You have typed “flight school Maryland” into a search bar, and now six tabs are open with six very similar promises. Nobody can tell you from a website which school will keep your training on schedule, which one will surprise you at the register, or which one will put an instructor beside you who fits the way you learn. Nine questions will sort that out in one phone call or one visit, and they work at any school, including ours.

We are Solid Ground Aviation, a Flight Training Center at Fort Meade Executive Airport (KFME) in Fort Meade, Maryland, so we will answer each question for ourselves as we go. Use the list as a checklist and hold every school to the same standard, including us. Take notes, because answers that sound alike on the phone look different on paper.

1. Which FAA rules does the school train under?

Flight schools in the United States train under one of two sets of FAA rules. Part 61 lets an authorized instructor train you toward a certificate without a formal school certificate, and it leaves room to set your own pace. Part 141 covers FAA-certificated pilot schools that run an FAA-approved course with a set syllabus and stage checks. Both lead to the same FAA certificates and the same checkride standard.

Our programs follow Part 61, so your pace fits your schedule. Neither set of rules is better for everyone, and we walk through the tradeoffs in Part 61 vs Part 141 flight training in Maryland. If a school says it is Part 141, ask which courses are approved, because approval applies course by course.

2. What airplane will you fly, and what is in the panel?

Your airplane is your classroom for most of the hours you pay for, so it should be a plane you can learn in and a plane the school flies every week. We train in our fleet of Cessna 172s, with G5 instruments and Garmin GPS. The Cessna 172 is a familiar, stable training airplane, which is why so many students learn in one.

You can see the aircraft on our fleet page. Ask any school what you will fly, and ask to see it. A school that is proud of its airplanes is glad to walk you out to the ramp for a preflight walkaround.

3. Who will teach you, and what have they flown?

Your instructor decides how fast you improve, so look at the person and the résumé, not just the brand. Every instructor here holds an FAA instructor certificate, and our team brings airline, Navy, Civil Air Patrol and decades of teaching experience. Our founder and chief instructor, Todd O’Brien, is an airline pilot and ATP, and the team includes a former Naval aviator who later flew as an international captain.

Meet them on our team page before you book anything. Ask every school who your regular instructor would be, and whether you can meet that person first. Chemistry between student and instructor is hard to judge from a brochure and easy to judge in ten minutes at a table.

4. What does one hour cost, and what sits outside it?

Hourly rates look simple until the first invoice. At our school, a Cessna 172 is $185 an hour and instruction is $70 an hour, and both come before ground instruction, testing and supplies. Your total depends on how many hours you fly, which varies from student to student.

Ask every school for its rates in writing and for a list of what else you will pay for before the checkride, including the knowledge test, the examiner and your supplies. Our Private Pilot License program page is a good starting point, and our team can explain exactly what our rates cover when you contact us.

5. What happens when the weather says no?

Maryland weather has opinions: low ceilings in winter, gusty crosswinds in spring, summer haze. A school that cancels and reschedules every time costs you momentum, and long gaps between lessons mean you relearn last week’s skills on your own dime.

We don’t cancel lessons. When the weather or an airplane says no, your lesson moves to the simulator or ground instruction, so your training keeps moving. Read more in our post on weather-proofing your flight training.

6. How does the simulator fit into your plan?

A good simulator program saves airplane hours for the things only an airplane can teach. Repeatable work such as radio calls, checklists, instrument approaches and emergency procedures can be practiced on the ground, where an hour costs less and your instructor can pause and replay.

Our SG-2 simulators are FAA-approved. With an authorized instructor, the SG-2A can credit up to 20 hours toward an instrument rating and up to 2.5 hours toward private pilot, and the SG-2B up to 10 hours toward an instrument rating. Some time always has to happen in an airplane, and an instrument proficiency check can never be completed entirely in an advanced training device. See the details on our simulators page.

7. Will lessons fit your calendar?

Work, family and school do not pause for flight training, so ask how lessons get booked and how often you can realistically fly. Training goes best when lessons land close together, because consistency keeps skills fresh and keeps you from paying twice for the same lesson.

Tell us your weekly schedule and we will talk through what a steady rhythm looks like for you. Contact us to confirm current availability. If you work full time, our post on fitting flight lessons around work and weather goes deeper.

8. How will you pay for training?

Funding is the barrier most students name first, and it is smart to talk about it before you start. Training is bought in pieces, so a plan you can follow beats a lump sum you dread.

Bring your budget or financing plan to your first conversation, and we will build the plan around it. Whatever school you choose, ask for a written estimate that separates each line, from airplane time to the examiner’s fee, so nothing arrives as a surprise.

9. Can you try it before you commit?

The quickest way to answer the first eight questions is to stand on the ramp and sit in the seat. A Discovery Flight lets you meet an instructor, see our Flight Training Center at Fort Meade Executive Airport (KFME) and get a plan for your first steps in flying. You will know within an hour whether the place, the people and the plan feel right.

Quick answers before you pick up the phone

How many hours does it take to earn a private pilot certificate?

The FAA minimum under Part 61 is 40 hours, and the FAA cites about 75 hours as the U.S. average. Your own number varies with how often you fly and how prepared you arrive.

Can I train for an instrument rating or commercial certificate at the same school?

Yes, you can keep going at one school. Our Instrument Rating program and Commercial Pilot License program both train in our Cessna 172s with the simulator built in. Staying with one team means your instructor already knows your habits, and you skip the paperwork of starting over somewhere new.

Pick your next step

Ask these nine questions at every school on your list, then trust the answers that come with specifics. Specific answers, such as a named airplane, a written rate and a plan for bad weather, are the sign of a school that has thought about your training before you walked in. When you are ready to see how ours sound in person, book a Discovery Flight and bring your list. We will answer every question, show you the airplane and help you plan your first step.