From my son Rick: 17 y/o PPL here. UAA's KPOC school offers professional yet welcoming environment. The staff are extremely friendly with a nice facility located on the Northwest end of the field. To add some perspective, you hear about 17 year old birthday checkrides, and 40 hour check rides, but not both. I came into UAA with absolutely no stick time and left as a flight school record holder with my checkride which was done on my 17th birthday @40 hours. This would not have been possible without my CFI/CFII Vishwa Ravichandran, who made this possible by going out of his way to customize a training regimen for me to make it happen. Extremely selfless yet knowledgeable individual who cares about teaching his students, and making each student better than the last passed checkride. My very first interaction with him was when he allowed me to borrow his headset when mine had an issue on my very second flight. He became my primary CFI immediately following this. My previous CFI, from the KEMT location, was inconsistent with scheduling and it felt as if I was acting as a passenger in the pilots seat as opposed to investing in a hands-on learning experience. Compare this Vishwa's constant attention to the little things, which are the reason why I passed my checkride at my age with such a low flight time. UAA's KPOC location offers a greater environment for students. My father obtained his rotor wing PPL at 68 hours at the KEMT location, and obviously myself at 40 at KPOC. I will let the hours speak for themselves. Great school with great people, highly recommend. read more

I just completed my demo flight and it was such a great experience. Before the flight my instructor Soo went over some basic information about the instruments and what to expect during the flight. He did the pre flight check and explained everything he was doing thoroughly. So much great information. Before I knew it, we were taking off and he was  allowing me to take the controls at times. It was such a thrill, at times I was nervous but he was so nice to remind me to take my time and have fun! I really did have such a great time and look forward to flying with him in the future. read more

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Despite my low amount of hours before joining, I think I have flown enough with Universal to be able to give a decent review. I used to fly with CFI Rita at the Brackett location and was then handed off to CFI Vishwa, a new instructor, at the same location due to Rita's busy schedule. I truly appreciated how he got very detailed into the flight process and the first time we flew together, he made sure to simplify everything to my understanding, especially on how to land the plane, even getting me to land the plane with ease. The transition between the CFIs was smooth and it cemented my belief that I had been given an excellent instructor. I used to fly with the other location in El Monte and I just wanted to say the customer service aspect of Brackett is significantly better and for my specific situation, they were much more accomodating. Overall, I highly recommend this flight school to anyone interested in pursuing their Part 61 flight training. read more

Great Price. so anyone can not resist the school to fly with. No Gps C172 for $105/h it is nice to fly if you are pilot rated. Instruction was went up high at $75/h. I went to Part 141 El Monte first and realized they are all wanna be ATP from other country speak with a lot their accent. and they also needed flight hours. so CFIs never given the instruction schedule personally end up with in the dedicated pattern practice for spending 45hrs! Tried here and met another instructor finally sign me off for Traffic Solo at 60hrs. I would recommend to be at Bracket Field UAA if you can speak English and you are US citizen. Happy Flying! read more

I successfully attained my Private Pilot's Certificate today with 54 hours flying time. I couldn't have done this if not for the encouragement and commitment of my instructors, Alexis, Dave and Tim as well as the office manager, Human, and the ladies who keep the schedule straight. Although I budgeted financially to attain this goal, the rate per flying hour and instructors at UAA are very reasonable and allowed me to afford additional flying time to become proficient in my skills. Although the equipment is a bit older, their air worthiness was never an issue for me. They are serviced and maintained as required by FAA standards. Also the manager responds to matters brought to his attention. These are training aircraft, so don't expect perfect aesthetics. However, be assured though that they are adequate for safe flight training. One of the other things that I was impressed with about the instructors and staff at UAA was that it's not about needlessly taking your money. On more than one occasion as my practical tests were getting close and my flying skills were proficient, they suggested not spending more than needed to maintain my skills. There were times where my instructors spent time with me after my lesson and did not charge me. That's commitment to the student and not about the money. So much appreciated!! One last note about the instructors at UAA...not just mine, but all the ones I had the pleasure to meet, is that they are committed to your training so that you can meet your goal of attaining your Private Pilot Certification. They want you to succeed as much as I wanted to. My instructors were just as happy and proud as I was today when I was handed my temporary Private Pilot Certificate. I highly recommend UAA as a location to learn and train to be a Private Pilot. You will not be disappointed. Godspeed! read more

