A Double Celebration: Independence Day Meets Open Doors
This year's Open Doors Day landed on the 4th of July, and the Prague team leaned into it. Alongside the usual programme of training presentations, fleet tours, and career consultations, the campus took on a distinctly patriotic touch — a nod to Flying Academy's roots as a school that trains pilots on both sides of the Atlantic, under EASA in Europe and FAA in the United States. Visitors got a genuine two-part experience: a morning at the school, followed by an afternoon out at the airport.
Part One: Inside the School
The day opened inside the Prague campus, where flight instructors and training coordinators walked guests through the full pilot pathway. Presentations covered both the EASA Integrated ATPL programme run out of Prague and the FAA routes available through Flying Academy's US campuses, giving visitors a side-by-side look at the two systems.
Questions from the floor ranged from medical certification and English proficiency requirements to how credits transfer between EASA and FAA licenses — a topic that comes up often given how many of our students eventually train, or build time, on both continents.
Simulators and Classrooms
Between presentations, guests rotated through the training floor: theoretical classrooms set up for ATPL ground school, flight-planning rooms, and our simulator bay, where visitors took the controls of a flight simulation training device under instructor supervision. It gave first-time visitors a real sense of the day-to-day rhythm of the programme before ever stepping onto the apron.
Part Two: Moving to the Airport
In the afternoon, the group relocated from the school to Flying Academy's airport facilities for the second half of the day. This is where the training becomes tangible — guests traded classroom seats for the ramp, walking among the training fleet that they had only seen in photos and videos during the morning presentations.
Instructors and maintenance staff were on hand to explain pre-flight checks, everyday avionics, and how aircraft are scheduled and dispatched across a busy training operation. For many attendees, this was the first time standing next to a training aircraft up close, and it clearly shifted the day from informational to genuinely exciting.
Up Close With the Fleet
Visitors got hands-on access to our Cessna 152 and 172 training aircraft, sitting in the cockpit, asking instructors about avionics and handling, and hearing directly from current students about what a typical training flight out of Prague actually looks like — from radio work to local airspace procedures.
For those weighing up EASA training in Europe against FAA training in the US, seeing the same style of aircraft used across both networks helped make the comparison a lot more concrete.
1-on-1 Career Consultations
Back at the school before the day wrapped up, training coordinators sat down individually with attendees to map out realistic timelines, discuss modular versus integrated study options, and go through accommodation in Prague for international students.
Because the day covered both EASA and FAA pathways, several conversations focused specifically on route planning — starting training in Prague and later time-building or converting through one of Flying Academy's US campuses, or vice versa.
Your Future in the Sky Starts Now
Between the school presentations and the airport walkthrough, the 4th of July edition of Open Doors Day gave visitors the fullest possible picture of what training with Flying Academy Prague actually involves — from the first day in the classroom to the first time standing beside the aircraft you'll eventually fly.
Missed this event? We run private school and airport tours throughout the week, covering the same ground at your own pace. Get in touch to book yours and take the first step toward EASA or FAA pilot training.