Flight School in Helsinki – Earn Your Pilot Licence (PPL/LAPL)

The typical training duration is 3–9 months at your own pace. You can progress entirely on your own schedule alongside work or studies.

Flight training takes place at Nummela Airfield, located about 50 km from Helsinki city centre – approximately 50 minutes by car or 1 h 20 min by bus. About 30 minutes by car from Espoo city centre. Our club room is at Malmi Airport in Helsinki.

The estimated total cost for a LAPL(A) licence is approximately €9,400 and for a PPL(A) licence approximately €13,100. Prices include both theory training and practical flight training.

No prior experience is needed! Our training is designed for complete beginners. Everything you need is included in our training programmes.

Theory training is entirely online, self-paced and in English. The learning platform works on Windows, Mac, iPad and iPhone – study wherever and whenever you like.

Contact our training organisation by email at koulutus@mik.fi. You can also ask any questions you may have. If you are not yet a member, the next step is joining the club. The membership form is available on the club website. Once you have joined and told us you want to start the theory course, you will receive an invoice for the theory course. After payment, you get access credentials for the learning platform. If you are not assigned your own flight instructor at this stage, contact the training organisation. You will receive your instructor's contact details and can agree training flight times together.

Training flights are primarily flown with the Diamond DV20 (OH-IHQ).

You must be a club member throughout the training period. If you need to discontinue your licence course for any reason, there are no extra cancellation costs. You only pay as your training progresses. During the course, you do commit to adopting good airmanship and enjoying the joy of aviation.

We provide training every day of the week from morning to evening. Our instructors are professionals and teach either as their main occupation or alongside other flying work. Training slots are bookable, so you do not need to wait at the airfield for an instructor to become available.

The licence course begins with starting theory studies. Before that, it is advisable to obtain a medical certificate (Class 2 or LAPL) so there are no unpleasant surprises later in training. You can start flying at the same time as the theory course. On the first training flights, you and your instructor go through the basics of flying, such as straight-and-level flight, turns and altitude changes. Next comes landing practice. After that comes the first solo flight. Before your first solo, you must complete the following theory subjects: air law, principles of flight, aircraft general knowledge, and radiotelephony. The first solo flight is flown in the vicinity of the departure aerodrome. After the first solo, training continues with navigation flights and student solo flights. The navigation phase is more extensive in the PPL course than in the LAPL course. The phase is crowned by a student solo cross-country flight, the length of which depends on the intended licence. In the final phase of the PPL course, you also fly basic instrument training. At this stage, you practise flying solely by reference to instruments without external visual reference. This skill is useful if you later unexpectedly encounter poor weather. The licence course ends with a skill test flight, and passing it completes the course.

The theory course is completed on an electronic learning platform at the student's own pace. The study language is English. The PPL/LAPL theory course consists of nine subjects. Of these, air law, principles of flight, aircraft general knowledge and radiotelephony must be fully completed before the first solo flight. In addition to online studies, each subject exam must be passed no later than before the end of the course in a Traficom-organised examination session. The pass mark is 75%. Each exam contains 20 multiple-choice questions.

A Class 2 medical or LAPL medical can be issued by an Aviation Medical Examiner (AME). A list of AMEs and their contact details is available on Traficom's website.

No. You can fly your first training flight with an instructor before starting the theory course, and only after that decide whether you want to start theory and continue flights. Please note that you must be a club member.

The theory course and exams are the same for both licences. Training flights up to the first solo flight are also the same for both licences. So the decision does not necessarily need to be made immediately. If you have a LAPL licence, you can later upgrade it to a PPL licence.

Yes. A PPL licence is accepted in all ICAO states, which in practice means worldwide. A LAPL licence is well suited within Europe, as EASA states accept it.

Most destinations in Estonia are reachable with the club fleet in a little over an hour. MIK has organised a Europe trip in several years, offering members a low-threshold opportunity to go beyond nearby countries. With a larger group and by rotating crews along the route, costs stay reasonable, and newer pilots naturally learn international flying from more experienced pilots.

Yes. Please note that with a LAPL licence, passenger-carrying privileges require 10 flight hours after the licence has been issued.

After completing training, you can transition to flying our other club aircraft, the Diamond DA40 NG (OH-STL). Transition requires aircraft familiarisation with a club instructor. At the same time, you will also complete difference training for single-lever power control and a glass cockpit. The club encourages cross-country flying, allowing you to combine aviation with travel and discovering new places. Outside the club there are also numerous ways to progress as a pilot, for example in aerobatics or instrument flying. It is not worth flying only local flights, as those become repetitive quite quickly.

The licence itself remains valid indefinitely. However, maintaining privileges differs between PPL and LAPL licences. With a PPL licence, you are issued an SEP(land) class rating. This rating allows you to fly single-engine piston aircraft with wheels. The SEP(land) class rating is valid for 2 years. To keep it valid, during the 12 months preceding the rating expiry date you must fly at least 12 hours, including at least 6 hours as pilot-in-command and at least 12 landings. In addition, you must complete at least a one-hour refresher training flight with an instructor. If this recent experience is not met, no worries - you can renew the rating with a proficiency check flight with an examiner. With a LAPL licence, you are issued SEP(land) privileges. These privileges do not have a fixed expiry date; validity is based on rolling experience over the last 24 months. During the last 24 months you must complete at least 12 hours, including at least 6 hours as pilot-in-command, at least 12 landings, and at least a one-hour refresher training flight with an instructor. It is the pilot's responsibility to ensure recent-experience requirements are met. If they are not, the privileges can be renewed with a proficiency check flight with an examiner.