You Fly LA is new. We are not going to put words in anyone's mouth, invent star ratings or borrow testimonials from somewhere else, because a page of manufactured praise is worth nothing to you and we would rather earn the real thing.
So this page does the honest version instead. Here is exactly what we promise, what happens on the day, what it costs, and what we do when something goes wrong — the things a good review would tell you anyway. Then you can go and find out for yourself, and if you have a strong opinion afterwards we would very much like to hear it.
Our Standing Promise: free rescheduling up to 24 hours before · if the weather says no, you do not pay. Every price includes the airplane, the fuel, your FAA-certificated instructor, headsets, the pre-flight briefing and the debrief. Nothing is added at the desk.
What You Can Judge Us On
A review is really an answer to four questions. Here are ours in advance.
1. Did You Actually Fly The Airplane?
Yes, and this is the one people are most skeptical about, usually because they have been on a helicopter tour and suspected the controls were decorative. A training airplane has two complete sets of controls and the set in front of you works exactly as well as the set in front of your instructor. From shortly after departure until we turn back toward Van Nuys, you are the person flying: straight and level, turns, climbs, descents, holding a heading while the Valley moves underneath you.
The takeoff and the landing stay with your instructor. Those are the two phases with the least margin at a busy towered airport, and handing one to somebody on their first hour would be unfair rather than generous. Both are narrated with hands on the controls so you can watch it happen.
2. Was The Price The Price?
Yes. There is no fuel surcharge, no landing fee, no booking fee, no card fee, no headset rental and no tip expected. What you pay online is the entire cost of the experience.
| Flight | Length | People | Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| Discovery Flight In Los Angeles | 60 min | 1 | $229 |
| Discovery Flight For Two Over Downtown Los Angeles | 60 min | 2 | $299 |
| Malibu Coast Discovery Flight For Two | 90 min | 2 | $399 |
| Luxury Cirrus SR22 Discovery Flight | 60 min | 1, or 2 with a passenger | $499 ($599 with a passenger) |
| Full-Motion Flight Simulator Experience | 60 min | 1 | $189 |
3. Were You Sold Something On The Way Out?
No. When you land you get a debrief on what you did well and what you would work on next, and then we let you go home. Nobody will lean on you while you are still taking your headset off. If you want to talk about what learning to fly actually involves, ask and we will tell you honestly — including the parts that cost money. If you do not, that is the end of it.
4. What Happened When The Weather Turned?
We moved you and you were not charged. That is the entire policy and it does not have exceptions buried in it. The pilot in command has the final say on whether a flight is safe to conduct, and a cancellation for weather is us delivering the service responsibly rather than failing to deliver it. Full detail is on our Weather And Cancellation Policy page.
What A First Flight Actually Feels Like
Since we cannot show you somebody else's account of it yet, here is a straight description of the parts people tend to comment on.
- The first ten minutes are a lot. A small airplane is noisier and more physical than an airliner, and the ground falls away faster than you expect. Almost everybody settles inside ten minutes.
- The radio sounds like a foreign language, and then it does not. Van Nuys is a busy Class D field with a control tower. By the end of the hour the chatter has started resolving into instructions, which is one of the more satisfying things that happens to a first-timer.
- Flying is more physical than people expect. You will hold an altitude, lose it, and get it back. A heading wanders the moment you stop paying attention to it. This is the actual experience of flying rather than a description of it.
- The geography rearranges itself. The Santa Monica Mountains are startlingly thin once you can see both sides at once. People who have driven Mulholland for twenty years tend to go quiet at this point.
- Los Angeles does not read as a city from the ground. It does from the air. On a clear day the downtown towers stand out of the haze with the San Gabriels behind them, and the scale between is the thing nobody is ready for.
The full minute-by-minute version is on What To Expect On Your Discovery Flight.
The Things We Will Tell You Not To Book
A business that recommends everything to everybody is not being helpful. Three cases where we will say so on the phone:
- A diagnosed fear of flying. Aerophobia is a clinical condition, not nerves, and a light aircraft is not exposure therapy. The right first call is a qualified therapist. What we can offer afterwards is the full-motion simulator, which sits on the ground and can be stopped at any moment.
- You only want the view. That is a perfectly good thing to want. You can still book a discovery flight and tell your instructor you would like to fly ten minutes and sightsee the rest — but if you are certain you never want the controls, you are paying for an instructor's full attention that you do not intend to use, and we will say so.
- You are over the weight limit. Limits are 180 lb per person and 360 lb combined in the Piper Warrior, 200 lb and 400 lb combined in the Cirrus SR22 (Cirrus SR series reference), and none at all in the simulator. If you are close, call (818) 330-1318 before you pay. We would far rather have that conversation on the phone than turn you away at the door.
Be Among The First To Fly With Us
New businesses need early customers who are willing to take a chance, and they are worth being honest with. If you book one of the first flights with You Fly LA, here is what we would ask and what we offer.
We will fly you exactly as described on this site, at the price shown, with an FAA-certificated instructor, out of Van Nuys Airport. If anything about the experience falls short of that, tell us directly on (818) 330-1318 and we will fix it before you write anything anywhere. We answer the phone from 9 AM to 9 PM, seven days a week, and it is an instructor on the other end rather than a call center.
And if the hour lands the way we think it will — if you come back down talking about yourself rather than about the view — a review is the single most useful thing you can give a new business. Say what actually happened, including anything that did not go perfectly. That is the review that helps the next person decide.
How To Leave A Review Once You've Flown
- Tell your instructor first, especially if something was not right. Most things can be fixed on the spot or on the next flight.
- Call us on (818) 330-1318 if you would rather raise something with the owner. We would genuinely rather hear it from you than read it later.
- Then write it publicly if you want to. Detail helps: which flight you booked, which airplane, what the weather did, and whether you actually got to fly it.
Which Flight Should A First-Timer Book?
If you are flying alone and want the straightforward answer, the 60-minute Discovery Flight In Los Angeles at $229 is the one most people should book. If you want someone with you, the Discovery Flight For Two Over Downtown Los Angeles at $299 puts them in the back with a headset. For a birthday, an anniversary or a proposal, the Luxury Cirrus SR22 flight at $499 ($599 with a passenger) is the one people plan an occasion around, and the 90-minute Malibu Coast flight at $399 buys the time to follow the shoreline rather than turn at it.
Buying for somebody else? A You Fly LA gift card at any of thirteen amounts from $189 to $1,149 lets them pick their own date and their own airplane, which is the version of this gift that actually gets used.
Fly First, Then Tell Us What You Think
Discovery flights over Los Angeles from Van Nuys Airport, from $229. Free rescheduling up to 24 hours before · if the weather says no, you do not pay.
Book A Discovery Flight →More detail before you decide: Discovery Flight FAQ · The Airplanes You'll Fly · Flying Out Of Van Nuys Airport · About You Fly LA · Contact You Fly LA.
