licence conversion if it isn't DGCA, and what airlines ask of fresh graduates.

My goal

Hobby: private licence (PPL) PPL with instrument rating Airline career

Sections 1–9 apply to every goal. Section 11 is for airline careers only.

School Visited on Spoke with Phone / email

1Getting in

Test feeshow much, and whether you get them back if you are not accepted

Refundable? Yes No

Age limits

Minimum height

Eyesight and colour vision

English test and minimum scoreTOEIC runs 10–990 and TOEFL ITP 310–677. Compare the CEFR level, not the number

Medical requiredmany schools accept a Class 2, valid a year, for the private licence; some ask for Class 1 from the start. Class 1 is valid six months in Indonesia. Take Class 1 early if an airline career is possible

3Flight hours

Aircraft hours in the packageflying in a real aircraft, not the simulator

Simulator hours

Dual, solo and mutual hoursdual is with an instructor; solo is you alone; mutual is two cadets sharing the aircraft. More mutual time usually lowers the cost per hour you log, while more solo time means more aircraft hours paid by you alone. What builds your skill is the time you fly yourself

Dual Solo Mutual

On a mutual flight: who is pilot in command, and how is it logged?how the school assigns the pilot in command for each flight (named before take-off, on the flight authorisation?), who flies which leg, and what each cadet writes in the logbook. Only the cadet at the controls logs pilot in command (CASR 61.51): you and your partner can't both log the same hour, and second-in-command time in a single-pilot trainer counts towards no licence

Multi-engine ratingincluded, or extra at what cost? Airlines require it, and bought later it often costs more: Rp 99–240 jt at the schools we studied

Included? Yes No

Price of one extra flight hourthe single most useful number to ask for

Hours their last group actually flewnot the package minimum

4Time

Quoted durationmonths, from first day to licence

Latest finish they promise

Flight hours a cadet actually flies in a typical weekask current cadets, not only the school. About 4 a week finishes 200 hours in a year; 2 a week takes two years

Share of the last group that finished on time

Month that group startedthe start month decides which seasons the flying falls in. The rainy season, roughly November to March in much of Indonesia, cancels lessons

What happens in the rainy season, and on windy days?do you fly mornings in the rainy season? At the training airports we studied, rainy-season afternoon storms cost the most lessons; mornings are usually better once the haze lifts. And what wind stops solo flights? Wind, not rain, holds back many first solos

Weekend or part-time option?for anyone keeping a job or school; usually slower, and often pricier

Yes No

How ground school is organisedall theory up front means a long wait before flying; per stage alternates theory and flying; modular puts both in the same week

Ground school length, in weeks or monthshow long from the first class to finishing the theory for each stage, and when your first flight happens. Brochures list hours, rarely the calendar time

PPL CPL/IR ME

Flight training length, in weeks or monthshow long the flying itself takes for each stage, from first lesson to checkride. Compare it with the hours: 40 hours in 4 weeks means flying almost daily

PPL CPL/IR ME

Ground school is

All up front, PPL to ME Per stage: PPL ground, PPL flying, then CPL ground… Modular: ground & flight in the same week

5Fleet

Aircraft the school ownssingle-engine and multi-engine separately

Aircraft actually flying this weekask to see this week's flight schedule

Cadets in training now

Where they are in the programmehow many in PPL, CPL/IR and multi-engine, and how long each group has been at that stage. A queue stuck at one stage is a warning

Cadets per flying aircraftcadets ÷ aircraft flying. Above 5 usually means waiting for slots

Year the aircraft were builtand whether they have glass cockpits

Training areas the school can useAirNav usually allows about two aircraft in one training area at a time

Airports used for circuitsthe base airport plus any satellite airfield. Each circuit takes about two aircraft at a time for touch-and-goes, so a satellite means more circuit practice

Other flight schools at the same airportthey share the training areas and the circuit

6Instructors

Flight instructors in totalhow many are full-time, how many part-time

Cadets per instructorcadets ÷ full-time instructors

Instrument instructorswho teaches the instrument rating, and how many hold that instructor rating

Multi-engine instructorshow many can teach the multi-engine rating

Typical instructor experienceflying hours, and airline or military background

Same instructor throughout?or whoever is free that day

Yes No

Instructors who left last yearinstructors often leave for airline jobs mid-course

7After training

Licence issued byDGCA (Indonesia), FAA (USA) or other

If not DGCA: cost and time to convert

Renting an aircraft after the licencehourly price and booking rules, if you will fly for fun

Keeping the licence currentmedical renewals and the flying you need to stay current

Graduates from last year now flying for an airlinefor airline pursuers

8Culture & daily life

Semi-military or civilian?uniforms, drills, roll calls and seniority between cadet batches shape your whole day, and how you deal with fellow cadets and instructors

