Module overview
What the test trains
This module focuses on mental arithmetic, proportional reasoning and applying the right method under time pressure. It is designed to make the underlying process easier to recognise, repeat and review before you add more speed or workload.
Task profile
What the task looks like
What it involves
- Read a short scenario — a route, a fuel load, a percentage change — and work out what is actually being asked.
- Choose and apply the correct method: arithmetic, a ratio, Time = Distance ÷ Speed, a unit conversion, or a percentage calculation.
- Select the closest answer from the multiple-choice options.
- Handle a mixed set of topics in one timed run, so the method changes from question to question.
Interface briefing
Controls and difficulty
Controls
Read each route or fuel-planning scenario and select your answer from the on-screen multiple-choice options using the keyboard or a click.
Difficulty and settings
Question count and topic mix scale with difficulty; Assessment mode blends all topics in one fixed timed run.
Read how practice scores and estimates work →Training plan
Build a method that holds up under pressure
Why this becomes difficult
- The topic changes every question, so no single formula can be put on autopilot.
- A misread of what is being asked produces a confident, wrong answer.
- Several steps (convert, then calculate, then round) compound small errors.
- Time pressure encourages guessing the method rather than confirming it.
Preparation tips
- Identify the topic first — arithmetic, ratio, time, or conversion — before doing any calculation.
- Estimate a rough answer before calculating precisely, as a check against a slipped decimal or wrong operation.
- Keep a small set of formulas (Time = Distance ÷ Speed, percentage change) fluent enough to apply without thinking.
- Round only at the final step, not during intermediate working.
Common mistakes
- Applying a percentage in the wrong direction (adding instead of subtracting, or vice versa).
- Mixing up units (nautical miles vs statute miles, minutes vs decimal hours).
- Rushing the read of the question and answering a different question than the one asked.
- Picking the closest-looking option instead of finishing the calculation.
Useful practice drills
- Work timed sets of mixed-topic questions rather than one topic at a time, since switching is part of the challenge.
- Practise percentage increase/decrease and ratio problems until the method is automatic.
- Drill decimal-hour and time conversions specifically, since they are a common source of error.
- Review every wrong answer to identify whether it was a misread, a wrong method, or an arithmetic slip.
Transparency
Sources and information status
Task guidance on this page describes CBAT Academy’s own software. Broad aptitude context is checked against the public references in the source register.
This guide describes CBAT Academy’s independently developed practice modules. It is not an exact specification of ADAPT, COMPASS, Aon’s Aviation Suite (cut-e), PILAPT or any other provider’s proprietary assessment. Official content, timings, scoring and administration may differ.
Continue the briefing
Turn the method into repeatable performance.
Launch the interactive trainer, begin with accuracy and review the pattern behind each mistake before increasing pace.