Young Eagles Year-End Wrap-Up
David Leiting, EAA Eagle Programs Manager, EAA Lifetime 579157
December 2022 —
As 2022 comes to a close on the Young Eagles program, it’s hard not to look back and be proud of the entire Young Eagles volunteer workforce. The program continues to rise out of COVID-19, as flight activity is moving closer and closer to pre-pandemic levels. In a normal year, approximately 60,000 Young Eagles take flight. 2020 and 2021 certainly took a toll on the program.
Annual Young Eagles Flight Activity
- 2019 — 59,016
- 2020 — 8,006
- 2021 — 35,590
- 2022 — 47,400 (YTD)
To help the program rebound in 2022, EAA challenged volunteers to fly 50,000 Young Eagles. In late November 2022, at the time this article was written, 47,400 Young Eagles had taken flight in 2022. As paperwork from fall flights rolls in, and December flights take place, it appears the goal of 50,000 Young Eagles is well within reach! This calls for major kudos to all the Young Eagles coordinators, volunteer pilots, and dedicated ground volunteers. Now for 2023, let’s set our sights on 60,000 Young Eagles!
In addition to a rebound of flight activity, the program has much more to celebrate.
- The Young Eagles 30th anniversary was launched at EAA AirVenture Oshkosh 2022. During this launch, the 30 Flights for 30 Years challenge was introduced. Volunteer pilots are challenged to fly 30 Young Eagles between August 1, 2022, and July 31, 2023, in celebration of the 30th anniversary. As of late November, nearly 100 pilots had already met the goal of flying 30 Young Eagles.
- Fifteen EAA chapters reached a major milestone in Young Eagles flight activity.
|
Chapter |
Lifetime Young Eagles Flights |
|
EAA Chapter 194 |
100
|
|
EAA Chapter 709 |
500
|
|
EAA Chapter 1306 |
500
|
|
EAA Chapter 661 |
1,000
|
|
EAA Chapter 260 |
1,000
|
|
EAA Chapter 251 |
1,000
|
|
EAA Chapter 931 |
1,000
|
|
EAA Chapter 227 |
5,000
|
|
EAA Chapter 1174 |
5,000 |
|
EAA Chapter 731 |
5,000
|
|
EAA Chapter 145 |
5,000 |
|
EAA Chapter 613 |
5,000 |
|
EAA Chapter 40 |
10,000 |
|
EAA Chapter 252 |
15,000 |
|
EAA Chapter 1 |
15,000 |
It has been a joy to see the success stories coming out of the Young Eagles program this year. Your efforts are paving the way for future aviators and aviation professionals. We hear these success stories on a daily basis at EAA HQ.
Thank you for your continued dedication to inspiring the next generation of pilots and aviation enthusiasts. On behalf of all of us at EAA, have a wonderful holiday season!
Tailwinds,
David Leiting, EAA Lifetime 579157
Eagles Program Manager
