Airplanes R Us: EAA 430, Young Eagles Events

From the March 2019 newsletter, by John Meyers, page 4

Open the PDF at page 4 See the whole March 2019 issue

The Olympic Peninsula is a special place with beautiful vistas, and just enough civilization to make life quite comfortable in the 21st century. For those who are flying enthusiasts, EAA and Chapter 430 fit very well into this environment.

EAA 430 has a great history of supporting the YOUNG EAGLES program. These have become “signature events” for the chapter. For me, I had the pleasure of being the YE coordinator for several recent years.

During my tenure, we were lucky with weather and volunteer-ship, thus facilitating some great rallies. Now it’s time for me to evolve to a secondary role. There are some key elements to pass along to the “next generation.”

The EAA YOUTH PROTECTION item: We have 3-years of history with this and it makes good sense. For those who were qualified in the first wave, it is now time to re-qualify. The chore is an easy online transaction whether you are new to the item or accomplishing the 3-year re-qualification. We will need 100% of the pilots… and a good percentage of the ground volunteers to finish this item and be on file.
FLIGHT VOLUNTEERS: The program leans heavily on the generosity and availability of pilots & planes. There is no payback or consideration except the gratitude of kids who get to experience the ride. Kids can variously see-the-sights and maybe handle the controls.
GROUND VOLUNTEERS: The flight portion must be well-supported by the ground crew. We strive to create an attractive base station and demonstrate good hosting of parents and kids. Elements are greeters, tent staff and safety escorts.
LOGISTICS: Setting up the tent for base of operations is accomplished at Sequim Valley and Port Angeles airports. Eventually all this stuff gets dismantled and tucked away for the next event.
BEST RESULT: We like positive feedback… and sometimes it takes a while. Best news is that a youth is inspired by a YE experience to make a strong connection to aviation as a hobby or occupation.

Here is hoping for great weather and good participation for the 2019 Young Eagles events sponsored by EAA chapter 430!