Cost for bi-annual flight review (was BFR)

Dear God,what a mess (Webster notwithstanding

I'm a CFI

I want to get back into giving BFRs (Whatever the hell you call them)

I know how to do the "hour on the ground". That's out of the equation.

I need to fly with the person >=1 hour. Assume (terrible word) that I give the person an hour of flight instruction.

In ** DOLLARS** how much to I charge this person;
\
Sheesh.

Jim

What an interesting way to solicit free advice from strangers on the Internet. There's a saying about flies and honey that comes to mind...good luck to you.
 
Dear God,what a mess (Webster notwithstanding

I'm a CFI

I want to get back into giving BFRs (Whatever the hell you call them)

I know how to do the "hour on the ground". That's out of the equation.

I need to fly with the person >=1 hour. Assume (terrible word) that I give the person an hour of flight instruction.

In ** DOLLARS** how much to I charge this person;
\
Sheesh.

Jim
It seems you have made this more difficult than was necessary. Why not just ask what a reasonable hourly CFI rate is? You can do the math from there.
 
Oh, not you again. What a jerknose. You evidently never passed English 101.

Please, ignoramus, just go away.
Take it easy, Jim. I misinterpreted it too. Gotta be careful with the printed word. Sometimes it doesn't come across as intended.
 
Hi Jim, $50 an hour is more than fair here in NorCal. When I have done my FRs, I usually like to shake it up a bit and try something new, so I am not usually worried about the minimum. I would say, just make it fun, Meet the standards and challenge the client a bit to step up their game. For me, I usually have something in mind I need to get better at or try, but everyone is different.
 
I don’t separate out the ground as you are Jim.

For me the ground is an integral part of what we do in the air.

I charge a minimum of three hours of instructor time at $75 per hour ($225).

Some of that is the pre-flight and post-flight briefing and some is reading their log book.

I have not been able to do a flight review in less time and still feel comfortable about putting my name in their log book.
 
Jim, it's a market where some are trying to make a living and others are simply trying to get fight time. Keep that in mind.

Prices and quality level are all over the place.

I know of at least one CFI who'll do them for free in specific aircraft they need to log time in. Or anything they find interesting. (They're not doing the CFIs who are trying to make a living at it, any favors. They also don't care.)

I've seen one CFI who specializes in high end avionics and wringing customers through every nook and cranny of every menu charge $350 for one in an advanced aircraft with a pilot who wants to get up to speed fast on those advanced avionics toys and buttonology.

I suspect the reason you're not getting direct responses is that there's a range from "$0 and buy me lunch, because I'm broke" to "$350 or more depending on how fast you figure out those fancy new boxes you just installed in your airplane and I know like the back of my hand" ...

... and everything in between.

Aren't you also in California? Everything I see posted here from rentals to CFIs to DPEs is higher there than here. (We are catching up, but I've seen DPE prices for initial CFI $400 higher than here in online documentation of various schools out that way.)
 
Well, you titled your post "Cost for.." Implies you are the buyer. A better title would have been "What should I charge for..."

But to answer your question, I've never encountered a set fee. Always has just been instructors rate times time.
FWIW... "getting ramped up to do BFRs again" implies to me that he was to be the instructor. Why would you do more than one if you were the one getting the review?

I didn't think there was any ambiguity in the OP. That said, I agree with others that his attitude could have been a little less defensive and put-downish in his followups.
 
Man I must be totally out of it when I ask questions on this board. I **AM** the CFI and I **AM** making up the training and the online quiz (100% required). Please help me to understand how you didn't understand that from my original post?

I didnt understand that either. I read that youve been flying illegally for 20 years, having not had a BFR in that time.
 
Going rate around here is $50/hr, but I think I'd pay $75 and hr to stay out of the plane with you
 
My instructor charges his normal rate $38 per hour for both the flight and ground time.

ETA: This is in his plane a 172M for which I pay 110/hr.
 
I didn't think there was any ambiguity in the OP. That said, I agree with others that his attitude could have been a little less defensive and put-downish in his followups.

Have to agree. I knew what he was asking, and answered accordingly, but man, you do come across as a jerk.
 
FWIW... "getting ramped up to do BFRs again" implies to me that he was to be the instructor. Why would you do more than one if you were the one getting the review?

I didn't think there was any ambiguity in the OP. That said, I agree with others that his attitude could have been a little less defensive and put-downish in his followups.

Agree; I could tell what he meant by the text of his post; it is the title that caused the confusion.
 
I hope he has a better attitude and is more understanding about miscommunications in the plane or I wouldn't take a BFR from him for free. I think everyone one here had the same issue. Let's take a breath, and not try and be so nasty. Things get misunderstood when written sometimes.

Most instructors charge in the $50/hour range. I know some that charge up to $150 and hour if they are highly specialized in a particular make, like a Bonanza. And if people are telling you what they pay instead of what they charge, still answers your question, just in a different light.
 
Jim, it's a market where some are trying to make a living and others are simply trying to get fight time. Keep that in mind.

Prices and quality level are all over the place.

I know of at least one CFI who'll do them for free in specific aircraft they need to log time in. Or anything they find interesting. (They're not doing the CFIs who are trying to make a living at it, any favors. They also don't care.)

I've seen one CFI who specializes in high end avionics and wringing customers through every nook and cranny of every menu charge $350 for one in an advanced aircraft with a pilot who wants to get up to speed fast on those advanced avionics toys and buttonology.

I suspect the reason you're not getting direct responses is that there's a range from "$0 and buy me lunch, because I'm broke" to "$350 or more depending on how fast you figure out those fancy new boxes you just installed in your airplane and I know like the back of my hand" ...

... and everything in between.

