Young Eagles Risk Management Training

September, 2022 — 

Beginning in late 2022, EAA will be launching Young Eagles risk management training. This training will be mandatory for Young Eagles coordinators. Other Young Eagles and chapter volunteers will be encouraged, but not required, to take the course.

The EAA Young Eagles program has continued to evolve over the past 30 years. The ability for volunteers to evolve along with the program has been one of the key reasons for the program’s success. The evolution and growth of Young Eagles has kept the program in line with EAA’s high standards that have been part of the organization since Paul Poberezny founded it nearly 70 years ago.

It is more critical than ever to ensure EAA and Young Eagles volunteers are operating within program guidelines. These guidelines not only set a general outline for flying Young Eagles and hosting rallies, but they are also the standard used by the insurance companies which provide coverage for the program, chapters, and the additional $1 million of liability coverage for pilots. Over the past year, EAA has seen a rise in inappropriate Young Eagles practices. These practices have ranged from incorrect waiver usage or outright failure to use it all to co-mingling the Young Eagles flights with third party organizations and improper reporting. These practices put the program, and the insurance coverage provided to the program, at risk.

To better inform Young Eagles volunteers of the current program guidelines and requirements, EAA will be launching Young Eagles risk management training in December 2022. This training will consist of a 30-minute pre-recorded webinar and short quiz. A quiz score of 70% or better will be required to pass the course. Similar to youth protection training, this course will need to be completed every three years for renewal.

Only Young Eagles coordinators will be required to complete this training before your chapter’s first rally of 2023, or by April 30, 2023, whichever occurs first. Although not required, other Young Eagles volunteers and chapter officers are highly encouraged to take this training.

Maintaining the integrity of the Young Eagles program is of the utmost importance to EAA. Volunteers must be fully aware of why certain guidelines are in place and how the program may suffer should these guidelines not be followed. Although this new training program is an added requirement to host Young Eagles rallies, EAA will continue investing in additional resources to keep the rally hosting process as simple as possible.

EAA Young Eagles has earned an outstanding reputation because of the dedication, passion, and attention to detail that you pour into the program by the outstanding volunteers. With the help of all involved, we can maintain our well-earned reputation and keep the Young Eagles program thriving for generations to come.

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact us at yeagles@eaa.org.