Best flying schools in India: Know the pilot’s choice

Want to become a Pilot? Find out which are the best pilot training institutes in India along with the list of courses offered by them.

When we asked some pilots what flying meant to them, most of them replied back with different variations of the phrase – “an exhilarating experience”. For us as outsiders to this industry, being a pilot by profession is all about getting paid to do something you love along with having an office that travels and sights that keep changing. Seems like an ideal situation, doesn’t it?

But that is not all that is to this profession. To be a successful pilot one requires knowledge, intellect, ability to think and perform actions quickly, working tough terrains and even working odd hours. So, yes the job of a pilot is not all play and no work.

“True” confirms Kanishk Singh, who since childhood was passionate about flying and is currently working in the capacity of Commander with Air India. He further adds, “My passion for exploring the skies made me leave my engineering studies mid-way and I contacted few people to find the best flying/pilot training schools in India to get a firm foothold into the profession, and trust me I have no complaints.”

Also Read: Best Flying Schools Abroad

Further, this young pilot shares his ground research on finding the best flying/ pilot training schools in the country with Shiksha, which may help you make a more informed decision when selecting the ideal flying school for you.

Top 5 Indian Flying/ Pilot Training Institutes

The Pilot fraternity considers the below mentioned flying/ pilot training schools to be the best in the country:

Indira Gandhi Rashtriya Uran Akademi (IGRUA)

Pilots in Plane

How many of you know that our Late PM, Rajiv Gandhi before joining politics worked as a co-pilot with Indian Airlines? Yes, this is a fact and he laid the foundation stone for IGRUA in 1985.   

One of the most prestigious pilot training institutes in country, IGRUA has the reputation of training some of the best pilots in the country. However, if you thought you can simply pay the fee and get admitted to this flying school then you are wrong. Candidates are shortlisted for selection on the basis of a two hour written test followed by a pilot aptitude test. Once a candidate clears these two rounds they are eligible to appear before an interview panel which consists of representatives from NACIL, DGCA, a psychologist and IGRUA examiners.

The aircrafts used for training at this institute are TB-20, Zlin, DA-40 and DA-42. 

Courses offered by Indira Gandhi Rashtriya Uran Akademi:

IGRUA is a government body which offers courses such as ab-initio to Commercial Pilot Licence (CPL), simulator training as per candidate’s requirements, multi-engine endorsement, instrument rating, CRM workshop, MCC course and ab-initio to Commercial Pilots Licence (CPL) course for foreign nationals as per regulatory requirements in their respective countries.

National Flying Training Institute (NFTI)

Established in 2007, NFTI is one of the nine flying schools established by CAE Oxford Aviation Academy, which is one of the best flying schools in the world. It is located at Gondia in Maharashtra and is also sometimes referred to as CAE Oxford Aviation Academy Gondia. Other locations in the world where CAE has centres are Oxford, Amsterdam, Brussels, Hong Kong, Melbourne, Perth, Phoenix and Rae Bareli in India. NFTI trains candidates on a modern training fleet of DA 40 and DA 42.

Courses offered by National Flying Training Institute:

Candidates are offered 19-month pilot training programs which comprises of ground school courses which are in accordance to instructions as laid out by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) and International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO).

Madhya Pradesh Flying Club (MPFC)

This flying club came into existence in 1951 and till 1982 it maintained and operated aircrafts belonging to the MP government. The club is also known to train Indian Air Force pilots from time to time. MPFC has a fleet of Cessna -152/A, Cessna -172R and multi engine six-seater aircraft P-68C-TC and Baron G58 for training aspiring pilots.

Courses offered by Madhya Pradesh Flying Club:

Candidates can pursue courses like Commercial Pilot License (CPL), Private Pilot License (PPL), Instrument Rating (IR), Multi Engine Rating etc at MPFC.

Ahmedabad Aviation & Aeronautics Ltd. (AAA)

Plane in Flight

Established in 1994, this flying school operates from its own hangars at SV Patel International Airport Ahmedabad and Mehsana Airfield. AAA presently has five single-engine aircraft Cessna 152/ Cessna 172 and one single/multiengine flight simulator. AAA presently has four ground instructors and five flight instructors for a batch of 70 students.

Courses offered by AAA:

Candidates can pursue courses like Commercial Pilot License (CPL), Private Pilot License (PPL), Instructor Rating etc at Ahmedabad Aviation & Aeronautics.

Bombay Flying Club

Operating since 1928, the Bombay Flying Club is affiliated to the Mumbai University and DGCA. The father of aviation in India, Mr. JRD Tata in February 1929 obtained his pilot license from this flying school. The club has a fleet of PIPER PA18, Cessna 152A, Cessna 172, Cessna172R (glass cockpit-like airlines aircraft cockpit)-Single Engine & Seneca (twin engine) aircraft.

Courses offered by Bombay Flying Club:

This flying school offers a BSc in Aviation/ Aeronautics degree and apart from this interested candidates can even receive training in aircraft maintenance engineering and cabin crew training.

These are some good flying schools in India. However, most flying courses and Pilot training is very expensive to the tune of over Rs 25 lakh. So, you may want to consider taking a study loan for it. Some good news here is that some states in the country such as Bihar sponsor selected students to receive pilot training at different state flying schools. So, research well before you decide to take off.

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