Fundamental Methods – Introduction 

Jim Kirk is an inspirational individual who turned the adversity of a brain injury into a mastery of accelerated learning. He teaches that if you’re struggling to improve at your craft, the problem usually lies in one of three areas: mindset, motivation, or methods. 

He defines methods as “a specific process for accomplishing something, especially in an orderly, logical, or systematic way of instruction.” In my experience, if aviators have the right mindset (their attitude, assumptions, and confidence are sound) and they are motivated (they understand and believe in the purpose of the training), then any lack of success in a basic maneuver usually comes down to one thing: their method. Due to the volume of repetition and experience aviators gain over time, many perform basic maneuvers by “feel” rather than by a consciously understood process. That instinctive ability works until they’re no longer flying as often, or they need to teach someone else how to do what they do. 

In the Aircraft Commander (AC) syllabus, I spend a significant amount of time asking candidates to describe their method for a given task. When they can clearly articulate how they do something, they tend to perform more consistently, and their copilots tend to improve more quickly. 

I’ve shared some of my methods before, in posts like “The Perfect MATCH” and “Fundamental Pilot Hoist Technique.” This series focuses on fundamental methods and will break down basic maneuvers usually trained in the pattern. The goal is to provide tools that ACs can incorporate into their own teaching techniques and copilots can use to better understand and adopt what’s being taught, ultimately accelerating learning and improving performance for all.