Before you pay for an aircraft broker course, check five things: which side of the business it actually teaches (charter, sales, or both), what the certificate really is, the refund policy, the total cost once every add-on is counted, and how the provider words any claim about jobs or income. None of that requires taking a provider’s word for it — every one of these is something you can verify yourself, in minutes, on the provider’s own website. Still weighing whether to spend the money at all? Read is an aircraft broker course worth it? first, then come back here to choose between them.
Key points
- A course certificate from any provider — IABI’s included — is a private training credential, not a government license. See aircraft broker license and certification.
- Courses split by side of the business. Charter brokerage and aircraft sales brokerage use different documents and rules, and some providers only teach one.
- Real free material exists: the regulation itself, NBAA’s broker guides, and free webinars let you sample teaching quality before you spend anything.
- Any job or income figure a provider publishes is a claim to verify, not a result to expect. No course controls who hires you or what you earn.
- The advertised price is rarely the total cost. Coaching, tool access and add-on masterclasses often sit outside the headline number.
- Refund policies differ, and some courses are fully non-refundable. Check before you pay, not after.
The evaluation checklist
Work through these before you enroll anywhere. Each one is something you can check yourself on the provider’s own site — you don’t need to take their word for it.
1. Which side of the business it covers
Charter brokerage (arranging flights with a Part 135 operator) and aircraft sales brokerage (representing a buyer or seller) use different documents and rules. Some providers teach only one side. Verify it: check whether the description specifically mentions selling aircraft, not just arranging flights, or vice versa.
2. Syllabus depth — and whether it teaches real tools
Look for a published module list, and whether the course uses real documents (charter agreements, purchase agreements, disclosure forms) and real tools (Avinode, JetNet, AMSTAT, Controller) rather than only describing them. Verify it: if no module list is public, email and ask for one first.
3. Who teaches it, and whether their background is verifiable
A named instructor with a specific, checkable aviation background carries more weight than a title alone. Verify it: search the instructor’s name plus their claimed employer — a real background shows up independently, not only inside the course’s own marketing.
4. What the certificate actually is
A provider should say plainly what its certificate is. The certificate from IABI’s Aircraft Charter Broker course, for example, is a private training credential, not a license and not an accreditation, and the same is true of any private provider’s certificate. Verify it: search “[provider name] certificate accredited” and see whether any independent body confirms it. See aircraft broker license and certification for what’s legally required.
5. Refund policy
A written refund policy — a money-back window, non-refundable, or something between — should be stated somewhere on the site. Verify it: search the site for “refund” before you pay; if nothing comes up, ask directly in writing.
6. Total cost, including upsells
The advertised price is rarely the total. Some providers price components separately; individual IABI masterclasses, for example, are $299 each on top of any package. Verify it: add every line marked “optional” before comparing one provider’s price to another’s.
7. Format, access period, and updates
Check whether the course is self-paced or scheduled, how long access lasts, and whether content updates as regulations or tools change. Verify it: look for “lifetime access” versus an expiration date, and any stated update policy.
8. Support and coaching — what’s actually included
Specifics carry more weight than adjectives: a number of coaching calls or named office hours, not a vague “ongoing support.” Verify it: count what’s actually listed — hours, sessions, response time — not the language around it.
9. How outcome claims are worded
Treat any statement about jobs, interviews, income or placement, from any provider, as a claim to check, not a guarantee. Some providers publish income figures for new brokers. A figure is only as good as the data behind it. Verify it: ask what data the figure rests on. No course, IABI’s included, can guarantee a job or income.
10. Reviews — and how to weigh them
Testimonials curated on a provider’s own site are the provider’s selection, not a representative sample. Verify it: search the provider’s name plus “review” somewhere you don’t control, and weigh that more heavily than on-site quotes.
11. Whether free material lets you judge quality first
A free webinar, sample lesson, or preview module lets you sample the teaching before you pay full price. Verify it: attend or watch the free version first. If a provider offers none, that’s useful information on its own.
Free vs. paid: what you can genuinely learn for free
Real material exists before you spend anything:
- The regulation itself. 14 CFR Part 295, “Air Charter Brokers,” is public law — read it directly instead of trusting a course’s summary.
- NBAA’s own guides. NBAA publishes a free Best Practices for Air Charter Brokering PDF and a free Aircraft Charter Consumer Guide, covering the broker’s role and Part 295 disclosures.
- The Air Charter Association’s public material. Its site lists free seminars and training quizzes at industry events, separate from its paid Broker Qualification.
- Operator and brokerage blogs. Working brokerages, operators and training providers publish free articles on how the business works. IABI’s own blog covers both the charter and the sales side.
- A free webinar. IABI runs a free 60-minute live session on how brokers get paid and how charter and sales transactions are structured, no aviation background required. Register for the free webinar.
Free material won’t give you a structured syllabus, real documents to practice on, or anyone checking your work — but it lets you sample how a provider actually teaches before you decide whether paid structure is worth it.
