Behavioral Taxonomy of Undergraduate Pilot Training Tasks and Skills

The analysis and specification of fundamental flying abilities which comprise the training objectives of Air Force undergraduate pilot training (UPT) was performed. The taxonomy of UPT tasks and skills is an analytical tool of considerable generality that can be used to aid in understanding the essential requirements of flying training. Surface analyses of fifty UPT maneuvers generated task element descriptions subdivided into a series of cue, mental action, and motor action sequences. The resulting task information was used to identify the pilot skills required to execute the flying tasks described. A set of classification rules organized the skills into a taxonornic cubic concept in which cues, mental actions, and motor actions represented cube faces. The classification rules were validated empirically and used to verify all surface analyses. The required task skills were then organized into a matrix system for simple data retrieval operations.