Young Eagles Updates From HQ

As we roll through the spring season, the final push to accomplish Mission 2.5 is in full force! With less than 20,000 Young Eagles left to fly, the goal is well within reach, but it is going to take a strong May, June, and July to ensure Mission 2.5 is a success. As a reminder, EAA is running two special campaigns as a part of Mission 2.5.

Fly 25 for 2.5

Volunteer Young Eagles pilots who fly 25 Young Eagles or more from October 1, 2025, through July 31, 2026, will be awarded a limited-edition commemorative cap to thank you for your participation in helping us hit this significant milestone.

More than two dozen pilots have already flown their 25 Young Eagles for Mission 2.5 — EAA will start shipping commemorative caps in early May.

Pilot the Mission

EAA is offering this incentive to encourage chapters to recruit volunteer pilots. For every first-time Young Eagles pilot recruited by your chapter, your chapter will earn $25 in Young Eagles credits. This incentive runs January 1-July 31, 2026, with credits applied to your 2026 totals and available in 2027.

Spring through early summer of 2025 was a historically slow period for Young Eagles activity, due to a cancelled event rate that was essentially double the historical average. While the weather has already been challenging at times in 2026, we will be keeping our collective fingers crossed for better flying weather. After all the planning that you put into your events, it is always a shame when they need to be canceled or rescheduled.

As we inch closer toward the start of summer, that also means that EAA AirVenture Oshkosh is right around the corner! This year, EAA will bring back the Young Eagles Breakfast, as well as the Young Eagles Banquet, in an effort to provide more opportunities for volunteers to attend one of these appreciation events.

A full story on Young Eagles activities during AirVenture is featured later in the May volunteer newsletter, but here is a quick overview of key Young Eagles activities you’ll find at this year’s convention.

• Tuesday, July 21
  • Young Eagles Volunteer Breakfast – 7:30 a.m.**
  • Young Eagles Online Registration and Digital Signature Forum – 11:30 a.m.
  • Young Eagles Volunteer Banquet – 5 p.m. **
    ** Invites to be sent the week of June 1
    
• Wednesday, July 22
  • Young Eagles Rally Planning Best Practices – 10 a.m.
  • Mission 2.5 Accomplished
    • Commemorative Young Eagles Flight – 2 p.m.
    • Group Photo on Boeing Plaza – Approximately 2:20 p.m.
• All Week at the EAA Blue Barn
  • Pick up Young Eagles materials
  • Enter to win a Lightspeed Sierra headset

As always, THANK YOU for your continued support of the Young Eagles program. As we continue to pursue Mission 2.5, it is not lost on me and the rest of the EAA staff just what you mean to the Young Eagles program. You and the rest of the volunteer base are truly changing lives, one flight at a time.

I hope to see you in Oshkosh this July!

Tailwinds,

David Leiting, EAA Lifetime 579157

Eagles Program Manager