Aren't you also in California? Everything I see posted here from rentals to CFIs to DPEs is higher there than here. (We are catching up, but I've seen DPE prices for initial CFI $400 higher than here in online documentation of various schools out that way.)

Grass Valley is not like Los Angeles anymore than Grand Junction is like Denver.

Just about everyone charges a normal hourly rate, and goes through various PTS excercises over a couple of hours. You'll find LOCAL rates online for schools at GOO, but you probably already know them.

And I agree the first post is confusing as heck.
 
Grass Valley is not like Los Angeles anymore than Grand Junction is like Denver.

Just about everyone charges a normal hourly rate, and goes through various ACS excercises over a couple of hours. You'll find LOCAL rates online for schools at GOO, but you probably already know them.

And I agree the first post is confusing as heck.

Fixed. ;)
 
Around here, it's treated as normal instruction, same hourly paid. Average seems to be ~$60/hr.
 
If this isn't the most PoA thread ever, I don't know what is...
 
Although I was also confused at first, now that I know the real question I still don't completely understand why it's being asked.

You are a CFI. You haven't done FRs for a while. But you ask what you should charge for the flight portion of a FR?

Since you're interested in the rate for 1 hour of flight, you don't seem to be interested in the "flat rate" method. So, why would you charge anything other than your regular hourly rate?

A one hour flight is going to of necessity require probably 1.5 hours of your time at a minimum, so the minimum charge would be 1.5x your hourly rate. Or, if you prefer to only charge by flying time (boiling in your ground time into the rate), then you're looking at 1x your hourly rate.

If you're just asking what you should charge as a reasonable hourly rate in your area, really they only way to determine that is through a market study - call the local flight schools, call independent CFIs and see what they charge. Unless of course you have a specialty that can command a higher rate.

As for me with FRs (when doing the full thing, ground and flight), I don't see any real way that doesn't turn into being together for about 3 hours, so the "minimum" charge would be 3x my hourly rate. But if everything goes perfectly and it's only 2.5 hours, then they of course get charged 2.5x my hourly rate.
 
Your airplane or someone else's? I think you have been given a good idea on hourly rates for CFI's, now the question is the rate for the plane. What is so hard to figure out?
 

If you disagree, go post a link to the Commercial Airplane ACS. Good luck.

Right now, there are only ACS in effect for Private Pilot Airplane and Instrument Airplane. That's all.

If you're going to be a pedant, you had better be right.
 
Charge whatever you feel your time is worth. Good luck getting and keeping customers with your **** poor attitude and communication skills.
 
I charge $50/hr for my time as an instructor. I define this as from the time the student and I start doing whatever it is we're doing for the lesson to the time we finish. I usually round to the nearest half hour (typically on the down side if it's ambiguous).

So in the situation where you're giving 1 hour of flight instruction - if the total time takes an hour and a half (figuring observing the pre-flight, taxiing out, and de-brief), I'd probably charge $75. I don't charge for the 15 minutes spend BSing.
 
If you disagree, go post a link to the Commercial Airplane ACS. Good luck.

Right now, there are only ACS in effect for Private Pilot Airplane and Instrument Airplane. That's all.

If you're going to be a pedant, you had better be right.

I was rolling eyes because you always have to come back with something. I know what the ACS covers, and I believe the topic was in the spirit of a PPC FR.
 
Ok, simple answer, $50/hour.
Include pre and post flight briefing time, plus at least 1 hr of flight, unless you are counting that as part of your 1hr ground school. I charge same rate for ground training.

Register and learn IARCA.
It won't be long before Flight Reviews and Instrument Proficiency Checks will be logged in IARCA.
Right now it is suggested, but not required.
 
Instruction rates at my FBO are $30/hr for ground/single engine. It goes up to $35/hr for instruction in my own aircraft for some reason. They just charge by the hour, there aren't any special rates/prices for a BFR.
 
Last one I did a few weeks back I told the pilot needing the FR in his airplane $50.00 per hour from the time we start the ground work until I sign your logbook. We were 4 hours, he asked a lot of in-depth questions. When we finished he said "I guess I owe you $200.00". My reply was that OR "you & your spouse take me & my spouse out to dinner & we'll call it even". He was happy with that.

I feel all CFI's should be compensated. It took time & money to earn the certificate. My .02.
 
I think my last two were in the three hour range. $25 an hour for one might have been as much as $50 an hour for the other. I'm kind of price insensitive on something that is required and only happens once every two years.
 
Dear God,what a mess (Webster notwithstanding

I'm a CFI

I want to get back into giving BFRs (Whatever the hell you call them)

I know how to do the "hour on the ground". That's out of the equation.

I need to fly with the person >=1 hour. Assume (terrible word) that I give the person an hour of flight instruction.

In ** DOLLARS** how much to I charge this person;
\
Sheesh.

Jim

Well it's pretty much the consensus that your OP was unclear to the point of being 180 degrees out of phase with what you intended to convey.

The other thing is that if you're going to be charging people for something you should at least know what the thing is called, in modern times. ;)

I still don't get why it's so difficult to come up with a rate; why should it be different from the "ground" portion?
 
Dear God,what a mess (Webster notwithstanding

I'm a CFI

I want to get back into giving BFRs (Whatever the hell you call them)

I know how to do the "hour on the ground". That's out of the equation.

I need to fly with the person >=1 hour. Assume (terrible word) that I give the person an hour of flight instruction.

In ** DOLLARS** how much to I charge this person;
\
Sheesh.

Jim

The West Valley Flying Club's website has a list of all their instructors and the rates they charge. I think it ranges from $50 to $100 an hour. That is Bay area prices. I don't know whether a lesser rate prevails in your part of California.
 
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