If your question is not answered below, email info@eaa309.club or use the contact form. A real person from the chapter will get back to you.
We are the Charlotte, North Carolina chapter of the Experimental Aircraft Association (EAA), founded in 1973. Our members are pilots, aircraft builders and restorers, and people who simply love airplanes. The chapter is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit and has held EAA Gold Level chapter recognition since 2019.
Most of what we do happens around the Lake Norman and greater Charlotte area: our build night at Lake Norman Airpark in Mooresville, Young Eagles rallies at Lincolnton-Lincoln County Regional Airport (KIPJ), and the chapter hangar at Gastonia Municipal Airport (KAKH).
No. Roughly half of our members are not pilots. If you enjoy aviation, want to learn to fly, are curious about building, or just like being around airplanes and the people who fly them, you belong here.
Yes, please do. Guests are welcome at build night, the dinner gatherings and Young Eagles rallies. Introduce yourself to anyone wearing a chapter name tag and they will show you around. There is no obligation to join.
Our regular rhythm looks like this. Dates and times do shift, so always check the chapter calendar before you head out.
Two steps. First, join or renew with EAA national, which every chapter member must hold. Then join the chapter on our membership page, either online or by mailing the printable application with a check.
Dues cover the calendar year.
No. Do not tip Zeffy. Zeffy, our payment platform, charges the chapter nothing and instead asks each payer for an optional tip that goes to Zeffy, not to EAA Chapter 309.
In the tip dropdown choose Other and enter 0. The total then shows only your dues, and your whole payment reaches the chapter.
A community of people who will help you fly, build, learn and volunteer. Members receive the chapter newsletter, a vote at chapter business meetings, first call on hangar space as it opens up, access to chapter tools and expertise at build night, and the chance to fly Young Eagles or support a rally on the ground.
Young Eagles is EAA's program that gives young people aged 8 to 17 a free introductory flight in a general aviation airplane with a volunteer pilot. The flight lasts about 15 to 20 minutes, and once the airplane is established in cruise most Young Eagles get a turn at the controls. Each Young Eagle receives a logbook with a code that unlocks a free EAA student membership and an online ground school course.
Chapter 309 flies on the third Saturday of most months at KIPJ. See the Young Eagles page for details and the rally schedule.
Online registration opens before each rally at events.eaachapters.org. Slots are limited and first come, first served. A parent or guardian must attend and sign the registration forms on the day. Flights depend on weather and pilot availability, so check our Facebook page the morning of the rally for any changes. Questions go to youngeagles@eaa309.club.
Absolutely. Every rally needs ground volunteers for registration, escorting families on the ramp, and keeping things running. Pilots who want to fly Young Eagles complete EAA's Youth Protection Program training and background check first; we will walk you through it.
That is what we are for. Come to build night to see how a project comes together and to meet members who have finished their own. Our Builders page connects project owners with volunteers who want hands-on experience, and members include A&P mechanics and repeat builders who are generous with advice.
The chapter hangar at Gastonia Municipal Airport (KAKH) has three slots for airworthy aircraft and one project slot for an active build at a reduced rate. Slots are for chapter members and turn over occasionally. See the Hangar page for details and to join the waiting list.
Come talk to us. Members have trained at most of the flight schools around Charlotte and Lake Norman and will give you straight answers about schools, costs and how to prepare. Young people aged 16 to 19 should also read about the Ray Aviation Scholarship below.
Chapter 309 is a Ray Aviation Scholarship chapter. Funded by the Ray Foundation through EAA, the scholarship provides up to $12,000 toward a private pilot certificate for young people aged 16 to 19, and the chapter mentors each scholar through training. We also point students to other EAA and industry scholarships. Details, eligibility and how to apply are on the Scholarships page, or email scholarships@eaa309.club.
Email info@eaa309.club or use the contact form. For Young Eagles, youngeagles@eaa309.club; for scholarships, scholarships@eaa309.club. Mail goes to EAA Chapter 309, PO Box 3083, Mooresville, NC 28117.