Why Pick Us?
Moose Pass, Alaska on Trail Lake offers the best location, equipment and value while providing some of the most beautiful, yet challenging terrain and weather in the world. This combination gives you opportunities that develop flying skills that will provide you with experience and knowledge that will last through a lifetime of flying.
You will land on multiple mountain lakes, be challenged by different winds, shorelines and approaches.
Navigate glaciers, mountains, lakes and narrow sheer-walled valleys, all within six minutes of base and no ATC! Spend more time learning float and mountain flying techniques and less time droning cross country. If you can fly floats here, you can fly floats anywhere.
Below you can learn more about the Alaska Float Ratings experience.
Customer Reviews
If you could imagine flying in one of the most beautiful places on the planet, surrounded by majestic mountains, deep blue lakes around every ridge, seeing the big Alaskan brown bears, moose, bald eagles and big horn sheep on almost every flight, combined with the best float plane instruction you can get…..then you might be getting close to what its like to get your float plane rating at Alaska Float Ratings. It’s nothing short of amazing.
As a captain for Delta Airlines with over 18000 hours of flying time and prior experience in the USAF, night freight, corporate, and flight instructing, I was the low man on the ladder experience wise. The wisdom, expertise, and generations of experience that these flight instructors pass on to their students is invaluable. They’ve been teaching for a long time and their system and method of instruction are very well thought out and organized. Alaska Float Ratings is one of the most thorough, professional and safety conscious programs I’ve ever attended. I was challenged and I worked hard preparing both before and during the program, but there’s a saying in life that the more you put into something the more you get out of it and that definitely applies to his program. It has been one of the most rewarding experiences of my life…..like a good movie that you never want to end.
The day I finished my check ride my instructor and I flew up to this little hidden gem of a lake and caught rainbow trout on almost every cast. We were catching and releasing them but one got hooked pretty deep and didn’t survive. It was floating about 10 yards in front of us when a bald eagle swooped down with its talons extended and snatched it off the surface. It was a National Geographic moment.
Bottom line: I can’t imagine learning to fly float planes anywhere in the world that would surpass the experience at Alaska Float Ratings in Moose pass.
-Mez
“If you want more than just a rating, then go see Alaska Float Ratings. I highly recommend Alaska Float Ratings.”
– J.J. Frey (pictured), one of the most knowledgeable people in the world about seaplane flying, a sought-after speaker, author of the best selling book “How to Fly Floats” and former President of EDO
I recently earned my seaplane rating from Alaska Float Ratings and would highly recommend the operation for both the instruction and the setting. They’ve managed to create the single best learning environment that I have ever experienced, which surpasses my prior experiences at a college prep school, Ivy League university and on-the-job training at top Wall Street firms. Their level of knowledge of floatplane flying, mountain flying / weather and bush flying is unparalleled… they’re passionate about making sure that AFR students learn to fly floats safely and proficiently.
This course is a minimum of 8 hrs total (most other operations are 5-6 max)….this is the school to attend in order to learn, not to receive a guaranteed rating. As far as the setting, check out the site pics. You’ll be learning while flying between mountain lakes and through mountain passes…the setting is absolutely unparalleled.
-Roper
I learned so much from the instructor’s and staff at AFR. The lessons and stories/experience that the instructor’s pass on to the students here will transfer to any type of aviation. This is a seaplane course, but also a course to improve aeronautical decision making.
They have got an absolutely excellent outfit here. They were able to provide a short introductory float plane flight for myself whilst my travel party were whisked away on a great scenic flight.
His instructors are professional, knowledgeable, friendly and all business. The aircraft are well kept just like the rest of the facilities.
We were provided with exactly what we requested. My instructor knew exactly where to go for the weather to get the most flying for my $.
Having been on both sides of both small fans large flying schools and airlines, I can highly recommend AFR.
For anyone who is new to general aviation (aka little planes) they are limited by weather more so than large aircraft, so we had great results by calling ahead and discussing our requirements! The old saying -“if you have time to spare, go by air” springs to mind.