On use of the M4 selector:

The principle to be adhered to is that you initiate the dismounting of the rifle by initiating movement of the thumb to the selector. By doing so you are beginning the largest least critical movement with the smallest and most critical movement so it does not get forgotten or more commonly, overlooked because something has drawn your attention and broken the mental continuity. From an instructional perspective, if I see a rifle brought out of the mount with a time gap of 1 second or more and then put on safe, I can nearly guarantee you that individual will forget to safe the rifle under pressure of time or threat. It must be a learned pattern of response (motor memory, procedural memory, automated neural control…whatever you want to call it except for muscle memory, please.)

I safe my rifle on reloads because if I am so close that I need to immediately reengage and have a sidearm I will transition (the only time I don’t care if it is placed on safe or not), If I don’t have a sidearm I would be seeking cover not reloading in the open and then reemerging in a different spot. If I have distance, then I would be dropping behind cover and finding another position to reemerge from as well, so other than a transition I can put the rifle on safe without any real effect on my re-engagement speed. I use “the jumpmaster theory” of learning what “right” feels like. I put my rifle on safe every time it leaves the mount and I don’t even realize it but if I miss the selector it will jump out at me because it is wrong. Just like when I was a jumpmaster I didn’t even notice if I walked by a jumper with a properly rigged parachute but I could spot a misrouted static-line or twisted strap in my peripheral vision because the picture was wrong. I could also trace a strap and never see it but immediately know it is misrouted or twisted by feel.

Again, I had patterned in the right feeling along with the right picture and it would immediately jump out at me if incorrect but be invisible when correct. I had patterned in the correct picture and feeling so when it was present it was seamless and when it was absent it was obvious. Even if I don’t take the time to place it on safe or miss the selector when I attempt to, I realize it is in the fire position and can act accordingly at the next opportunity. Learning is patterning behavior and I want to pattern my behavior in the proper manner every chance I get. In my opinion you are either learning a task in the best possible way or one of all the other ways; it’s up to you to figure out which is which.

– Mike Pannone

Mike Pannone retired from the Army’s premier assault force (1st SFOD-D) after an explosive breaching injury. A year after his retirement America was attacked on 9/11 and he returned to help serve his country as the head marksmanship instructor at the Federal Air Marshals training course and then moved to help stand up the FAMS Seattle field office. In 2003 he left the FAMS to serve as a PSD detail member and then a detail leader for the State Department during 2003 and 2004 in Baghdad and Tikrit.

In 2005 he served as a ground combat advisor of the Joint Counter IED Task Force and participated on combat operations with various units in Al Anbar province. Upon returning he gave IED awareness briefings to departing units and helped stand up a pre-Iraq surge rifle course with the Asymmetric Warfare Group as a lead instructor. With that experience as well as a career of special operations service in Marine Reconnaissance, Army Special Forces and JSOC to draw from he moved to the private sector teaching planning, leadership, marksmanship and tactics as well as authoring and co-authoring several books such as The M4 Handbook, AK Handbook and Tactical Pistol shooting. Mike also consults for several major rifle and accessory manufacturers to help them field the best possible equipment to the warfighter, law enforcement officer and upstanding civilian end user. He is considered a subject matter expert on the AR based Stoner platform in all its derivatives.

Gunfighter Moment is a weekly feature brought to you by Alias Training & Security Services. Each week Alias brings us a different Trainer and in turn they offer some words of wisdom.