International Young Eagles Day

International Young Eagles Day is the annual rallying point of the EAA Young Eagles program, which was launched in 1992 by the Experimental Aircraft Association, the community of aviation enthusiasts headquartered in Oshkosh, Wisconsin. The goal was audacious: to fly one million young people before the 100th anniversary of powered flight in 2003. That milestone was reached ahead of schedule, and the program kept climbing. By 2016 it had flown more than 2 million kids across 90 countries, making it the most successful youth aviation initiative in history, and today the total has surpassed 2.3 million flights.

The dedicated day of celebration arrived in 1994, when the EAA set aside the second Saturday of June each year to focus the energy of its chapters, member pilots, and ground volunteers on a single shared mission. The idea was simple and brilliant: people do more when they have a date to aim for. So chapters across North America and around the world began holding flight rallies on the same day, each one a bustling little festival of preflight walkarounds, safety briefings, and gleeful takeoffs. In a typical year, somewhere around 10,000 young people are flown on or around the day itself, with 12,000 to 15,000 flights conducted during the month of June.

Each Young Eagles flight pairs a young person between 8 and 17 with a volunteer pilot. Before the propeller turns, the pilot walks the young Eagle around the aircraft, explaining the parts of the airplane and the careful preparations pilots make before every safe flight. Then comes the ride: a brief 15 to 20 minute introductory flight that shows what an airplane can do and what a pilot does to fly it. Pilots volunteer not only their time but also cover the full cost of the flight themselves, in aircraft ranging from the newest airplanes to vintage biplanes, and sometimes even gliders, helicopters, or hot air balloons.

The magic does not end at touchdown. After the flight, each Young Eagle receives a certificate signed by the pilot, and every Young Eagle’s name is entered into the World’s Largest Logbook, an online record of the date, the pilot, and the aircraft. Young Eagles also receive a logbook with an access code for a free EAA student membership and a free Sporty’s Learn to Fly course, giving a curious kid a genuine first step toward becoming a pilot. An EAA study found that program participants were 5.4 times more likely to become a pilot than young people who never took part, proof that one short flight can change a life’s direction.

More than 43,000 volunteer pilots have taken part in the program, joined by some 50,000 ground volunteers who handle rally registration, safety, and ground support. The program’s co-chairmen have included air show legend Sean D. Tucker, whose signature appears on Young Eagles certificates, and pilot and NFL tight end Jimmy Graham. In September 2023, EAA volunteer Fred Stadler became the first Young Eagles pilot to fly 10,000 children, a record built one young Eagle at a time since he began giving flights in 2000. On the second Saturday of June, all of them share one goal: to make a young person’s dream of flight come true.

The day also carries a quiet lesson about who aviation belongs to. The program was deliberately built to reach kids who might never otherwise set foot in a small airplane, kids from every neighborhood and background, and its study results show it is working: participants include a higher share of young women pursuing pilot certificates than the general pilot population. Every June, as chapter after chapter files flight after flight, the sky fills with a message that is hard to argue with from the ground: the future of flight is wide open, and it is taking off right now.

THE STORY BEHIND INTERNATIONAL YOUNG EAGLES DAY

✈ A Million Kids Before the 100th Anniversary of Flight
The Young Eagles program was launched by the EAA in 1992 with the ambitious goal of flying one million children before the 100th anniversary of powered flight in 2003. The goal was met ahead of schedule, and the program has kept growing, with more than 2.3 million young people flown worldwide since the program began.

🎒 A Day of Their Own Since 1994
International Young Eagles Day has been celebrated on the second Saturday of June since 1994. Program coordinator Michelle Kunes has said the single date works because people do better when they have a date to focus on, and the day concentrates the year-round program’s energy into rallies in hundreds of communities at once. The 2017 celebration marked the 24th annual day and the program’s 25th anniversary year, complete with a birthday cake at AirVenture.

📚 The World’s Largest Logbook
Every Young Eagle’s name is entered into the World’s Largest Logbook, an online record that logs the young Eagle’s name, the participating pilot, the date of the flight, and the aircraft used. Each young Eagle also gets a certificate signed by the pilot and a logbook with an access code for a free EAA student membership and a free Sporty’s Learn to Fly course.

🤵 Pilots Who Pay Their Own Way
More than 43,000 volunteer pilots have flown Young Eagles, each donating their time and covering the full cost of the flight in their own or rented aircraft. Another 50,000 ground volunteers support the rallies with registration, safety, and program support. In September 2023, volunteer Fred Stadler became the first Young Eagles pilot to fly 10,000 children.

🛫 One Short Flight, 5.4 Times More Likely to Become a Pilot
A 2011 EAA study of program participants found they were 5.4 times more likely to become a pilot than young people who had never taken part. The study also found that the older a child is when taking the flight, the more likely they are to finish a pilot certificate, with two of every 100 seventeen-year-old participants going on to earn one.

WAYS TO CELEBRATE

✈ Sign a Young Person Up for a Flight
Kids ages 8 to 17 can register for a Young Eagles flight through the EAA’s online registration tool, and families can find a flight rally or youth event nearby on the EAA Calendar of Events. The flight is completely free, and every young Eagle gets a signed certificate and a logbook to remember the day.

🚗 Volunteer at a Local Flight Rally
You do not need to be a pilot to help. Chapters need ground volunteers for rally registration, safety, and general program support. Contact a local EAA chapter or reach the Young Eagles office at yeagles@eaa.org to lend a hand on June 12.

🎈 Throw a Watch Party for the Sky
If your town is hosting a rally, pack snacks and head to the airport fence with friends and family to watch the takeoffs and landings. Cheering as each young Eagle taxis back to the ramp is a celebration all its own, and it shows the kids that the whole community is rooting for them.

Celebrate International Young Eagles Day

On June 12, look up. Somewhere above your town, a kid is seeing the world from the sky for the very first time, and a volunteer pilot is grinning just as wide. Help make that flight happen, and keep the future of aviation soaring.