A normal training daywake-up time, briefings, ground school, flying and free time

Living rulescurfew, phones, leaving campus, visitors, and how strictly they are enforced

How seniors treat juniorsask current cadets, not only the school

The school's culture is

Semi-military Civilian / casual Somewhere in between

9Maintenance

Who maintains the aircraft?the school's own approved maintenance organisation (AMO), or an outside one

Days out for a 50-hour and 100-hour inspectionroutine checks: should be days, not weeks

Days out for the larger inspections200, 500 and 1,000-hour or annual, where the type has them

Hours left before engine overhaul (TBO)on each aircraft. Trainer engines are often around 2,000 hours

What happens at TBO?an exchange engine puts the aircraft back in days; overhauling its own engine can take weeks

A spare aircraft when one is down?

Yes No

Longest an aircraft was grounded last yearand why: parts, engine, damage

At TBO, the school will usually use

Exchange engine Overhaul own engine Depends / not sure

Notes

10Rough estimate, in your head

Good enough to compare schools on the spot. For the full picture, use the cost calculator.

Total cost

Tuition in rupiah, multiplied by:

× 1.15 — Indonesian school, housing and meals included
× 1.2 — Indonesian school, housing or meals not included
× 1.3 — training abroad, including living abroad and converting the licence

Priced in US dollars? Convert at today's rate, then add another 10% as a margin for the rupiah.

Aiming for an airline? Add about Rp 520 million for an A320 type rating and the three months it takes, plus the multi-engine rating if the package doesn't include it.

In Indonesia a Class 1 medical is valid for six months and a Class 2 for a year, so most cadets take two or three medicals, more if training runs long. If the school lends headsets, buying your own is optional.

My estimate

Months of flying

aircraft hours ÷ (aircraft flying × 70 ÷ cadets)

A training aircraft may be scheduled for 120 hours a month, but in practice it flies about 70 once weather, maintenance and cancellations take their share. Example: 200 hours ÷ (4 aircraft × 70 ÷ 20 cadets) = 200 ÷ 14 = about 14 months. Count only aircraft that are flying, and if instructors are scarcer than aircraft, use instructors × 100 instead of aircraft × 70. Airspace is a limit too: at about two aircraft per training area and per circuit, a school can use at most 2 × (training areas + airports), divided by how many schools share them. Count only that many aircraft. If the answer is longer than the school quotes, ask why.

My estimate

Questions people ask

What should I ask when visiting a flight school?

Ask for the full fee sheet and what it includes, the price of one extra flight hour, how the hours split between dual, solo and mutual, how many aircraft are flying this week, how many cadets and full-time instructors there are, how long inspections ground an aircraft, and how many of last year's graduates now fly for an airline.

How many cadets per aircraft is too many?

More than about 5 cadets per aircraft that is actually flying usually means waiting for slots. A training aircraft scheduled for 120 hours a month typically flies about 70 once weather, maintenance and cancellations take their share.

How long does flight school take in Indonesia?

A private pilot licence takes about 4 to 5 months. The full commercial package with instrument and multi-engine ratings is usually quoted at 12 to 16 months, and schools in Indonesia promise completion within 18.

Can I use this checklist if I only want to fly as a hobby?

Yes. Sections 1 to 9 apply to every goal, from a private pilot licence for fun to an airline career. Tick your goal at the top, skip the airline section, and pay extra attention to the medical class (Class 2 is enough for a private licence), weekend or part-time options, and the cost of renting an aircraft after you qualify.

What if a school won't answer some of the questions?

That is normal: not every school shares everything with an aspiring pilot. A school that does answer openly is giving you a better basis to decide, and that openness counts in its favour. You don't need every blank filled. Decide on the most complete information you have, and once you have decided, trust it.

Can I fill in the checklist online and save it?

Yes. Type your answers straight into the page, then save it with your name and email and we send you a private link to come back to it. Keep one checklist per school you visit. If you would rather not share your details, print the page or save it as a PDF and fill it in by hand.

How much does flight school cost in Indonesia?

From zero to a commercial licence with instrument rating, most cadets spend about Rp 900 million to Rp 1.55 billion all in at an Indonesian school. Training in the US and converting the licence costs about Rp 1.9 to 2.5 billion.

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Flight school checklist for Indonesia: what to ask before you enrol.

What to ask a flight school in Indonesia, at a glance

1Getting in

2The price

3Flight hours

4Time

5Fleet

6Instructors

7After training

8Culture & daily life

9Maintenance

Notes

10Rough estimate, in your head

11Applying to an airline? Airline career only

Questions people ask