Absolutely amazing flight with a nice instructor. Such a wonderful experience. Absolutely worth it…read more Wil definitely do it again. Thank you.

I booked a discovery flight with CityWings at Pilot Pete's as a birthday gift for my husband, and…read moreoverall it ended up being a really memorable experience. Our reservation was scheduled for 4:00 PM, and when we arrived there was a sign outside instructing guests to call or text a phone number upon arrival. I immediately sent a text and waited, but after about 10 minutes I still hadn't received a response. I then tried calling the number multiple times with no luck. By this point, I was getting a little concerned because there wasn't anyone around to check us in or let us know what was going on. Thankfully, a kind gentleman nearby offered to walk across to one of the airport buildings to ask about our reservation. Shortly after, Victoria came out to greet us. She was incredibly sweet, apologetic, and explained that they hadn't realized we were waiting. Unfortunately, by that point it was already around 4:30 PM. Despite the rough start, Victoria completely turned the experience around. She was knowledgeable, professional, and took the time to explain everything thoroughly. She made us feel comfortable and excited about the flight. One of the coolest parts was that she even let my husband take control of the aircraft for a bit, which made the experience even more special. A few things to know before booking: the Discovery Flight is around $100 and only accommodates two people--the instructor and one guest. If you're planning this as a gift, keep that in mind. My biggest complaint was the communication. Ironically, the phone number I had been texting and calling didn't return my call until around 6:00 PM, after the flight was already over and I was practically home. That was definitely disappointing and something I think could be improved. That being said, the actual flight experience was fantastic and made for a unique birthday gift. Everyone we interacted with was friendly and professional. There was another flight company across the airport that appeared to have a more traditional reception area and staff available on-site, although it was significantly more expensive. It may be worth researching both options depending on the experience you're looking for. Overall, I would absolutely recommend CityWings for anyone interested in a discovery flight. Just make sure to confirm your reservation and arrival instructions beforehand. Thanks to Victoria, what started as a frustrating experience ended up becoming a birthday memory we'll always remember.

This flight school is one of the finest flight school in Chicagoland and most likely in the…read moreMidwest. My background was establishing and selling to Fixed based Operators the Cessna Pilot Center program. So I spent a LONG time visiting flighr schools in the Midwest. Carolinas. Tenn , Kentucky Virginia,Ohio Michigan The Professional standards intimidate some. I get that. But if your looking to fly the best of the best. Fly here It is more money but I think my life and passengers are worth it Up to you.

They closed suddenly within the last year or so. I had paid for a discovery flight which they…read morerescheduled several times due to bad weather, and when I called back to reschedule once again, no one answered. I learned Dean Ellis shut down operations abruptly and I can't get a refund.Apparently Dean also owes his former employees money but he disappeared. I tried contacting multiple people to get a refund but they were unable to help. What a shitty thing to do.

We were gifted an experience as Chicago Executive flight school and it was a memory for a lifetime!…read moreI'm not sure why anyone wouldn't choose this experience to fly over a tour. Not only do you learn SO much cool information about how flights work, the plane, weather and so much more, but being in the plane for an hour getting to ACTUALLY fly the plane is an unbelievable life experience! I also love that you get to bring a passenger and if you can continue on with more flight lessons too. Absolutely one of the coolest and best things to do in Chicago! Thank you Chief Pilot Jim for an incredible and safe experience! Would highly recommend to anyone!

Dear Jakob kieldbierg Instructor you are amazing I would…read morelike to sincerely thank you for the wonderful Discovery Flight experience I had with you. It was very valuable to me and increased my motivation and passion for flying. I also truly appreciate your guidance and patience during the lesson. I am very glad I had this opportunity, and I look forward to learning more from your knowledge and experience in the future. Best regards, Selina

Alex, Pete & Charlie are hands down the most knowledgeable CFIs in Chicago. Whether you are…read moreinterested in starting your aviation career or are looking for a fun Chicago skyline tour, Aeronautics Academy is the place to go!!!

If I could rate this school a zero I would. If you're thinking about learning how to fly, do not go…read morethere. They charge $260 an hour just to be on ground half of the times to practice very far away from Midway. Most of the practices are done at Lewis or Lansing, so why not check out their schools instead if you are commuting all the way there already. One time Abel took me all the way to Kankakee to practice. What a waste of money and time. The instructors don't care about you and they are only hungry for money and building their time. Abel and Alex really suck. Abel does not really know how to teach and needs to work on his confidence. Thy never debrief after or brief before and would still charge for ground every single time. The two planes they have are very clapped out and don't even come with modern technologies such as GPS since they're too cheap. Just do not go to this school, very bad idea.

