Hobbies And Interests
Homemade Aircraft
The roots of the EAA come from people who build their own aircraft. Two major types of homebuilt aircraft are available to enthusiasts: kit or scratch-built. Under the rules of the Federal Aviation Administration, each type qualifies as a homebuilt aircraft. Members of the EAA include pilots, those who build aircraft or those with an interest in aviation. The range of homemade aircraft includes basic planes made from plastic tubes and fabric, kit models or planes built from private plans. EAA staff helps ensure the safety of homemade aircraft and educates people about how to build these kinds of planes.
Pilots
The EAA is also a resource for current pilots. EAA encourages pilots to communicate with each other and share interests. Over 1,000 EAA clubs host more than 10,000 local and regional aviation events each year for pilots. Special communities are available for pilots in their areas of interest. These include warbirds, aerobatic planes, vintage and ultralight aircraft.
Young Eagles
The EAA also supports young pilots. It hosts the "Young Eagles" program. This program introduces children from ages 8 to 17 to aviation. The young pilot can take their first flight and pilot a plane in the air under the guidance of this program. The EAA guides interested children through coursework to their first flight lesson. The final idea is to encourage the student to continue their aviation hobby and train as a pilot.
Government
The government administers aviation regulations. EAA members meet with FAA officials to discuss current aviation issues. A top priority of the political action committee of the EAA is to improve homemade aircraft regulations and to enhance safety, but not inhibit the rights of people to fly homemade aircraft. An area of concern with the government is the regulation of warbirds. Warbirds have stringent requirements for airworthiness and the EAA's goal is for these regulations to alleviate restrictions on how someone can fly an old warplane.