CASA ATPL flight planning

[Joey khunji]

I am doing my ATPL flight planning theory course with Jeremy UNSW in Sydney soon :ugh: as I couldn't find other courses,, Nathan is all booked out, I've read some good comments about unsw but all the comments I have read were about Len, I would really appreciate it if anyone who did the flight planning with Jeremy UNSW to give me an idea about it, I really want the course to be helpful as that's my last subject and I don't wanna :mad: it up and want to finish it ASAP.

And if anyone could tell me how is the CASA cyber exam now as I heard that it had some issues but its all fixed now and alot are passing it first attempt,, will appreciate your help guys. :D

[Username here]

Exam is "fine" I did it last week, 2 1/2 weeks of self study got me a solid first time pass using AFT. Found the answers quite well spaced out, nothing out of left field - even had a spare 2 minutes at the end to compose myself!

[Joey khunji]

That sounds good thanx for your post mate, I tried to self study it using aft as well but I found a bit difficult so decide to take the unsw course I hope their notes are helpful though

[DUXNUTZ]

Jeremy is a good dude and will steer you right as long as you fulfill your end of the bargain and study hard.

[Avturbound]

I did the course with AFT and UNSW (with Jeremy)

I can say without a doubt Jeremy is 100x better then AFT. They teach you exactly per the CASA requirements and syllabus.. not just to pass the exam like AFT does.

Jeremy is a legend and knows his stuff! Make sure you listen to everything and do EXACTLY as he says. do not go into the exam having practice exams left to do and do them more then once. You do this you will go into the exam with zero surprises as i did and scored 86% first attempt (and I'm not the brightest on the block)

:ok: for Jeremy @ UNSW

[tobz92_ymen]

Passed last thursday second time with 74%. Self studied with the AFT book and had the Rob Avery condensed notes book and his 5 practice exams book. If theres any tip I can give, for the week before the exam, you should be getting through one full exam a day, and timed aswell. First time when I failed time got the better of me, as I hadnt done the hard yard with the practice exams, the old PPPPPP. After getting all of the practice exams in the AFT book and the Rob Avery ones done under time, I finished with 30minutes left and went back and changed two of my 5 markers.

Unlike many here who suggest to start with the 5 markers, I just did them in order 1-17, I found starting with the easier ones was better as I built myself up. You should be completing the 5 marker question in about 15-20 minutes.Be careful with the way both Rob and Nathan do their working, for example if ISA deviation is +2 there answers will show an increase in fuel flow of 1.0066% although CASA say to round up to +3 and increase fuel flow by 1.01%. Also they interpolate cruise winds, CASA says to pick the nearest flight level and use that unless there are dramatic wind changes and ISA deviations, a little ambiguous but thats CASA for you. Also I cant stress enough RTFQ

[morno]

I'm not sure I agree with not doing the 5 markers first. Sure everyone's different, but look at it like this - for every 5 marker you don't have time to dedicate to, you're missing out on a big % of your potential marks! In theory, you could almost only do the 5 markers, get all of them right, maybe a couple of 3 markers, and pass the exam without even attempting the 1 markers.

Time management is the key, and I found that if I was sitting there, ready with pen in hand to go straight to that first 5 marker the moment the page loaded, then I was a lot more comfortable as the clock counted down and I'd finished all the 5 markers.

I'm not entirely up with the changes in accuracy that they've made with the exam, but for example, in all my workings on my fuel plans, I had timings on legs down to the 3rd decimal place, I accounted for every possible knot in speed I could, and I found as many ways to use that calculator as quick as possible.

morno

[Joey khunji]

Thanks guys for the tips, I appreciate it
I am sure that will help me with exam,, and thank youAVTURBOUND
I feel much better now about doing it with Jeremy unsw


:ok: cheers

Joey

[Username here]

I'm not sure I agree with not doing the 5 markers first

Couldn't agree with you more Morno.

After two hours of flight planning stress the last think I wanted to do was three/four five mark flight plans....

Get em done while you're fresh!

[CazbahKid]

Do a few 2 markers to warm up then dive into the deep end with the fivers and work backwards.

[delta_alpha_november]

J Andrews is a legend :ok: - as long as you listen to him and do the work you will have no worries

[john_tullamarine]

Time management is the key

One important point appears to have been overlooked (unless I missed it skimming through the thread ...)

