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Europe · Authority: LBA and state authorities

Flight training in Germany

52 researched schools and 90 verified programs so far. This is the research done to date, not a complete list of every provider in Germany.

State:Baden-WürttembergBayernBrandenburgBremenHamburgHessenNiedersachsenNordrhein-WestfalenRheinland-PfalzSachsen-AnhaltSchleswig-Holstein

No coordinates are published for the bases in these results yet, so nothing can be plotted. The list below has every base.

All bases in these results

Results are listed alphabetically; there is no price ranking because prices in different currencies, price types and bases are not comparable. Schools marked Sponsored are paid placements and never change approval status or order.

About training in Germany

How pilot training is regulated

In Germany pilot licensing follows the EU aircrew rules (Part-FCL), with EASA setting the common rules and German authorities acting as competent authorities under the national personnel licensing ordinance (LuftPersV). The competent body for a given licence is stated on the licence itself, and responsibility is divided between the federal LBA and the state (Land) aviation authorities. Approved and declared training organisations fall partly to the LBA and partly to the state authorities, so a prospective student should check which authority supervises a given school. The LBA runs the theory examinations and recognises language-testing bodies.

Source: lba.de/DE/Luftfahrtpersonal/Lizenzierung/Lizen

Relevant aviation authorities

  • Luftfahrt-Bundesamt (LBA)Federal aviation authority: its Referat L4 handles licensing for applicants in its area of responsibility, Referat L1 handles approved and national training organisations within its remit, and it runs theory examinations, examiners and language-test oversight.
  • Landesluftfahrtbehörden (state aviation authorities)State aviation authorities are responsible for the approved (ATO) and declared (DTO) training organisations in their remit; the responsible licensing authority is the one entered on the licence.

Listing here does not imply affiliation. Flight School Atlas is independent of every aviation authority.

Training pathways

  • Training at an ATO or DTO

    Training organisations are approved (ATO) or declared (DTO); the responsible authority is either the LBA or the state authority.

    Source

  • Licensing by the competent authority

    Applications for changes to a licence are processed only by the authority entered on it.

    Source

Qualification terminology

Names and privileges are local to Germany. Similar names in other countries are not interchangeable.

CodeOfficial nameMinimum ageRegulatory minimum flight timeSource
PPLPrivatpilotenlizenz (Part-FCL)Private pilot licence under EU Part-FCL. EASA guidance for the aeroplane licence cites about 45 hours of flight instruction; the LBA pages retrieved state no figures.n/p45 hEASA general guidance for the PPL(A): around 45 hours of flight instruction. Confirm the Part-FCL text with the competent German authority.official
IRInstrumentenflugberechtigung (SE IR, ME IR, CB-IR, EIR)The LBA licensing page lists instrument ratings for aeroplanes including SE IR, ME IR and BIR, as well as CB-IR and EIR.n/pn/pofficial
FI/CRI/IRI/TRI/SFILehrberechtigungen (FI, CRI, IRI, TRI, SFI)Instructor ratings processed by the licensing authority; renewals require a valid medical certificate.n/pn/pofficial

A regulatory minimum is a legal floor for the qualification. It is not the number of hours most students need, and not a guarantee of cost or completion time.

Terms you will meet

ATO
Approved Training Organisation, approved by the LBA or a state aviation authority depending on remit.
DTO
Declared Training Organisation, supervised by the state aviation authority.
NTO
Nationale Ausbildungsorganisation: a national training organisation category listed by the LBA.
LuftPersV
The German ordinance on aviation personnel referenced by the LBA for competence and language requirements.

Medical, language and instruction

The LBA has an aviation medicine section for aeromedical matters under EU Part-MED; a valid medical certificate is a precondition for renewing certain ratings. Official medical information

ICAO language standards were implemented in German law in 2008; a language test can be combined with a radiotelephony certificate, and the LBA recognises language-testing bodies.

Languages of instruction among researched schools: German, English.

International students

Non-EU nationals should check German visa and residence rules with the German authorities and the school; no flight-training-specific official page was retrieved for this review and nothing here promises eligibility.

Training approval does not establish immigration permission or international-student eligibility. Verify current rules with the official sources above.

Foreign licences and conversion

The LBA licensing page mentions licensing of FAA licences under the U.S.-EU TIP-L arrangement and has pages for verification of licences; consult the LBA licensing forms for third-country conversions.

Country information last reviewed 16 October 2026. 5 official sources consulted.