Young Eagles
The original goal of the Young Eagles Program was to provide one million young people, ages 8-17, a free introductory airplane ride by the 100th anniversary of the Wright brothers' first powered flight in December of 2003. These rides have been provided through the generosity of more than 26,000 volunteer EAA pilots and members of other authorized aviation organizations. We've achieved our goal! And the good news is, the program continues!! If you'd like to join in the fun, then you've found the right place!
EAA members understand that the imagination of a child is boundless. That is why EAA's Young Eagles Program has captured the attention of more than one million young people and opened their eyes to infinite possibilities through flight. By December 17, 2003, the centennial of the Wright brothers' first flight and the 50th anniversary of EAA, one million children received a motivational airplane flight and experienced a "cockpit laboratory" like none they have imagined. And our Young Eagles program goes on!
The enthusiasm that comes from flight is shared at no cost with these young people by more than 26,000 dedicated volunteer pilots and thousands of ground support volunteers. Most participants are EAA members who generously volunteer flight time, skills and knowledge to make each journey an individualized experience. Young Eagles flights have benefited inner-city youth, physically-challenged students, and boys and girls of every race, color and creed. The program's success has been overwhelming. These Young Eagles are enthusiastic and full of questions. Their exposure to new horizons has sparked their curiosity about the "next steps" and their future direction in aviation or other positive paths. Calls to EAA from all over the country about the "next steps" prompted a survey of thousands of students, parents, teachers and pilots. The results reinforced aviation's unprecedented educational opportunities, including the development of applications for math and science classrooms. Fascination, curiosity and motivation are exactly the outcomes we hoped for with the Young Eagles Program.
