My daughter he's been flying with EFI for several years. She's almost ready to solo, and I can…read moreattest that everyone at EFI has been amazing. From the front desk to the instructors to the team ensuring that the aircraft are ready to safely fly, every flight has been safe and above expectations. My daughter is planning to become a military or commercial pilot, and EFI gave her a wonderful foundation.

so much fun doing a one hour lesson in December 2023. My instructor was super helpful and I love…read morethat there's an option to bring other people along.

I have been fortunate enough to be a student a Pinnacle completing my private, instrument,…read morecommercial, and certified flight instructor ratings through their partnership with Liberty University. Whether you're looking for part 141 or 61 instruction Pinnacle offers everything in a professionally structured format to meet your needs. The aircraft are well maintained and dependable. In my opinion, this school has the highest quality instructors and ownership at CRQ. Check out their website to gather more information. This is your spot if you're looking to all things related to aviation training, especially if you want to utilize your GI Bill or gain a bachelors degree as a professional pilot while earning your ratings.

Look around- there are better values and more efficient processes for student pilots. Very nice…read morepeople just limited motivation to progress student pilots. Issues future students should be aware of that are unique to pinnacle.  First, pinnacle does not allow touch and gos.  This maximizes profits by likely lowering their insurance rates. This means you will not get nearly enough landings to gain competency quickly.  We spent $25,000 and after 70 hours of flight time, 120 landings and probably another 40 hours of ground time as well as near 22 months w/ no solo approval.  Lots of 'stalling' with instructors drilled by the owner to really wait generate more hours billed. Presolo is treated like an IFR checkride. . As soon as we left solo.   At a busy airport like CRQ you will spend lots of extra money on the ramp due to unqie no touch and go policy.  Pinnacle pays their instructors just a fraction of the total, so on the positive side very nice people and quite a lucrative business with good margins.

Terrorizing and dive bombing Carlsbad neighborhoods everyday. This inconsiderate club of sky…read morelawnmowers buzz people's homes at low altitudes daily, operate deliberately outside of Carlsbad's voluntary noise abatement procedure a spew leaded fuel exhaust all over people's neighborhoods. They simply refuse to be a good neighbor and make aviation in act of torture.

Best flying club in San Diego county, bar none. Great scheduling system, aircraft & avionics, and…read moreplenty of knowledgeable CFIs. And most importantly, aircraft maintenance is excellent thanks to the involvement of club leadership and aircraft owners. I got my instrument, commercial and CFI at PCF, and regularly use their aircraft for cross-country flying. I have experience flying with other clubs in the area, and this one is the best.

I did an instructional cross country to from Palomar to Santa Barbara, as I needed a refresher on…read moretransitioning Class B and landing on Class C. Frank is very knowledgeable about the airspace in Southern California, and set me up with great procedures for future flights. I highly recommend.

Franc has a fantastic disposition as an instructor. We recently went out for an IFR profiency…read moreflight. He is very thoughtful to not engage and give you the required workload then coach you through when you need it. Had a great training flight in IMC and even an unconventional 115 degree localizer Intercept. Looking forward to more flight time with Franc.

Flight training with Joe has been great. He takes his time and gives the individualized instruction…read moreyou want. He's a pleasure to talk to as he guides you through the whole process. I would highly recommended Joe Scarcella to anyone looking to learn how to fly.

I have flown a few times with Joe instructing me in working toward my glider rating. He is a great…read moreinstructor and conveys the knowledge clearly so you can correct anything you are doing wrong. As well as providing needed encouragement when doing things correctly. Taking on a powered or glider rating is a big undertaking both in study and flight experience, so it can be daunting and discouraging. Having an instructor who helps you to not form bad habits while helping to make you a better (and safer!) pilot is essential. While also reminding you of the fun it is to fly even when you are stressed out trying to perfect your skills.

I recently met with Omar to discuss the 9 month Airline Pilot Program. After researching different…read moreflight schools in the area (ATP, Orange County Flight Center, Spartan College) I was a bit overwhelmed with my options for how to begin my career as a pilot. Omar took the time to meet with me and answer all my questions and so far, I'm very impressed. I'd like to think I'm a good judge of character and I never got the feeling that Omar and the team is just there to take your money, but rather to help you start flying! Nice people, nice facilities, and nice location (I much prefer SNA to LAX lol). I'm very excited to take the next step and enroll in the Airline Pilot Program and I look forward to flying with y'all soon!

Not one to typically write reviews, but wanted to share my experience at this school. I started my…read moreprivate training here (I am now a CFI) and have been to a total of 5 flight schools throughout my training, due to moving for college. OCFL was unfortunately my least favorite by far. What caused me to eventually leave and find a new school was a transponder issue on my night flight to Camarillo. A transponder is required equipment when flying through LA airspace, and ATC reminded us that we are not allowed to fly through the LA airspace with this issue. My instructor wisely chose to land at Van Nguys Airport instead of (illegally) flying back to John Wayne. Yes it's inconvenient, but certainly the safe (and legal) choice. He called Omar, the owner, to notify him of this inconvenience. Omar then proceeded to get upset with my instructor because of the time and money it would cost to pick up the airplane in Van Nguys. Omar advised that my instructor should've just flown over LAX, at night, and pretended to not notice to issue. This was years ago, but since then I have only heard of similar negative experiences from other past students of this school. Now that I am further along in my training, I see how dangerous this money-over-safety mentality truly is. I write this review only in hopes for other aviators to look for safer flight school options or for this school to hopefully institute some safer practices. Thank you!

Robbie has been my instructor so far at LTFSD and I couldn't ask more for this great experience. He…read morehas been beyond helpful when in the air, even outside of the plane and lessons when it comes to answering questions. He is very responsive and nice to see someone so invested in helping them out with their goals! I had been researching quite a few schools in the San Diego area for flying the past couple months and very excited I chose LTFSD. They have very flexible scheduling which is convenient when working full time. For their rates, customer service, and instructors, you can't beat a school like this. Looking forward to getting all my ratings here!

My son didn't connect with the instructor for the one flight and that's okay. He has close to 100…read morehours and with a newer CFI, it's understandable the degree about knowledge and trust initially can be difficult to ascertain but hours speak volumes (along with the variety of experiences) and my son mentioned this CFI was largely at controls most of the time and teaching at sea level didn't so much as occur (we are from Colorado). I get it and we did provide background and history and giving up controls can be hard as a new instructor and new-to-you student. Either way we would definitely fly with Learn to FLY SD again just with a more experienced instructor who can meet my son where he is at. Priced appropriately too which is a plus!