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The best pilot training program in all of so cal. Amazing trainers (Ka the trainer is very skilled and calm) making it easy to learn and not be afraid. Great prices and equipment. Highly recommend read more

I've got my private instrument commercial and CFI here at universal air academy. They are in these business for over 20 years with is not really common in aviation training business. Great staff with very professional way to achieve your aviation goal. Flight Training businesses is one of those that you want to make sure you're in good hand during your course. Here at universal they just not looking to get your money and provide you with some service but also In fact here they are giving you exceptional training with very responsible price. All the management from Alex, Majid, Houman are doing the best to give you the training that works the best for each individual. I'm also an A&P mechanic myself and i can say their mechanic Gary is doing a great job by keeping all planes airworthy and in a great shape. I have flown over 2000 hours in different places here is west cost and universal is one of the few that i can trust the plane and all the required paperwork that is critical for flight... I want nothing but best for these people and hope they getting bigger and better every day read more

This school is the flight school you want to go to. The planes are great and the instructors are top notch. Their not hour hunting they really want you to learn, I've been going here since half way thru my training for my private and I'm going to be an instructor here soon, that's how much I love this place! Thanks universal! read more

I obtained all my certificates from private - cfii here at universal. This is not your typical big name flight school that is after your money. I found this to be the best choice when it came to pricing in all of SoCal. Many of the instructors here are prior students who also got their ratings at this school. Myself included. Instructors here really do want you to succeed and will help you in any way they can. As a student and instructor I found that the front desk/dispatchers are a great help! Till this day I still rent with them. read more

I took the FAA written exam here for my private pilot. The process went extremely smoothly, and the test environment was free of distractions! It's a great place to take your written exams if you haven't already. The staff are very nice and accommodating. Overall, no complaints! read more

I didn't really know what level of training I had received at Universal Air Academy until I went to a different flying school. I received about 55 hours of flight training at Universal and was endorsed by my instructor to get my CHECKRIDE which I utterly failed. You just do not know what you don't know. After getting subsequent training at another flight school I realized how poorly I had been trained at Universal. The training was really substandard even though I really personally liked each of my instructors. I had three different instructors over a one year period because once they got the required flying hours they would quit instructing and get a job with an airline. read more

Hey I'm a pilot in the SoCal area and just came here to get my ifr currency back. Plane was kept well and prices were cheap making it pretty valuable to the already licensed pilot. Cannot comment on the taking a course but will be sure to come back if I need to add another endorsement or rating to my logbook. read more

I did my instrument Rating at Universal Air Academy in 2012. I still fly at this Academy with my friends and family members. They are the most friendly and professional people in Southern California. BRACKETT Field has professional staff from traffic controller to fuel service people. I would recommend this Flight Academy to anyone. And the prices are just Right ! Gary Kevorkian read more

Where do I begin? My journey to my private pilot license began with a phone call to this location. I spoke with Kathy who was wonderful and immediately set me at ease and helped me decide that this was the place for me. She was so kind and friendly over the phone I HAD to go visit this school even if just to meet her. When I got there I was not disappointed. She was like a mother and the rest of the staff there were like family as well. My first instructor Jason Lowry was absolutely wonderful. He took me on a discovery flight (I had never been in a helicopter before that day) and immediately reinforced my decision that this was the place for me. My training with him was awesome and I was excited for each new day to fly with him. He was knowledgeable, patient, and just downright good-natured. Halfway through my training I had another instructor, Shin Tatsuki. I must say it was an adjustment but I feel like I got the best of both worlds. Flying with Shin helped me to fine tune the skills that I had learned with Jason. He was humble and had great patience (which I know I tried on many days ^_^). But when it was all said and done Jason and Shin had me ready for my checkride which I passed with high praise from the examiner. The entire staff from the fuel servicemen, the receptionists (Kathy and Adriana), the other pilots, and even the traffic controllers are friendly, encouraging, and kind. I couldn't have asked for a better place to have the opportunity to embark upon this journey. Between the great people and the good prices I was able to fulfill a lifelong dream. I'm finally a pilot. If you are looking for a place to fly this is it! Look no further! To my Universal family thank you for everything. I look forward to coming back and furthering my piloting career with your school. May God bless you all. - Jaharah Muhammad read more

Excellent instructors and excellent price! 1st choice if you are interested in flying or learning how to fly.