You've watched the planes long enough
MAFC isn't a flight school — it's something better for a lot of people: a club where instruction happens between members, in member-owned aircraft, at member prices. Here's how people like you become pilots here, come back to flying here, and stay flying here.
The club path to a certificate
Aircraft at cost, instructors at member rates, and about a year of Saturdays — typically half or less of what flight schools quote for the same FAA certificate. The difference isn't the training; it's who's profiting.
Join as a student member
No license needed — most members joined exactly this way. You get a mentor, clubhouse access, and a room full of pilots who remember their first lesson.
Start your application online →Pick your instructor
The club maintains a roster of Board-approved, FAA-certificated flight instructors — fellow members, many actively taking new students. You choose who you click with and arrange lessons directly.
Meet the instructors →Fly at member rates
Train in the same $89/hr-dry Skyhawks you'll fly afterward (wet cost varies with fuel price). Instructors charge $50–$75/hr — well below school rates — and there's no package to pre-pay, ever.
See the fleet & rates →Earn your certificate
Typically 60–70 flight hours over about a year, at a pace you set. Then keep flying the same airplanes, with the same people, for the same honest rates.
A note on how this works: the club itself doesn’t sell flight training. Instruction is arranged directly between you and a Board-approved club instructor, and only club instructors may teach in club aircraft. In practice that means better instructors — every one of them is a member who answers to the people they fly with.
It's been years. So what?
Life happened — kids, career, the price of avgas. Your logbook has a gap and your certificate has dust on it. You are our favorite kind of new member, and the road back is shorter than you remember.
Your certificate never expired
A U.S. pilot certificate is good for life. What you need is a flight review (14 CFR 61.56), a medical — and BasicMed has made that dramatically simpler for most private flying — and some time with a patient instructor.
Knock the rust off at club rates
A typical comeback runs a handful of hours of dual: airwork, landings, airspace and avionics catch-up. At $89/hr dry plus a club CFI, that's hundreds of dollars, not thousands.
Structure that keeps you current
The club's 6-month proficiency check with a club instructor isn't a hoop — it's the reason our insurance is affordable and our rusty pilots stay un-rusty. Add monthly safety seminars and there's always a next step.
People to fly with
The hardest part of coming back is going alone. Here you don't: fly-outs, right seats to fill, and members who've all made the same return trip.
Do the math against your FBO
Estimates for typical New Jersey FBO rentals; your mileage may vary. Ours won't — rates are published, set by the Board, and cover cost.
| MAFC | Typical FBO rental | |
|---|---|---|
| Skyhawk rental, per hour | $89–$100 dry (≈ $144–$155 wet, fuel-dependent) | $180–$220 wet |
| Instructor, per hour | $50–$75 | $80–$110 |
| Renter's insurance | Included in dues | $300–$600/yr |
| Weekend / overnight trips | Normal (with Ops approval) | Daily minimums, if allowed |
| Typical path to a private certificate | Roughly half of school pricing | $15,000–$20,000 |
| Who profits | Nobody — 501(c)(7) non-profit | The FBO |
Plus the things a table can’t hold: ratings to chase with club CFIs, a G1000 to transition into, and a calendar full of excuses to fly.
Every pilot in the club once stood where you are.
Watching airplanes, wondering if it was really possible. It was. Come to a meeting and ask them yourself — third Saturday, 9:00 AM, Lakewood Airport.
Questions? Call Mark Sheprow, Membership Officer — 732.685.3473