What to Expect at Every Stage of Your PPL Journey

Getting your Private Pilot License can feel like a giant, overwhelming goal. But when you break it down into stages, it becomes a series of smaller, totally achievable milestones. Here’s a roadmap of what’s ahead. Starting from your very first lesson to the moment you earn your certificate.

Stage 1: The Discovery Flight

This is where the magic starts. A discovery flight is a short introductory lesson where you’ll sit in the left seat (yes, the pilot’s seat!) and actually fly the airplane with a CFI right next to you. It’s designed to give you a taste of what flight training feels like. Most people walk away either grinning ear to ear or already planning their next lesson. Often both.

Stage 2: Ground School & Early Flights

Once you commit to training, you’ll start ground school (either in-person, online, or with your instructor) alongside your flight lessons. In the air, you’ll learn the basics: straight-and-level flight, turns, climbs, descents, and how to communicate on the radio. It feels like a lot at first, but every lesson builds on the last.

This stage is also when you’ll start getting comfortable with your aircraft — learning its quirks, its sounds, and how it responds to your inputs. Give yourself grace here. Nobody nails it on day one.

Stage 3: Pre-Solo Training

Now things get exciting. You’ll practice takeoffs and landings (lots of them), learn emergency procedures, and start flying the traffic pattern like it’s second nature. Your CFI is preparing you for one of the biggest moments in any pilot’s life: your first solo flight.

Before you solo, you’ll need to pass a pre-solo written exam and get a medical certificate (if you haven’t already). Your instructor will sign you off when they’re confident you’re ready — and trust me, they won’t send you up until you are.

Stage 4: First Solo!

There’s nothing quite like it. Three takeoffs, three landings, just you and the airplane. Your instructor will be watching from the ground, probably more nervous than you are. When you step out of that plane after your solo, you’ll feel on top of the world. Expect tears, hugs, and probably a shirt-cutting if your school does that tradition.

Stage 5: Cross-Country Training

After your solo, the world opens up. You’ll learn navigation skills, flight planning, and how to fly to airports you’ve never been to before. Cross-country flights (any flight over 50 nautical miles) teach you to manage fuel, weather, communication with different towers, and real-world decision-making.

You’ll do dual cross-countries with your CFI first, then solo cross-countries on your own. These flights are some of the most rewarding in your entire training. There’s something incredible about landing at a new airport all by yourself.

Stage 6: Checkride Prep

You’re in the home stretch! This stage is all about polishing your skills and making sure you meet the Airman Certification Standards (ACS). You’ll review maneuvers, practice simulated emergencies, and do a thorough ground review with your CFI. This is also when you’ll complete your IACRA application and gather all your paperwork.

(And if you haven’t read our “5 Things I Wish I Knew Before My First Checkride” post, now’s a great time!)

Stage 7: The Checkride & Beyond

The checkride has two parts: an oral exam and a flight test. You’ll sit down with a DPE, demonstrate your knowledge, then go fly and show them your skills. When you pass — and you will — you’ll walk away as a certified Private Pilot. But here’s the thing: getting your PPL isn’t the finish line. It’s the starting line. The real learning begins when you start flying on your own terms.

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No matter where you are on this journey, remember: every pilot who’s ever flown started exactly where you are right now. Keep showing up, keep asking questions, and keep your eyes on the sky.

Fly safe and blue skies,

Amber

“The most difficult thing is the decision to act; the rest is merely tenacity.” — Amelia Earhart