Young fliers take to the air during South Lake Tahoe Air Show

As part of last weekend's Lake of the Sky Air Show in South Lake Tahoe, kids were invited to take free airplane rides. 46 area youth were able to take part.

The Truckee Chapter of the Experimental Aircraft Association (EAA) held a Young Eagles Rally at the Lake Tahoe Airport on September 21.

The EAA started the Young Eagles program in 1993 with the goal of introducing a million youths, 8 through 17 years old, to aviation with a free airplane ride by the Wright brothers' flight centennial, December 17, 2003. They exceeded their national goal and continued the program, having flown over 1.8 million Young Eagles worldwide since 1993.

“The pilots and ground volunteers enjoyed the small town air show atmosphere, and also noticed how appreciative kids and parents were for our doing the flights. Your communities' members' attitudes were additional rewards for all of us,” said Tom Meadows, EAA Young Eagles Coordinator.

The most visible volunteers in the Young Eagles program are the pilots. More than 40,000 men and women worldwide volunteer their time to the EAA. Pilots are not compensated monetarily for their time or their aircraft costs.