Why Eximious?
Membership in Eximious Flying Club offers pilots and prospective pilots experiences, opportunities, economies, and comradeship, that are difficult or impossible to find in a flight school or shared-ownership situation. We fly a wide variety of aircraft which accommodate most missions and skill levels. We pride ourselves on the quality of our members and our aircraft, and our ongoing commitment to creating the best general aviation experience possible for our members, families, friends, and community.
Eximious has much to offer current pilots, students, and anyone interested in aviation: 
For Student and Prospective Pilots
For Pilots
Eximious Flying Club is organized around an equity-based membership model, which offers its members many advantages over fee-based membership or FBO rentals.
EFC has a long-standing reputation for keeping reliable, safe aircraft. Equity membership ensures that members take “pride of ownership” in their aircraft, and our financial stability ensures that we can and do promptly resolve even major problems when they occur, and do so without undue burden on our members or their shared resources. In over 60 years of operation we have never imposed a levy on our members to acquire or repair an aircraft. Also, unlike many equity-based clubs, our members' shares are true equity; they can appreciate with the value of our aircraft, and a departing member may sell his or her interest to a qualified buyer without penalty.
We work continually to keep flying affordable, even in these times of high fuel costs and a slumping economy. Flight hours are billed by tach time rather than Hobbs, which can reduce per-hour charges up to 30%, and more accurately reflects actual fuel and maintenance costs.
We have some of the most inexpensive fuel sources in the Midwest within 15 minutes of our bases, and our members are encouraged to advise of any bargains they may discover in their travels.
Club dues include aircraft insurance, an extra charge when renting from most FBOs.
Our well-maintained, GPS-equipped aircraft also encourage safe, efficient flying.
Our state-of-the-art Flight Design light sport aircraft can keep up with most fixed-gear GA aircraft while burning less than two-thirds the fuel.
Members are also encouraged to “pair-up” on flights to share costs.
We also work continually to keep flying simple and fun! Our by-laws strictly limit membership, which means that not only can you can take a day-long trip – or even several days – but you can do it without having to schedule weeks or months in advance. We use an Internet- and mobile-app-based reservation system allowing you to reserve flight time from anywhere, and to avoid conflicts and other surprises that can come from a scheduling book. Our monthly meetings are open to all members and prospective members, and we participate in a number of seminars, community events, and informal get-togethers throughout the year.
Finally, we encourage our members to undergo ongoing proficiency training and acquire advanced ratings. Several of our members are highly-experienced instructors, available for everything from BFRs to instrument and commercial training. Rates are typically well below those for FBO-based instruction.
For Student Pilots, and anyone interested in learning to fly
While Eximious is not a flight school as such, training as a Club member affords a number of advantages over independent or FBO instruction. We have several members who are certified, well-qualified instructors offering both basic and advanced training in Club aircraft. No time-builders here – many of our instructors have over 20 years and several thousand hours of flight experience. The Club also sponsors ground schools from time to time.
Training with our instructors is also economical and flexible. Our hourly rates are well below typical FBO rates, and our instructors give generous discounts to Club members. If you fly at least weekly, you can expect to save up to 30% over the cost of typical flight school training. The availability of our aircraft and instructors is also much higher than with any commercial operation. Our new Flight Design CTLS light-sport aircraft also lets you get in the air sooner, and saves you money both in training and flying.
And, finally, our aircraft are VFR- and IFR-certified, well-equipped, clean, reliable, and fun to fly!
Membership Requirements
To become an EFC member, you need:
- A completed application form.
- A one-time $2600 equity payment, plus dues for the first month, payable upon acceptance of the application by the Club.
- Approval of the Club's executive committee.
- A completed check ride in a Club aircraft by a Club-approved instructor.
Members are expected to:
- Observe all relevant laws, FAA regulations and Club by-laws and operating rules.
- Fly at least five hours in the first six months, and five hours in the last six months, of every year. Members will be billed for the five-hour minimum, whether they fly or not.
- Make prompt payment for dues and flight time. Our current dues and flight time rates are here.
Members are encouraged to:
- Participate in Club meetings and activities.
- Take an active role in controlling operating costs, such as shopping around (within reason and safety constraints, of course) for the best fuel prices.
- Take an active role in maintenance of the aircraft and hangars. A clean plane is a happy plane.
- Take recurrent proficiency training, and work toward advanced ratings.
- Participate in discussions of Club business, and general topics, on the Club website.
- Have fun!
Becoming a Member
Per the Club's by-laws, membership is limited to 55 people in order to ensure reasonable availability of the aircraft for everyone. As of 6/1/2022, we have a limited number of memberships available.
If you'd like to become a member, the first step is to contact us. A Club representative will be happy to meet with you to show the aircraft, answer any questions you might have, and present you with an application package.
Complete and mail the application forms to the Club secretary, along with a check for the equity payment and 1st month's dues. The secretary will process your application, and forward it to the Executive Committee for approval. This typically takes about seven days. In the meantime, you should become familiar with the Club's by-laws and operating rules.
Upon approval of your application, pilots will be scheduled with a Club-approved instructor for a check ride. This is an informal proficiency test, to verify that you can fly safely and within FAA and Club regulations. As student pilots must fly with a Club-approved instructor until cleared for solo flight, pre-solo students are not required to take a check ride. Additionally, high-performance and complex aircraft ratings are required to fly the Commander, plus 10 hours of instruction if you are not already familiar with this model of aircraft.
The instructor will sign your log book, and report to the Executive Committee. And that's it!