EAA Young Eagles Bounces Back Strong From COVID Pandemic

EAA’s Young Eagle program statistics have come a long way toward putting the COVID-19 pandemic in the rearview mirror. More than 57,000 young people experienced flight from EAA-member volunteers in 2023 as of Dec. 17—the 120th anniversary of the Wright Brothers’ first flight at Kill Devil Hills, North Carolina. That’s the most since 2019, when 60,142 Young Eagles took to the skies before the lockdown.

EAA thanks the 4,493 pilots from 616 EAA chapters who volunteered their time and aircraft to make the flights happen. EAA Eagles program manager David Leiting said it was a top goal of the program to push its annual totals closer to pre-pandemic levels. “We are especially gratified for the more than 1,000 volunteer pilots flying Young Eagles for the first time,” he said. “Our network of pilots and chapters have made this possible through singular flights, or by organizing Young Eagles Rallies for their local communities to participate.”

The 2023 totals pushed the all-time tally for Young Eagle flights past 2.3 million since its inception in 1992. Moreover, the Young Eagle program serves as the bedrock for EAA’s now-wider range of youth activities, including the AeroEducate online resource and EAA Air Academy summer camps.

EAA thanks Young Eagles supporters Phillips 66, Sporty’s Pilot Shop, United Airlines, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, Garmin, Lightspeed, Academy of Model Aeronautics, and Global Aerospace.