Pacific States Aviation - Concord, California

Jonathan A.

I obtained my PPL with the help of the good people at PSA, who were always supportive and had an interest in my success. My instructor Eva Robinson always made availability for me whenever I had a question or concern and was extremely knowledgable. She made safety her top priority, empowering me to complete the program with confidence.

dllund2

This has been an amazing flight school! I've been able to work with Shaun, Jackie, and Eva, and they have all been extremely helpful and patient! Recently, I have had the privilege of working with Eva and her ground knowledge is next level. I am thankful to have found a great flight school with an array of amazing people! I am also super appreciative of Dan and Kimmie taking the time to go over the process and my logbook to make sure I am on the right track.

Mark B.

Super professional and informative flight lesson. Fantastic staff that went the extra mile to accommodate due to inclement weather. Highly recommended !!

Daire L.

My wife got me the introductory flight lessons for my birthday. The instructor whose name was josuy was very good. I was able to take off in the airplane after the 30 minute tutorial that he gave me. He was Very knowledgeable about aviation and I had a great time.

Daniel N.

never been to this place but i already like it. i called looking for info on their part 141 flight school and the nice lady who answered was so nice, respectful and honest. She did not have all the info i needed but instead of making things up she asked for my contact info to give to the person who could answer the questions. that shows class and respect. even if i do not qualify for the school (and i hope i do) they get 5* just for being up front and honest.

Neel P.

I was a student pilot coming from out of state to continue my training at PSA. I can't emphasize enough that as a student pilot, PSA is one of the worst places you can go for multiple reasons:

They are one of the most expensive places in the area. Their plane rental is much higher than any other schools or rental places nearby. They also tack on a significant fuel surcharge making them even more expensive.

Along those lines, they also charge you instructor time for pre and post flight. The pre flight is because you have to fill out a form before every flight, and the instructor has to sign it. You won't even see your instructor for this time, but you pay for the privilege of their signature. They also charge you for signing your logbook after the flight.

The school will milk you for every single dime. I was a part 61 student, but they still force you to do the stage checks that part 141 students do. So you have to pay for these flights and instructors, and if you are ever so slightly out of the head instructor's preferences, you have to redo the entire flight with them costing you another couple hundred dollars.

The instructors are not versed in what the head instructor wants in a stage check. Because of this, you end up wasting a lot of time in training only to fail the stage check and then having to spend more money on more training and retaking the stage check. You are effectively paying to have PSA train their instructors.

The stage check examiner expects you to fly like he flies. As a student pilot, we're going to make mistakes. As long as these mistakes don't lead to dangerous situations, that should be ok. But they expect you to fly to commercial standards from the get-go.

And the final reason I left PSA was because of Jonathan Shand. Jonathan Shand is the worst person to fly with. He did my stage checks and will make you hate flying. I legitimately wanted to jump out of the plane after flying with him. He didn't explain what he wanted, and scrutinized me when I failed and overall makes you feel like the worst pilot in the world. After 10 hours of solo time, we were on a stage 2 check, and it wasn't going well. On the final landing, I was a little low (3 red, 1 white), and was trying to fix it, but then he took the controls and didn't allow me to continue. Even worse was he wouldn't even let me taxi back to the school. He made me feel like I was unfit to even touch the controls of the airplane. After that, I left the school and went to a different instructor. After the first flight with that instructor, he signed me off on solo and he just helped me tweak a few issues. I soon after got my checkride and I passed with flying colors. The DPE actually said "You fly really well." It just gave me one more signal that it wasn't me, but PSA and Jonathan Shand.

Shitij B.

One of the best experience I’ve had with an amazing instructor Captain Charles

Jeff L. (.

My daughter and I took a flying lesson from this company. Lots of fun. Educational. Enough to whet our interest. Worth the price. Tony from Thailand was our instructor. Excellent,pleasant, fun. Highly recommended.