Flight school snags state-of-the-art simulator for students, staff

The Henderson Executive Airport hosts several small aviation businesses but one just got a state-of-the-art flight device that will help kickstart the next generation of pilots.

All In Aviation, one of several flight schools in the Las Vegas Valley, became the first independent flight school in the country to get the ALSIM ALSR20 flight trainer, which has the exact interior of the single-engine Cirrus aircraft. The simulator can cost between $299,000 and $399,000, according to Scott Firsing, head of Alsim Americas. He said terms of All In Aviation’s deal was confidential but it purchased the “fully loaded” version.

Carl May, director of flight operations at All In Aviation, said the simulator offers a 270-degree view for new pilots so they can get accustomed to flying the small Cirrus planes.

“This simulator adds another dynamic to the flight training experience,” May said. “It allows the student to not be as stressed and … all of the other elements that go along with flight training other than just flying an airplane.”

The simulator, housed at the company’s Henderson office, tracks a student’s movements and it can put student pilots through almost every situation imaginable such as flying in different types of weather and practicing emergency situations.

Jake Przybylski, a flight instructor at All In Aviation, said the new simulator is able to closely track how a student flies while helping to ease anxiety for both instructors and students.

“Get the mistakes out of the way, and get the spookies out of the way,” Przybylski said. “If something goes wrong in the simulator, you’re okay.”

All In Aviation student Matt Delossantos said he decided to learn how to fly to be able to easily visit places like Reno, a roughly seven-hour drive but just over an hour by plane. He said he was drawn to All In Aviation because of the built out structure of its facilities.

“It’s a serious, serious training facility,” Delossantos said. “These instructors are the real deal.”

Taking flight

All In Aviation was founded in 2016 by President Paul Sallach. It expanded in 2020 with the opening of its 25 hangars, 9,000-square-foot Henderson facility, at 1456 Jet Stream Drive near the Henderson Executive Airport, according to May.

May said when he started with the company in 2019 it only had six planes and two instructors. Now, the company has 16 planes including 12 Cirrus and four Cessna aircraft.

All In Aviation also has 10 full-time instructors and four part-time instructors.

While the company offers aircraft rentals, sales, storage and maintenance services, it’s main focus is flight instruction.

May said the firm helps train students interested in pursuing flying as a hobby as well as those looking to have a career in aviation. It’s why the new simulator is key as it can help both types of students, he said.

The instructors are often people pursuing a career in aviation who are working to fulfill the stringent Federal Aviation Administration commercial pilot licensing requirements, May said. Pilots that want to fly for commercial airlines need to have 1,500 hours of flight time, which can take about two years.

A private pilot license requires 40 hours of flight time, or about nine months to as long as two years depending on the student’s time and financial investment. But the FAA says most people require somewhere between 60 to 75 hours of training.

May said the long and complicated process for a commercial pilot license has led those inside the aviation industry to expect a pilot shortage.

“We saw this pilot shortage coming a decade ago, because we know that statistically only so many students are entering the industry,” May said. “And we know that by a certain time, all of these current pilots are gonna have to retire. They’re gonna be forced to retire at age 65.”

The pilot shortage is expected to grow in the near future. Consulting firm Oliver Wyman estimates by 2023 there will be a shortage of 12,000 pilots in North America, which makes up 13 percent of the total demand for pilots.

May said since the pandemic, which deeply impacted the aviation industry, there have been more career-focused students and instructors coming through the school.

May advised anyone considering a pilot’s license should pursue it out of genuine interest.

“Don’t let the fun get sucked out of it, because it’s easy to forget why we’re doing something that we’re passionate about when it becomes work,” May said.

Contact Sean Hemmersmeier at shemmersmeier@reviewjournal.com. Follow @seanhemmers34 on Twitter.