sicky

it will be like ILS, where if you push forwards, the horizontal line rises, as if the nose of the aircraft has gone down

welliewanger

Very nice looking place, very helpful staff. Simulators are very well kept (compared to the modular schools I've seen) The whole place really feels geared towards training (and so it should!)

Tests have already been discussed, so I won't give anything more away... you'll have to wait and see...

Interview felt more like a chat about why I want to fly, what I've done with my life so far etc. Fortunately I've done quite a bit of "extra stuff" like Duke of Edinburgh's award and TA, so they liked that a lot!

Everyone there seemed happy with the courses they were doing. I spent quite a bit of time with some modular students who recommended doing integrated!

Instructors were of the "I've been doing this so long I've seen it all before but don't brag about it" variety. I sat in with some people doing IR sim stuff and the instructor was very professional and highly capable.

There were three other candidates there:
-One failed the English language test (and consequently the English comprehension and maths comprehension tests)
-One failed the maths test
-One passed everything but was warned that his Pilapt tests suggested he may have to invest in more than minimum flying time.
-And then there was me. I passed all the tests, so I'm going on the course on 22nd May

So, that's a 50% pass rate and of that 50%, 50% accepted.

Oh yes, and simonc15 is right about the sausages, they're terrible!

simonc15

The hand eye cooradination it is is a cross on screen and you have to keep it in line with an other cross on screen but the cross you control moves without your imput and you have to counteract the movement with the joystick and keep it centred with the immoblile one.
if you push the joystick left the cross goes left and if you pull the joystick backwards(down) the the cross goes up
for flying through squares its like an aircraft

hope that clear things up

Stumpyotoole

Now I am really confused!!
sicky and simonc15... you guys have completely contadicted each other with regards to the contol inputs in the test!
Can anyone actually confirm the controls of the test?
thanks
stumpy

sicky

Basically it's like flying a normal plane, if u push up, the horizontal bar will go down, and if u pull the stick back towards you, the horizontal bar will go up

simonc15

i agree with sickys last post
if you were flying a aircraft the horizontal bar would be the horizon

Stumpyotoole

Hi Simonc15
Still a contradiction going on here!
sicky says that if you push stick forward... horizontal line goes down (like nose of a plane)
but if like you said, it represents the horizon, when you push stick forward, horizon line moves up (as nose of aircraft drops)
still lost on this one, just got cockpit-web test and want to know if on crosshairs test the y-axis matches the real pilapt test or if the y-axis is inverted.
help
stumpy

Superpilot

stumpy,

I am 100% sure the cockpitweb test does not resemble the real PILAPT cross-bar test. The PILAPT one is joystick back (or down if looking from top) to move the bar up. I've had two goes so I should know. In fact I've asked them (cockpitweb) to consider changing it and they have acknowledged my feedback. Best you don't use the cockpitweb test for that particular exercise or you will do worse than you would had you not prepared for it. Also, relax it's not as difficult as you think.

Hope this helps.

sicky

If you're still getting confused, i suggest just going to the tests and seeing for yourself as it's pointless us going on and on about this!

It really is simple

simonc15

the horizontal bar does not represent the horizon
down is up and up is down and im going to stop writing about it becouse im confusing myself

JustAnotherVictim

Guys, I'm with sicky on this. Do you want them to wipe your backside too while you are out there?

Sorry to sound harsh, but the whole idea of these tests is that you go in with no practice whatsoever and if you do have the ability then you shouldn't have any problems.

simonc15

Apparently it does not matter on the hand eye coordination test if you had practise allready, physchologists say you could be flying for hours and the test results will not improve, you ether have it or you dont.

Gavin_Wallace

Guys, I've not long sat this.

Best bit of advice I can give is just to move the joystick in the direction of the crosshair, if it moves towards the top left, move the stick forward and left. It's probably more of a disadvantage to those who've flown before.

I'm going to put a detailed post up here v shortly which will hopefully explain a bit more about the whole thing and Jerez.

It's nothing to worry about, you get better by the 3rd time you do it and that's what they're looking for.

Gavin

SM2006

Hi Guys,

I have just read through all the previous comments posted and want to say thanks, all have been really helpful.

Im planning to head over to Jerez to sit the aptitude tests in the next month but I had one main concern.....In the brochure it suggests a pre-course study which consists of a number of topics to be covered most of which can be found in AC Kermode's Mechanics of Flight.
Having little or no flying experience I bought this book and proceeded to read through the first few chapters, all of which were slightly complicated to say the least...

I was just wondering would anybody know if you are expected to know all or any of this stuff for the interview and did anybody else study this material before they headed over for their aptitude tests?

Any other advice on anything worth studying or reading over beforehand would be much appreciated!!

Cheers!!

cavortingcheetah

'Mechanics of Flight'.
It's so simple it's quite confusing.

I have always had a sneaky suspicion that he wrote this in order to justify the construction of complex airborne machines by the British aviation industry when it really had nothing more than the theoretical technology upon which to base its forays into actual aircraft design and construction.

By the same author and rather even easier on the little grey cells is:

'Flight without Formulae'

It is readily available on the net wave.

I suggest you dip into a second hand copy of that. It used to be available in paperback and is actually relatively readable in a sort of Bernoullian way. Much more fun actually than its big daddy, rather like 'War and Peace' with the rather boring peace bits excised from the tome.

Gavin_Wallace

I Bought the "Mechanics of Flight" also. Please do not worry. None of the written tests involve anything anywhere near as complex as this and also I've been told that the ATPL exams don't either...

Gavin

Big Frank

I'm off to Jerez as well pretty shortly ( next week! ) to sit the aptitude tests. I've mainly been trying to swot up on my Maths & Physics, which unfortunately can only be described as ropey at best!
Anybody else in the same boat? What are you concentrating on?
Cheers,

Frank

jen248

Hey guys

After reading the previous posts I thought id add something about my experience at Jerez. I went last week to do the aptitude tests and loved it. In my opinion, the choice of FTOs between OAT and FTE is a question of location rather than quality as they are just as good as each other. The PILAPT tests at Jerez are fine as long as you concentrate. The verbal reasoning was harder than I thought it would be but maybe thats just me. Being 17 yrs old, my only downfall was lack of life experience but if I can do it then theres no reason why others can’t.
My advice is spend time looking around and talking to the students as they are the ones who know what your going through.
Good luck and enjoy it,

Jen248

2FoxtrotEcho

I wouldnt get too hung up on getting books etc for the aptitude tests
alrite i have done some flying befor i went down but i didnt need it.
previous flyin can put u at a dissadvantage on some tests and an advantage on othere so it all works out nicely

so when you go chill take a deep breath and be yourself the only preperation i did was

some practice aptitude tests online that were way harder than jerez's look here for some http://www.shl.com/SHL/en-int/Products/TestTrials.htm
they are free ia also tried pilapt-prep.co.uk sadly to say the biggest waste of 25quid in my opinion sorry to anyone who swears buy it

2FoxtrotExho


PS - Is anyone starting on the may 22nd course??

Gavin_Wallace

I'm there on the 22nd of May, setting off from Aberdeen on Monday and driving all the way there....

Anyone else?

Gav