Golden State has been teaching new pilots how to fly for more than Thirty-five (35!) years. You don't get to do this for that long, if you don't do it right!

Golden State has a large fleet of expertly maintained airplanes, including five (5) Cessna 152's (America's favorite initial training aircraft for years), three Piper Warriors (larger, 4place trainer), A Cessna 172, and two (2) Piper Archers. Check out our airplanes at our "Fleet" page off of the previous menu.

How about maintenance? Well, we are very proud of the fact that all of our aircraft are equiped with Factory Remanufactured engines, exclusively. We have our own maintenance staff, and shop, exclusively dedicated to our own aircraft. Our expert mechanics work only on our fleet, thus we can ensure the highest quality and timeliness in maintenance!

Engines and Airplanes are important, but so are instructors. We have a large and diverse staff of instructors, each of whom are carefully standardized to assure that the strictest standards are maintained in your training. Having a large group of instructors gives you more choices so you can learn from someone who you "click" with.

Location is important too. Golden State is located at Gillespie Field Airport in East San Diego County. Our airport has an FAA operated Air Traffic Control Tower, and all of the amenities, but has much less traffic than other local fields such as Montgomery Field. That means you spend less time waiting for things, and save money in the process. Less traffic also makes it a little less stressful while learning the basics.

All of our students are members of the Golden State Flying Club. As a member, you'll have an account set up and will fly against that account's balance. All you have to do is keep your account current, and you can fly as often as you like.

We offer several payment options for your convenience. First is CASH. We will also accept your personal check. You can, if you desire, pay with your Credit Card or ATM Debit card. As an added convenience we will allow you to direct-deposit your paycheck directly into our account! We'll even give you an allowance. :^)

Again, you are a determining factor here. The FAA says the minimum is 35 flying hours and pass the written test. Most people actually fly a little more. The average is difficult to estimate due to the differences in each Student Pilot's situation, but most people take from 45 to 65 hours of instruction before they test for their license. Our world-famous Ground School can prepare almost anybody for the written test!

Well, you can fly! You can see the world, or at least a small part of it, from a completely different perspective. You can cut travel time by a large margin when you travel any appreciable distance. You can enjoy just being above it all. You can put those ground-based non-flying friends and relatives in their places. If you have to, you can even take them for rides. In all, you can challenge yourself to learn something new, and benefit from the effort you've put into aquiring a new skill. Oh yea, you can also just get in a plane, for no reason, and just enjoy it!

If you've got a minute, take a look around the Member's section of our website. You may discover that you're no different than the rest of the folks there!