Young Eagles Credit Program

September 2021 – Did you know the EAA Young Eagles credit program awards a $5 credit to pilots and chapters for each Young Eagle flown in a calendar year? Credits can be awarded to an individual pilot or a chapter as a whole. Where your credit is applied depends on how you fill out your Young Eagles registration form. To receive your credits as an individual pilot, keep the EAA chapter area blank. For your credit to go to a specific chapter, indicate which chapter you would like your credits to be awarded to. These credits accumulate for a full calendar year and will be available to use the following year. For example, any credits awarded in 2021 will be available to use in 2022. At the beginning of each year, EAA sends a notification to chapters and individual pilots that have accumulated credits. This notification will indicate the amount of credits that were awarded in the previous year that are now available for use.

Now that you know how you accumulate these credits, let’s go over how to spend these credits. Spending credits as an individual pilot or as a chapter are two different things. Individual pilots can use the credits to help send a young person to the EAA Air Academy, or return the credits to EAA. Please note that individual pilots cannot participate directly in the cash reimbursement program. However, individual pilots may donate their credits to an EAA chapter to support that chapter’s activities. As a chapter, your credits will stay on account here at EAA headquarters until the chapter is ready to use them. For chapters, we strongly encourage you to pool your credits, and send young people for the “aviation experience of a lifetime” at the EAA Air Academy summer camp in Oshkosh. Chapters may also apply for cash reimbursement of costs directly associated with the promotion, enhancement, and execution of their local Young Eagles activities. Here are a few examples of approved materials:

• Provision of hands-on activities at a Young Eagles rally (supplies for wing rib building, flight simulators, etc.).
• Promotion of a Young Eagles rally (banners, posters, promotional materials, hand-outs, etc).
• Operational and safety items (banner rope, cones, vests, printer for printing certificates, and/or photos of Young Eagles).
• Postage expense for mailing in EAA Young Eagles registration forms.
• Any chapter gear purchased must have the EAA Young Eagles logo on it.

A chapter may also use their credits to purchase EAA Young Eagles programs that are offered, which include the Young Eagles Build and Fly as well as Young Eagles Workshops programs. If the chapter choses to forgo spending their credits, you may return the credits to EAA. EAA will use them to enhance the general EAA Air Academy scholarship fund facilitating the attendance of a young person at the EAA Air Academy. Please note all credits expire on 12/31/2021. Expenses must be incurred before 12/31/2021 to be eligible for reimbursement. Reimbursement forms must be returned to the Young Eagles office no later than 1/22/2022. For more information please visit EAA.org/YECredits.