Pilot says that if you can drive a car you can fly a plane and explains why
Published on Aug 03, 2025 at 4:02 PM (UTC+4)
by Grace Donohoe
Last updated on Aug 01, 2025 at 12:49 PM (UTC+4)
Edited by
Kate Bain
This pilot says that if you can drive a car you can fly a plane, which is music to every aviation fan’s ears.
The captain explained that even though you need other requirements, actually learning to pilot a plane is something that drivers can master with persistence.
But after he shared the advice online, not everyone was convinced.
They had some pretty convincing arguments too.
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If you can drive a car, you can fly a plane: pilot
Learning to drive is often considered to be a life skill that many people master in their late teen years.
So it might come as a bit of a shock to hear that if you can drive a car, you can probably also fly a plane.
But one pilot thinks that’s the case, and he’s explained how the two go hand-in-hand.
TikTok content creator and pilot @captainsteeeve said flying a plane was a very ‘mechanical’ process.
“If you can drive a car, or you can do anything mechanical, like run a tractor, you can learn to fly an airplane. Now there’s a difference between the mechanics of flying an airplane and actually being in charge of a big old commercial airliner,” he said.
He also explained that it had taken him 35 years to become a captain and around 10 years to rack up enough experience and hours in the Navy to become an engineer at his airline.
He says that he was an engineer for a while before becoming a co-pilot and then, of course, a captain.
But to become a pilot can reportedly take you just a matter of hours, according to Captain Steve.
“To learn how to be a pilot, you can do it with as little as 10 to 12 hours of instruction,” he said.
“So, is it difficult? No, but it does take a lot of persistence,” he explained.
It is important to note that the process to become an airplane pilot does take time though.
“In general, the whole process of becoming an airplane pilot ranges from 18 months but can take up to four years,” stated Egnatia Aviation.
Costs, math and bad eyesight might hold you back
Not everyone was convinced, and some threw out some pretty convincing arguments.
“I’d say the Maths side of it looks hard, working out angles and degrees for short notice go arounds etc,” one person said.
“Captain Steve makes it sound easy but it’s absolutely not. You have to be proficient in mathematics and meteorology. Physically fit and have good eyesight. Nevermind the countless exams and very expensive cost of in-flight training,” another said.
Captain Steve is a wealth of knowledge and has offered some pretty interesting pieces of information to his followers.
For instance, he also explained which two windows open on a plane, and detailed what the white trails behind a plane in the sky actually are.
You can catch him talking about how to fly a plane below.
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