Gapan - Pilot Aptitude Assessment

[F/O UFO]

Hi, I have the GAPAN assessment next Thursday, just wondering what preparation I should do, any tips. I know it's meant to be natural aptitude, but lots of people I have spoken to say you can train for it.

Also If anyone who has previously done it could tell me what to expect that would be great, thanks

[SparksFlyHigh]

Is that the ppl sponsorship? (looking at your age)

[F/O UFO]

no, aptitude test- at RAF Cranwell

[nickyjsmith]

Hi, i did it last year and yes thats my age! Just go in with the right attitude and never give in on any of the tests, read through the instructions properly and if you can do it twice then do it.
I drove up there a couple of hours early, had a bacon roll and a black coffee to make sure i was not hungry and i was alert.
By the end of the seven tests, which are now the RAF's current pilot tests (which means if you pass and you want to join in the future you do not have to take them again) i was mentally drained and that is how you should be if you give it your best.
If you can fly a flight sim while holding a conversation with someone or answering questions thats as much as you need to prepare, you would be kidding yourself if you try to learn the tests, the idea is to test your aptitude for flying and multi tasking.
I enjoyed it, have fun!

Nick.

[GAPAN]

The digit recall test was removed at the beginning of last year!

Technical Director
GAPAN

[F/O UFO]

I'm taking the GAPAN test tomorrow. What should I wear? I don't have a suit!!

[G SXTY]

Smart casual will be fine.

[350Z]

Just completed the GAPAN Tests today and I can definitely recommend this process to all wannabes!

Those at the Guild seem great; very friendly and professional, willing to help and offer advice/answer any questions- good of those there today to give up their time! Cheers for that.

Just a note on the tests- more difficult than I imagined, especially the aircraft maneuver memory one at the end! Good experience and kinda fun also!

All in all a very worthwhile exercise and a good result to cap off the day!

[TheBP]

I'd like to second what 350Z has said, would recommend this to all wannabes. I now understand why they say the tests can't be prepared for, they were a lot more difficult than I had anticipated!

Many thanks to those GAPAN members who volunteered their time to run this - it is really appreciated.

Now, I need a beer.. thankfully to celebrate (I honestly thought I had done awfully by the end of it!) :ok:

[F/O UFO]

Hi folks, i was there today and got a good result, thank god! It was hard, infact I thought I had done much worse. The BP and 350Z, I don't know who you were today but congratulations! Bring on the class 1 medical!

[G SXTY]

Congratulations on the good result. It will stand you in good stead when it comes to training and airline selection.

The GAPAN tests are just about the most sensible thing a low-hours wannabe could spend his money on.

[GeorgEGNT]

Hello there,

I'm considering signing up for one of the GAPAN aptitude assessments just to give myself an idea of where I stand before starting any commercial flying training. I was just wondering. If you 'pass' the test so to speak i.e. get a good score, is there anything physical you get like a certificate or something? To prove your score.
I was hoping that if I got a good score, that I could use it on my CV and things whilst job hunting for non flying jobs (to fund training) to prove my abilities. Any help is appreciated.

Thanks! GeorgEGNT

EDIT: If any of the mods see this, the GAPAN thread on the Archeive thread is a dead link for me (might just be my PC but other links are fine, hence my enquiry with a fresh thread)

[JohnRayner]

Hello,

You get a letter detailing your score, which demonstrates the likelihood of success with coping with flight training and subsequent airline flying.

I think the scores go "below average" "average" "high average" and "high" likelihood of success.

Although I took them to make sure I was unlikely to fluff the training, and taking them would I think demonstrate something by way of career planning, I don't know how much attention subsequent employers would take of them on your CV, so if anyone out there knows, I too would be grateful to find out.

Incidentally, I found them quite fun, and very useful.

JR

[GeorgEGNT]

Thanks for the response John, I need to sort out a suitable date and then I think I'll sign myself up, seems like a very enjoyable and useful experience, plus the guys there seem to provide a lot of information should there be anything that you want to know.

I'm not flying at the moment as I'm unemployed, so funding it will be the first issue then hopefully I will get the job at HMRC I'm having an interview for on saturday to get my PPL back on track.

[kyri]

Hi, I took the aptitude tests today and got a slightly higher than average chance of succeeding as a pilot. I was told that with hard work i would suceed. Has anyone had the same experience and suceeded?

Please help.

Thanks.

[Ollie23]

Kyri- See here;
http://www.pprune.org/interviews-jobs-sponsorship/366125-am-i-alone.html#post4793669

I didn't do great in the GAPAN tests but passed the CTC wings selection fine, not had any problems so far but only in the early stages of training.

I'd actually class anything around average on those tests as a half decent result, its the full RAF battery of tests and will likely be harder than any tests you'll come up against in the civvy world.

If you're going to worry about anything, worry about the fact that there will likely be no jobs for any low houred guys for a long long time.

Cheers

[kyri]

Thanks for the reply. Its great to see that you're doing your training at CTC, gives me hope...I'm applying to CTC and Oxford.

Good Luck with thre training.

[Minotaur12]

For those who are prospectively going to take the results I think my experience is valuable to you ...
In 2010 I sat the test whilst I was doing a-level exams in maths and physics so whilst my mind was trained to think, I was under huge pressure.
I sat the tests recently 2 years later and my mark had dropped massively to the point of failure even though I thought id done better ...

I personally would say that this is down to simply having a baaaaad day - aptitude does drop over the course of time but it's only very slightly and also I had studied to keep my mind working fast.
Also I think the hand eye co-ordination was screwed up by the fact the joystick was of poor design and stiff (I may be clutching at straws here!!)
The other area which let me down was at the end because you have to follow a plane going round a screen and it's a misleading representation of a plane because it appears to have two cockpits!! So I kept putting in wrong commands.

I am pretty sure these tests are an accurate perception and perhaps I am being a fool by making excuses as to why I did poorly, but let's put it in three ways:

The tests with the school are much more inclusive and test far more qualities than your aptitude so you can win points back in other areas
It is RAF standard tests which is higher than we need, so even if we do score badly on these, it may suffice for an FTO (remember despite what gapan may tell you although it's true the FTO's will fill courses, they still have a reputation to uphold so they won't accept people who have underachieved to an unacceptable degree)
For those of us that have had to learn to drive, (and this is the main point because they will stress that low aptitude = dangerous pilots who are unable to cope with emergencies) did we find it easy from the start?? No!!! It's difficult which is why we learn, but through the passage of time and practice, we are all capable of dealing with whatever the roads throw at us!! Just like Flying. We may not start of as naturals but the more experience we get, the more we get used to dealing with situations.

As a final note - they provide a great and frank service to us which is great fun - but from my experience, don't let them put you off with a bad result because mine varied far too much for it to be an accurate representation. Sit their test, try one with an FTO and make your mind up after that to see if your really suitable