Figure the minutes/mark value of each question and don't go past it ie if you have run out of that value for the question you are doing .. go onto the next one.

Doesn't really matter what order they are done .. that's simply a matter of your own preference .. but stick conservatively to the minutes/mark value and do not be tempted to spend an extra few minutes on a question to get it finished .. go back to it at the end.

The aim is to maximise the total mark .. don't worry about anything else in the exam.

[Avturbound]

Joey not a problem mate,

One last thing it helped me GREATLY. I booked a mid day exam, so when i woke up had a good feed. I did two of the 5 markers from the practice exams particularly the Horn Island PNR and a 1 Inop CP. Safe to say the first question I got was a Horn Island PNR 5 marker. Completed it in 5 mins literally as it was very similar to the one I had fresh in my mind in the morning.

Do this to get into the groove early. And my advice 5 markers is what will pass/fail you bottom line. So do them first no doubts.

GL:ok:

[Pilotshumornetwork]

I finally got over the line today. Second attempt. I can be a husband and a Dad again after being all consumed by this devil called flight planning.....I hope they are still around when I get home? :) Never thought I would pass it, but with dedicated study and help/advice from friends and fellow aviators miracles happen. Thanks to all on this thread for your advice. Cheers

[tik_nat]

If anyone is able to PM me the Horn Island PNR Practice question, it would be much appreciated.

[ozziejim]

Flight from Darwin to Port Moresby, at PEBTA workout out PNR from Horn Island to to Cairns on R204, via Horn Island. From what I can remember you're left with a very small box fuel amount for the Horn Island out and return leg, and I recall working out 19nm, and the possible answers were 25nm, 50nm, 75nm, 100nm and 125nm. A clear cut and relatively easy 5 marker, shouldnt take any longer than 15 mins. Dont take my answer if that comes in the exam as it could very well be different weights and winds. Good luck!

[Pilotshumornetwork]

That's pretty much exactly what I had also, I worked out the right answer, I want to post my answer however I don't want to mislead you as I know people have answered different to me and they got the question right. Same question different fuel etc. I hope you have a good exam mate and achieve your goals.

[tik_nat]

Thanks Gents.

Been practicing 1 INOP CPs today using estimated TAS given estimated weight, vice a blanket 420TAS. Man it takes a hell of a lot longer for not much difference in the answer. My plan is to have a look at how closely the answers are spaced and use 420 initially if they are far apart, coming back to it if I have time. If they're close together, I'll do the hard yards first up. Anyway done something similar and had it work?

[morno]

That's a recipe for disaster right there.

Do it right the first time.

morno

[Username here]

Does it really matter how the invidulator carries on beforehand? Be properly prepared and don't cheat and you have nothing to worry about mate...

As far as the new timeline goes, I self studied the CPL subjects, IREX, and all the ATPLs in seven months...while working full time, with a newborn...

It's not hard if you are willing to put in the work...

[tik_nat]

Thanks to all for the help - passed third time around with 90%. The "autopsy" for those going into for the future:

- Sounds like this is what is being taught now, but just in case, work out actual TAS for climb and descent for use when calculating ETAS, use actual MAGVAR for the leg and when in doubt, more segments are better. Those where the things that have changed in the past few months which I was not aware of

That robbed me of a bunch of marks and the followed sealed my fate:
- EXAM 1 (58%). Made a error using my calculator (the divide symbol and the % symbol are reversed on supplied calculator vs my calculator). Although a little over the top when it comes to supplying all the gear now, those are the rules and they are pretty clearly spelt out. Practice with a regular pencil, sharpening as you go have a good play with the calculator before the exam starts. I also ran out of time and had to guess 3 - 4 two mark questions

- EXAM 2 (68%). Even with the technique issues listed earlier, I would passed this had it not been for one thing.......in my quest for speed, I sacrificed accuracy. The clues to slow down were there when I had to consistently go back and change things / redo questions. A lot has been said about speed, but for me, slowing it down was the trick that got be through the third exam.

Anyway, I hope that's of some help to someone. The beer does taste better after flight planning!!!!

[nibbio86]

Quick question to people who recently sat AFPA self studying from AFT notes: are the Cyber exams realistic compared to the actual CASA one from the point of view of number & difficulty of the questions vs time available? I just did the first one, passed with 84% but took me far longer than three hours to complete. I'm booked for the real thing in a week.

