 Flying schools are commercial businesses engaged in the training of pilots , both for recreational purposes and for those intending to fly professionally . They make widespread use of fixed @-@ wing light aircraft associated with traditional GA , not only for flying lessons but also as club aircraft rented out to qualified pilots for recreational flights . School @-@ owned aircraft account for a significant amount of GA activity , both in terms of hours flown and aircraft movements . The pilot training element is regarded by the GA community as a key benefit that is critical to the supply of pilots for the airline industry . It is claimed by the General Aviation Awareness Council that 60 – 70 per cent of professional pilots have self @-@ financed their flight training at GA schools , and one UK airline operator has stated that the industry must rely on 70 – 80 per cent of new pilots coming from the GA sector . The CAA estimates that between 1996 and 2006 the number of new professional pilots following the <unk> training route rose from 48 per cent to 59 per cent . The counter argument to this claim is that pilots can be trained outside of the UK , and that the airline industry is not therefore dependent on a healthy GA sector in the UK for its supply of pilots . The CAA concludes that a severe reduction in GA would give " some merit to the argument that pilot recruitment would be threatened " , but that the data on flying hours " does not support such a <unk> outlook . " Of course , reliance on other countries for pilot training means that the UK <unk> the economic benefit of the training activity . 