The landscape: providers you’ll encounter
These are providers a search for an aircraft broker course is likely to surface. Each provider name links to the exact page the row was read from, all retrieved 2026-09-21. Each row reflects only what that provider states on its own site — not an assessment of quality.
| Provider | Covers | Format | Price (if publicly shown) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aircraft Broker Academy | Aircraft sales, plus leasing and charter-referral income | Online, self-paced video; 9 modules / 128 lessons; ~2 weeks | $1,499 |
| The Broker Academy | Charter brokerage | Not stated (describes video/text lessons plus 1-on-1 sessions) | Not stated on its website |
| The Air Charter Association — Broker Qualification | Charter brokerage | Three levels, each assessed; Level 1 has an online option; open only to employees of ACA member companies | Listed per level on its website |
| IABI — the publisher of this guide | Charter and aircraft sales, separate packages, plus a combined program | Online, self-paced, lifetime access | $999 / $999 / $1,499 (charter / sales / combined) |
| Air Charter Service — in-house trainee broker program | Charter, plus commercial and cargo | 12-month on-the-job program with a mentor; not a purchased course | Not applicable — a job, not a course |
IABI publishes this guide, and is listed here in the same neutral format as every other provider for that reason.
An IABI course · IABI publishes this guide
Not sure which side? IABI’s Complete Program covers both
Both the charter broker and sales broker courses, plus four 30-minute one-to-one coaching sessions, for $1,499. Online, self-paced, lifetime access. Fees are non-refundable, and no course can promise a job, an income or a license.
Red flags
Watch for these regardless of which provider you’re weighing — none of them are specific to any one course:
- A guarantee of a job, interview, income or placement. No course can control who hires you.
- Pressure to act immediately — a countdown timer, “the price goes up tonight,” or a vanishing bonus.
- No visible module list. If a provider won’t show a real syllabus before you pay, you can’t judge whether it covers your side of the business.
- A certificate described as a license or government-recognized. There is no US federal aircraft broker license — see aircraft broker license and certification.
- Reviews that exist only on the provider’s own site, with no way to check they’re from real students.
- A total cost that stays unclear until checkout — components priced separately, coaching as a forced upsell, or tool access billed after a “free” trial.
- No refund policy stated anywhere on the site.
Questions to ask before you enroll
Copy this list and put it to any provider — by email or on a call — before you pay:
- Does this course cover charter brokerage, aircraft sales brokerage, or both?
- Can I see the full module or lesson list before I enroll?
- Does it use real documents — contracts, quote sheets, disclosure forms — or only describe them?
- Which industry tools does it teach, and do I get access during the course?
- Who teaches it, and where can I verify their background independently of your site?
- What exactly is the certificate, and does any government or accrediting body recognize it?
- What is the refund policy, in writing, and is there a deadline to request one?
- What is the total cost once I add every module, masterclass, tool license and coaching session I’d want?
- Is access lifetime, or does it expire, and what happens if content updates after I enroll?
- What support is included, specifically, and how much of it?
- Do you make any claim about jobs, income or placement? If so, what’s it based on?
- Can I speak to a past student directly, not just read a testimonial you selected?
- Is there a free sample lesson, webinar or trial I can review before paying?
- What happens if I don’t finish the course in the stated timeframe?
- Is the price shown today the full price, or are there required add-ons?
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.
Frequently asked questions
Is there a free aircraft broker course?
Not a complete one, no. But real free material exists: the text of 14 CFR Part 295, NBAA’s own broker guides, and free webinars, including IABI’s. Free material teaches concepts; it won’t give you graded exercises or real-document practice.
Is an aircraft broker course worth it?
It depends what you compare it against. A course can compress scattered research into a structured syllabus and real documents — but it cannot buy you a client, a job or a commission. If a decision hinges on a job or income promise, that’s the wrong basis — no course can guarantee either. See how brokers are paid for sourced figures before weighing the cost.
Do I need a certificate to become an aircraft broker?
No. US federal law does not require a license or a certificate to broker aircraft sales or charter flights, although a few US states license or register aircraft dealers. A course certificate shows you completed that provider’s training — not a legal requirement to work. See aircraft broker license and certification.
What’s the difference between a charter broker course and a sales broker course?
Charter brokerage means arranging flights with a Part 135 operator. Sales brokerage means representing a buyer or seller in an aircraft transaction. Check which side a course actually teaches — see air charter broker training and aircraft sales broker training.
How much do aircraft broker courses cost?
Among the providers on this page, publicly listed prices range from about $1,000 to $1,500 per package, with some pricing coaching or tool access separately. Confirm the total cost, not the headline number.
Are online reviews of aircraft broker courses reliable?
Weigh them like any single-source review. Testimonials curated on a provider’s own site show what the provider chose to display. A search of the company name plus “review,” a forum, or a past student you can message directly carries more weight.