These are the questions people ask most before they pay for aircraft broker training. The short answers are here. Each one links to the full guide where the detail and the sources live.
Before you start
Do I need a license to be an aircraft broker?
Not in the United States: there is no federal aircraft broker license. Charter brokers must follow the disclosure rules in 14 CFR Part 295, which create no license or exam, and some states register aircraft dealers. Other countries differ. See aircraft broker license.
Do I need aviation experience?
No formal requirement exists. People come into brokerage from sales, hospitality, luxury services, flight operations, FBOs, cabin crew and the flight deck. What you do need is the knowledge: aircraft types, how charter and sales transactions work, the rules, and the vocabulary clients and operators use. See How to become an aircraft broker.
Should I start with charter or with sales?
They are different jobs. Charter brokerage is fast, high-volume and time-sensitive: you arrange flights on aircraft operated by licensed carriers. Aircraft sales brokerage is slow and transaction-heavy: you represent a buyer or seller through a deal that can take months. Read Air charter broker training and Aircraft sales broker training side by side before choosing.
About courses
What does an aircraft broker course cost?
Listed prices on the course comparison run from £445 per level (Air Charter Association, member companies’ staff only) to $3,990 (Elysium Jet Academy). IABI, which publishes this guide, lists $999 per course. Tuition is only part of it: see what a first year costs.
Is there a free aircraft broker course?
No complete course is free, but useful free material is: the text of 14 CFR Part 295, NBAA’s guides and free webinars, including IABI’s. Learn aircraft brokerage free sets out a self-study route and where it stops.
How long does training take?
Most online courses are self-paced and can be finished in weeks; cohort courses run from a few days to eight weeks. Becoming competent takes much longer, on real quotes and real deals. Course lengths are in the comparison.
What is the certificate worth?
It shows you completed that provider’s training. A private certificate, IABI’s included, is not a government license or an accreditation, and none is legally required to work as a broker. Its value is the knowledge behind it. See aircraft broker license.
After the course
Will a course get me a job?
No. No course can promise a job, an interview or an income, and you should be cautious of any provider that says otherwise. Training can give you the knowledge and vocabulary to be credible in an interview or in front of a first client. Aircraft broker jobs covers the roles that exist and where they are advertised.
How much do aircraft brokers earn?
Most broker pay is driven by commission, so it varies enormously and published estimates disagree with each other. Aircraft broker salary explains how charter and sales brokers are paid and what third-party sources report, with their limits.
Can I work as a broker from anywhere?
Much of the work is done by phone, email and online marketplaces, so location matters less than in many careers. Your clients’ time zones matter a great deal, especially in charter, where requests arrive at short notice. The rules that apply depend on where you and your clients are. See License and certification.
Is an aircraft broker course worth it?
It depends on what you already know. Coming from outside aviation, structured training can save months of piecing things together; it will not replace experience or find clients for you. The full answer is in is an aircraft broker course worth it?
Free from IABI · IABI publishes this guide
Want to talk it through before you spend anything?
IABI runs a free webinar on how to become an aircraft broker, and offers a free one-to-one consultation. Both are a way to ask questions and judge the teaching for yourself before paying for any course.