Is playing an Aarakocra player character currently legal in Adventurers League, as of September 2017?

Question

I'd like to know if playing an Aarakocra character is currently legal in the D&D 5e Adventurers League.

The Aarakocra race has been in D&D for a while, but is described in detail in 5e in the Elemental Evil Player's Companion on page 3:

This chapter presents three new races to supplement those in the Player's Handbook [...] These new options are available when you make a character, provided that your DM allows them in your campaign.

Answer 1

There is no way for a starting character to be an Aarakocra or a Winged Tiefling, because the Adventurers League Player's Guide v9.1 says:

Races with flight at 1st level [...] aren’t available without specific campaign documentation (i.e., certs, etc.).

The referenced "campaign documentation" can be acquired two ways.

1. Season 5 had a DM Quest, "King of the Ordning" that allowed a DM who ran a large portion of the seasonal content to create an Aarakocra with 6,500 XP (or do a complete rebuild of another character).
2. Season 7 has a similar DM Quest, "Death's Master" that allowed a DM who runs a large portion of the season to create an Aarakocra or a Winged Tiefling with 6,500 XP.

No other seasons have had an equivalent DM Quest.

_{Season 9 has added an option for tiefling and aasimar characters to gain wings when they reach T2, but that obviously isn't an aarakocra.}

Answer 2

The Adventurers League Player's Guide says:

NOTE: A character race that grants a fly speed at 1st level isn’t allowed for D&D Adventurers League play.

So no, Aarakocra (also Winged Tieflings) are not legal for Adventurers League play.

It's worth noting that this clause has appeared in the ALPG since the Aarakocra was first published; which is to say that it has never been legal for AL play.