36 U.S.C. § 23102: Purposes

to receive and maintain one or more funds and to use any part of the principal and income only for charitable, scientific, literary, or educational purposes, either directly or by contributing to organizations authorized to carry on similar activities; to honor citizens, aviation leaders, pilots, teachers, scientists, engineers, inventors, governmental leaders, and other individuals who have helped to make this Nation great by their outstanding contributions to the establishment, development, advancement, or improvement of aviation in the United States; to perpetuate the memory of those individuals and record their contributions and achievements by the erection and maintenance of buildings and monuments as may be appropriate as a lasting memorial; to promote a better sense of appreciation of the origins and growth of aviation, especially in the United States, and the part aviation has played in changing the economic, social, and scientific aspects of our Nation; to establish and maintain a library and museum for the collection and preservation for posterity of the history of those honored by the organization, together with a documentation of their accomplishments and contributions to aviation, including items such as aviation pictures, paintings, books, papers, documents, scientific data, relics, mementos, artifacts, and other items related to that history; to cooperate with other recognized aviation organizations actively engaged and interested in similar projects; and to engage in any other activities appropriate to carry out the purposes of the corporation.