[Username here]

I averaged about 85% in 2 1/2 hours on the AFT practice exams. (Scores were 74 "gusting" 100%)

I finished the real one in 2:58 with 84%.

I spoke to Nathan before my actual exam and he recommends a minimum result of 80% in under three hours...

I found they prepared you very well. The only difference I noted between CASA and AFT's questions were that the answer tolerances were A LOT closer on the AFT questions than the CASA exam, and most of the CASA problem EMZWs were even, requiring less interpolation for fuel flows - saving a few seconds!

[mcgrath50]

I sat my exam this week and felt that the question bank had been rewritten compared to when I had sat it earlier this year. The answers seemed spaced more like the old, old questions and they questions while asking the same thing were using different parts of the country, a lot of PNG to Top End questions and 1 even requiring H5. Looks like GS might have bitten the bullet and rewritten them from scratch. If you follow the new CASA rounding and interpolation and RTFQ you should be fine.

[tik_nat]

One thing I did notice is that not all questions with the same allocated mark take the same amount of work / time. I had a 5 marker which took 20 minutes, another which took less than 10, then a 4 marker which took 15 minutes and another 4 marker which took around 5 mintues. Similar comments for the 3 and 2 mark questions.

I know the advice so far has been if you exceed your approx. 3 minutes per mark allocation, move on, but I would suggest that if your not stuck (ie your simply doing the legwork on a question with many segments), then press with it (within reason) and assess how you're going "on average" every 2-3 questions. Clearly if you're stuck, don't persist - move on.

[nibbio86]

Thanks guys.
Do you remember the questions breakdown, like how many 5 markers, how many 4 markers ans so on?

[mcgrath50]

3, 5 markers
around 3, 4 markers which were either difficult but not many steps or lots of steps but easy
around 3, 3 markers
around 4, 2 markers many of which were more time consuming than the 2 markers
Only 2 one markers


I agree with tik_nat, don't stick religiously to the marks per question formula, use it as a guide. You've probably done enough practice exams by now to have a feel for the pace needed for each question type. I found I had enough time to play with 2 questions that were 4 or 5 marks after running through all the questions once.

[Lowlevel13]

Hey guys,

I'm new on here. AFPA is my final ATPL and I am having trouble with it.
Can anyone offer any advice as to where in Perth I could get some tutoring?

[Joey khunji]

hey buddy I finished AFPA 2 months ago and it was my final too,
What kind of troubles r u facing ??
I will tell you what I did, I've took 2 weeks theory course with UNSW Jeremy andrews he is a legend,, I went through all his notes, after that I went through the AFT cyber exams all 4 of them I really found the CASA exam pretty the same as the AFT cyber exams, if u do that u should have no troubles with it, I had some troubles when I was doing it self study but when I took the course with Jeremy it was piece of cake,, let me know if you need anything

[aaa222aaa]

Hey guys, been a little quiet here over the last few months and wondering if many others are having success with the exam?

In particular for those studying with AFT texts circa mid last year (not sure if the text has been updated over summer) are you finding the material good preparation for the exam? I'm hearing lots of third hand rumours but would be interested to get the facts!

[seneca208]

Just passed AFPA in the last few weeks. Self studied, using AFT material, passed first time round. I had the updated 2013 notes. The teaching method appears to be the same as the old notes I had, just the difference between the answers has been tightened up a bit.

It is a speed and accuracy exam. I had all PNRs for my 5 marker questions, and no fuel dumping questions surprisingly. I had seen all the types of questions in the AFT practice exams, so definitely worth having a go at those. Also a few questions with max payload/min fuel flights, so make sure you're good with those. Without having sat the exam with its previous issues in 2013, I would like to think it has all been worked out by now.

[Bluemeaway]

Hi,

I'm currently going through AFT course have been living and breathing this subject solid. Still hearing all the doom and gloom stories about the pass rate and quite a few 2/3 timers on course.

Does anyone have an update on this exam. In regards to time pressure still significant and the tolerances used.

Heard a rumour the exam might have been tweaked a little to the positive side??

[mcgrath50]

I sat the exam three times last year. By my third attempt the question bank had definitely been rewritten. Same style of questions, same tolerances as before the "issues" but different locations and routes used.

I found the third attempt a very fair exam. I was prepared and I passed with a good mark using all but the last 2 minutes of the exam.