I did my initial training with API back in 2007 and have worked with them on my instrument rating…read moreas well. The head of the flight school, Bill has been working in the aviation business, teaching people to fly for the past 30 years (maybe more, I would have to ask him). They have developed their lesson plans over this time period and he has a very specific way he has instructors teach you how to fly. This way you not only get a method that works (at least for me it did) but you get consistency across students and instructors. The great thing is Bill really looks after his students and tries to make their flights productive. I love the fact that when I show up for a winter flight around 8am, I usually find they were out at the airplanes with a propane heater in the cold heating up the engine for me so I could spend more time flying and less time getting ready. Before I had a car, I would take the orange line to midway and bill or an instructor would pick me up from the train station for my flights and take me back when I was done. The office feels very comfortable and I have spent hours there just talking (hanger flying) with Bill, his instructors, and anyone who walks in the door. Anyone who has questions about my experience with aviation professionals is free to PM me but I would recommend giving them a call and they will answer any questions you have.

Bill was extremely friendly and helpful from the first time that I scheduled the FAA 107 exam until…read moreI walked out today with a passing grade. He seems to really care about people who are taking the exam and he wants everyone to do well. He walked me step by step on what the next steps were and adequately answered all of my questions. A huge bonus is that he's open 7 days a week which is very accommodating to business professionals. I appreciate his efforts and would recommend him to anyone considering doing business with API.

Our pilot Wayne, was waiting for us when we arrived. He was impeccably dressed, and the…read moreprofessionalism was evident. Wayne gave us a very thorough safety briefing, and the tour was beyond spectacular. I'm not a helicopter pilot, but you'd have thought he was a decorated pilot from the military!! (Too young to be 'Nam) It was a very enjoyable experience. I can not recommend them highly enough!!!

I think HeliChicago has the most attractive pilots and definitely the most attractive helicopters…read morein the entire Chicagoland area. If you want to try THE most fun way to see the city, this is it - without a doubt. ;-] I loved both flights I flew on: one 45 minute tour of downtown and one 30 minute tour of the NW burbs (which was surprisingly fun- especially experiencing how the helicopter can maneuver).

Excellent service by the very experienced staff. Long history of propeller repair and technical…read moreinformation of all types.

I couldn't find a review page for AM Air Service (also at Schaumburg Airport) on Yelp so this will…read morehave to do since Chris Bachman, the man behind Bachman Aero, runs AM Air Service as well. The difference between the introductory helicopter flight in Bachman Aero and AM Air Service is the kind of helicopter you fly. With AM Air Service, you get to fly a Hughes 369A which can hold 3 people plus the pilot, whereas the helicopter used in Bachman Aero is a Hughes 269 and can only hold 1 person besides the pilot. I did the AM Air Service's 30 min flight session which cost $375 whereas if I had done the Bachman Aero one, it would've cost around $150 (a lot of groupon ads for this one). The reason why I did the AM Air Service one was because I am in the middle of creating a movie and wanted shots of me flying a helicopter. And AM Air Service was the only one that let me bring a passenger along (you can ONLY bring just 1 other passenger even though there's room for 2 in the back...probably has to do with safety regulations). So I flew the helicopter in the front while my brave girlfriend did a fantastic job at holding the GoPro cam with her dear life getting the best angle shots. Now for the actual experience... We arrived about 15 mins late (which I felt really bad about since the directions tell you to arrive 15 mins early) but Chris Bachman, our pilot was super chill about it! Right away, I knew that this was going to be a really pleasant experience. Chill people are the best. It took us only 2 mins after arriving at the airport to park the car, and get inside the helicopter! Chris sat next to me up front and explained all the controls and dials. Then he started the engine and within minutes, we were airborne! And holy crap, it was sensational. Pure joy. Oh yeah, and might I remind you all the doors were open, so when the helicopter did sharp turns, your seatbelt became your best friend. After a several minutes of further explaining the controls, Chris told me to take the controls and I flew it (with some difficulty at first) over a highway and past some of the most peaceful and affluent neighborhoods I've seen. You think that it's easy to control a helicopter until you actually have to do so. The control is extremely sensitive and will definitely take time to get used to for a lot of us. But this just added to the experience. Not going to lie, but I felt really cool talking on the headset and following a highway down below me. Felt like I was reporting a highway chase. After flying for about 25 mins, we made our way back to the airport and land gracefully. He asked us if we had any questions and after a little more talking, we were on our way back home. All under an hour! It was definitely one of the coolest (if not the coolest) things we had in our life. Chris Bachman really knows his stuff and makes sure you have the best time while you're there. So if whoever is reading this wants to fly a helicopter, Chris Bachman is definitely your guy! If you have a little more money to spend or just really want to share this experience with a friend, then I suggest going to http://www.amairservice.com/introductory-helicopter-flight-lessons-and-rides and calling the number at the bottom of the page to request your flight. You're going to have a blast! OH, and if you're going to take a friend, have them record the whole thing. It'll be worth it.

Is this business closed? I called and left TWO more messages this past week and still have not…read moregotten a call back.