Pilot School

The Pilot School, also known as the Flying School, is the most important of the vehicle schools in Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, unlocked after "Verdant Meadows" with the purchase of the abandoned Verdant Meadows airstrip. Unlike all the other schools, it is mandatory to complete all the lessons with at least Bronze medals to continue the storyline.

The Pilot School consists of 10 lessons teaching the player how to fly planes, helicopters, and at the end - how to use a parachute. The work pays off later when the Rustler, Stunt Plane, and Hunter are unlocked respectively for achieving Bronze, Silver and Gold medals in all the lessons. By completing the lessons, the player will increase their Flying Skill and receive a "Pilot's License" allowing them to enter airports. Mission failure will occur if the player is wasted or by ditching the plane during the mission (indirectly destroying it). Colliding with objects will normally boot the player to the results screen with a failing grade, though rarely the plane will instead explode, wasting the player. An explosion is more likely to happen when careening into the water.

Lessons
The ten lessons to pass are:

Takeoff
You'll have to takeoff and pass through three coronas to complete the lesson. Finish in 30 seconds or less to get the Gold medal. Vehicle given is a Rustler.

Land Plane
Fly through the corona, lower the landing gear and land in the designated target. Finish in 30 seconds or less to get the Gold medal. Vehicle given is a Rustler.

Circle Airstrip
Take off and gain altitude and pass through the first corona. Then, fly a circular course through the coronas. Do this in a minute or less to get the Gold medal. Vehicle given is a Rustler.

Circle Airstrip and Land
Perform the same routine as the last lesson but land in the designated target on the airstrip. Finish this in 1 minute 20 seconds or less and land due east in the target to get the Gold Medal. Vehicle given is a Rustler.

Helicopter Takeoff
Piloting a Hunter, climb until the game indicates you to level off the helicopter. After that, rotate the helicopter 180 degrees, facing the opposite end of the runway. Tilt the helicopter to a 45 degree angle and quickly move the end of the runway. Fly through the corona to pass.

Land Helicopter
Pass through the first corona, then land in the target facing due east in less than 30 seconds to get the Gold medal. Vehicle given is a Hunter.

Destroy Targets
Tilt the helicopter at a 45 degree angle, and move towards the three Linerunners at the end of the runway. Destroy them and then make a sharp right turn towards the Snake Farm. There will be two Landstalkers driving in circles. Destroy them and land the helicopter at the designated area. Finish the lesson in 1 minute and 30 seconds or less to get the Gold Medal. Vehicle given is a Hunter.

Loop-the-Loop
To do a loop-the-loop, pull the analog stick down, or the S or Down keys on PC, once you have reached the first corona. Continue with the loop, then level off, and pass through the final corona in 21 seconds or less to get the Gold Medal. Vehicle given is a Stuntplane.

Barrel Roll
Fly through the first corona, then quickly push the left analog stick left (A, or down on PC) to roll. Finish the barrel roll and fly through the second corona to finish the lesson. Finish in 18 seconds or less to get the Gold Medal. Vehicle given is a Stuntplane.

Parachute Onto Target
Skydive down to the target and deploy the Parachute, glide into the target zone to finish. Landing in the center of the target zone in 55 seconds or less will get you the Gold medal. NOTE: For PC users, it is advised to turn off the Frame Limiter for this lesson.

Rewards
The reward for completing all the lessons on Bronze is a Rustler, for all Silver a Stunt Plane and for all Gold a Hunter. All will be constantly spawned at the airstrip.

Completion of the first 3 tests with at least a bronze medal, will award the player a pilot's licence. This will allow easy access to runway areas of airports and unlock all planes. Prior to doing this, it is possible to access the runway areas by parking a vehicle next to the fence and climbing over, or by using a Packer's "ramp" - the Easter Bay Airport runway can also be accessed via a glitch by simply punching the access gate or by jumping the water from northern Flint County - however all fixed-wing aircraft, parked at the Easter Bay Airport, will be locked, leaving only the Maverick as a useful aircraft at that location. Every other aircraft will be unlocked since the beginning (excluding vehicles locked for mission purposes) including those parked at Las Venturas Airport, that some articles still refer to as locked.