It helps knowing someone is there to save the machine should you get into a situation you can't handle. This doesn't happen very often. He really wants you to get out of the situation yourself, if possible. Developing a good set of disaster-averting reactions is clearly one of his prime objectives, and this method achieves it with a minimum of fuss, bother, and spare parts. The first few flights concentrated on getting the bird up off the ground and back down again, preferably in one piece.
Control is a key term here.
Ernie firmly believes in creating a strong foundation of basic skills on which one builds more advance maneuvers. We spent the vast majority of our time ensuring that this hard-earned foundation wouldn't crack or settle as we progressed. Each new exercise dovetailed nicely with the last, and conscious control over the helicopter was emphasized continually. Recommended daily allowance Each morning, Ernie plugged in and gave us, individually, the maneuvers we should practice during the day. We then observed a similar routine in the afternoon.