Financing of your pilot training in Germany

Overview on rates, grants/subsidies, and financing options

Launch aid to start your life as a pilot

Your financing options in detail

Very few young people are able to finance the pilot training out of pocket. We have compiled options on this page that you can avail yourself of to finance your training so that your dream job of pilot does not have to remain a dream.

At the moment we are offering the following financing options:

Who will be able to afford the training? Everyone!

The Head of our flight school explains the financing

The training at EFA is time-consuming and expensive. In this video clip, our Head of Pilot Schools, Raymund Obst, explains why the pilot training is still feasible for everybody.

Flight school director Raymund Obst is standing in front of a training aircraft.

Financing model offered by our partner Brain Capital

Start the Pilot training with only 10,000 Euros of own capital and without any further guarantees being required

Our financing partner, Brain Capital GmbH, offers a downstream income-related financing model developed exclusively for EFA and aimed at providing access to pilot training for everybody – independently of the individual financial circumstances. No further financial security (such as a guarantee provided by a family member) is required in order to avail oneself of the education fund; the only prerequisite for eligibility is a signed training contract with EFA.

Overview of the most important facts about your financing*:

You contribute basic capital of € 10,000 (which you raise yourself or via our financial partner Albatros, for example).
The remaining training costs of € 110,000 will be provided by the sponsoring company for the training. You can also minimize the amount in need of financing if you have more equity at your disposal, of course.
After completion of your training at EFA, you will begin regular payments to the sponsoring company only once you have reached a yearly gross minimum income of € 30,000.
Over the course of 11 years, you will then pay a fixed percentage of your gross income to Brain Capital (in the case of the maximum amount having been financed, such percentage is 11%).

Illustrations of two people, flight school materials, and a training aircraft.

In this context, the specific payment amount is contingent upon your income level – the more you earn, the higher your payment amount will be, and vice versa (principle of solidarity).
Payment is only required in those years in which your gross annual income exceeds € 30,000; all of your obligations expire after 20 years at the latest.
The payment amount is also capped: In relation to alternative financing via a traditional student loan, an interest rate of 8.0% is not exceeded, provided you accept a job in the cockpit of a Lufthansa Group airline. This means that the total financing costs are limited even if you yourself have a very high income as a pilot.

You can find the most significant details in the attached flyer**.
The contact persons at Brain Capital are looking forward to your message or your call and will happily advise you.

*The above data are for illustration purposes only. The contractual terms and conditions are agreed upon directly between you and Brain Capital without the involvement of the European Flight Academy and may deviate from the data above.

** The respective providers are responsible for the content of the informational materials (flyers, videos).

Brain Capital GmbH

Financial aid provided by Albatros in Germany

Different Loan Options

In addition to Brain Capital's education fund, our financial partner Albatros offers various forms of financial options for pilot training. In these cases, the borrowers are persons who have a fixed income – oftentimes the parents.

Personal loans: The financing amount can be anywhere between € 2,000 and € 100,000 and is paid out immediately. The maximum term is 10 years.
Real estate loans: Real estate can be mortgaged with an unencumbered charge on land starting at financing amounts of € 50,000.

Please note that all financing options provided by Albatros require a borrower/guarantor with a fixed income and a permanent residence in Germany.
The Albatros team is looking forward to your inquiry and will be happy to advise you in detail.

The respective providers are responsible for the content of the informational materials (flyers, videos).

To the Albatros website

Albatros Financial Solutions GmbH

BAföG in Germany

Educational aid pursuant to the Bundesausbildungsförderungsgesetz (BAföG, German Federal Law on Educational Support) for the ATPL

Because of the recognition of equivalence pursuant to the Federal Law on Educational Support (BAföG), it has been possible since October 1st, 2019, to apply for educational aid for the duration of the training at the European Flight Academy.

As a rule, every student registered with EFA at the training location in Germany is eligible to apply for educational aid. An application can be filed once the training agreement has been signed. The relevant documentation will be provided upon request following conclusion of the training agreement. If approved, educational aid will be provided starting with the month in which the training commences; at the earliest, however, with the month in which the application is filed.

For the time spent in the USA in the context of the training, an application for educational aid is to be filed with the competent international office, in this case the Studierendenwerk Hamburg – Amt für Ausbildungsförderung (Student Services – Office for Education Funding (BAföG-Amt).

KfW Education Loan

Funding option independent of income

Alternatively or in addition to BAföG, a KfW education loan (KfW Bildungskredit) can be applied for. The funding is independent of income, requires no collateral, and is intended to cover living expenses during training at EFA.

Conditions:

Monthly disbursements of €100, €200, or €300, for a maximum of 2 years
Maximum funding amount is €7,200
A one-time disbursement of a larger amount up to €3,600 is possible for training-related reasons, such as high training fees (this amount will be deducted from the maximum funding amount)
The interest rate is set twice a year (April 1 and October 1) for six months and is based on the EURIBOR
In addition to training in Germany, training in Switzerland is also eligible for funding.

Further information about the funding, requirements, and application process can be found here:

More information about the KfW education loan

Three people are sitting at a table discussing financing options for pilot training.

Payment by training phase

We invoice you before the respective training sections, so you don't have to provide the entire training sum at once.

The training phases and payment rates in Germany are structured as follows:

One person is working on a training aircraft, while another person is walking away from a training aircraft in the background.

Overview costs pilot training Germany

Basic training costs for commercial pilots in Germany (ATPL) Training costs will become due in 6 rates before the respective training step:
Rate	Time period	Costs
1. Rate	Prior to the start of the theory phase and thus the start of your training (30 days before start)	10.000 €
2. Rate	During the theory phase (60 days after start)	10.000 €
3. Rate	Prior to the start of the single-engine phase (down payment for the single-engine phase) (30 days before start)	15.000 €
4. Rate	During the single-engine phase (45 days after start)	35.000 €
5. Rate	Prior to the start of the multi-engine phase (after single-engine phase has concluded) (30 days before start)	35.000 €
6. Rate	Prior to MCC Phase (30 days before start)	15.000 €
	Total basic costs =	120.000€ *

Funding through partial scholarships for program participants of non-profit organizations

We want to offer talented young people who have been means-tested the opportunity to make their dream of becoming a pilot a reality, which is why we enter into cooperation agreements with foundations and non-profit associations.
Our first partner is a registered association for intercultural encounters, the AFS Interkulturelle Begegnungen e. V. Alumni of the year-long study-abroad program or the volunteer service whose means-test has been positive may be eligible for a partial scholarship. Interested students of at least 15 years of age can apply for the year-long study-abroad program. Please note that the grants are reserved exclusively for AFS-Almuni.