Student checking the fuel cap on the wing of a Cessna during a preflight at Fox Field

Instructing vs. Renting to Build 1,500 Hours

Two real ways to log the hours an airline ATP needs, compared on cost, logging and schedule.

The Crossroads

Both routes log real hours, and they feel very different

After training you still need roughly 1,250 hours to reach 1,500. Pilots build them in two main ways: by working as a flight instructor, or by renting aircraft and flying on their own schedule.

Both routes put legitimate time in your logbook. The difference is who pays for the aircraft, which hours count as pilot in command, and how much control you have over your calendar. Our guide on the cost of building 1,500 hours covers the numbers in more depth.

Talk to an Instructor

Not sure which route fits you?

Instructor and student inside a cockpit at MH Aviation

The two routes side by side

Each row is a difference you can check. The cost row is arithmetic from a $170 per hour wet rate, not a quote, and your own rates and schedule will change the totals.

What matters to you	Instructing as a CFI	Renting aircraft
Who pays for the flying	Your students	You
Aircraft cost to you for 1,250 hours at $170 wet	$0 for the aircraft	$212,500
You earn income while you build hours	Yes	No
Certificate you need first	Flight instructor (CFI) certificate	Pilot certificate with ratings for the aircraft
Pilot-in-command time you can log	All instructional flight time while serving as the authorized instructor	Time as sole manipulator of the controls or sole occupant
You control your own schedule	No	Yes
Where your cross-country time comes from	Cross-country instruction and your own trips	Trips you plan and fly yourself
Builds teaching skill and ground instruction experience	Yes	No

Choose Instructing If

Instructing fits the career pilot who wants the hours paid for

Choose instructing if your goal is the airlines and you want your hours to build income instead of debt. You will log pilot-in-command time on every instructional flight, strengthen your fundamentals by teaching them, and finish with the CFI certificate that most plans are built around.

It also fits you if you can accept that your schedule follows student demand. The Zero to Airlines program is built around this route, and MH Aviation prioritizes its own graduates for instructor positions, subject to availability and performance. Our CFI guide covers the certificate.

See Zero to Airlines

Instructing is the bridge in the program

Flight instructor and student with a checklist at MH Aviation

Choose Renting If

Renting fits the pilot who needs control of the calendar

Choose renting if you cannot commit to a student schedule, or if you only need a limited number of cross-country or multi-engine hours to close a gap in your logbook. You plan the trips, you pick the days, and you stay in control of when you fly.

The trade is cost. Every hour is yours to pay for, so renting works best for targeted blocks, not for the whole 1,250. Pay-as-you-go pricing lets you spread those blocks over months, and our multi-engine time-building guide shows how to plan them.

View Our Rates

Price a targeted block of hours

Student pilot in the cockpit at MH Aviation

Decide With Real Numbers

Pick The Route
That Fits Your Plan

Tell us your goals and your schedule, and an instructor will help you choose how to build your hours.