The term "hidden costs" strikes fear into most of us because it means we are going to pay more for something than we thought. Sadly, many times a business will hide some costs of goods or services so you can "discover" them once you have committed to use the service. Having to pay for a pillow on a flight after you already forked over hundreds of dollars to the airline is a classic example of hidden costs.
When you are preparing to go into flight school to realize your dream of getting your pilot's license, its is imperative that you know how much you need from a budget perspective before you sign a contract to go through the program. So to be sure you are not going to get hit with a lot of "hidden costs", it pays to know the terminology and to know what questions to ask before you agree to use that school to get your license to fly.
When you first contact a flight school, they will lay out the red carpet for you. You will get a tour of the facilities including the classrooms and the airplanes to be used for your in flight training. You will meet wonderful instructors and the end of the tour will probably include a test flight where you get to sit in the pilot's seat as though you were actually flying that plane. That experience alone can hook you to want to be part of their program. Then they will present you will some colorful brochures, a contract and a class schedule and finally, a schedule of costs along with payment options.
