Module overview
What the test trains
This module focuses on spatial reasoning, angular arithmetic and rapid visual matching. 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 target’s bearing relative to the aircraft nose from a compass dial.
- Add that relative bearing to a stated aircraft heading, wrapping past 360 degrees when needed, to get an absolute bearing.
- Separately, choose which of four rotated aircraft silhouettes is pointed toward a stated heading.
- Select the closest match as answer options sit closer together at higher difficulty.
Interface briefing
Controls and test flow
Controls
Read the compass display and choose the matching bearing or silhouette using the keyboard or a click.
How the Academy version works
Each exercise has its own questions, graphics, timing and scoring, generated fresh for every attempt. The instruction screen explains the current workload before you launch, so nothing about the task or its rules is a surprise once the timer starts.
Performance briefing
Difficulty and scoring
Difficulty and settings
Angle granularity narrows from 30-degree steps at Easy to 5-degree steps at Hard, and answer options sit closer together as difficulty rises.
How scoring works
The result reflects performance in this Academy module. Accuracy is the main signal for decision tasks, while timing, missed targets, false responses or control error can also contribute where the task requires them. Assessment mode is more suitable for trend comparisons than adjustable practice runs.
Read how practice scores and estimates work →Training plan
Build a method that holds up under pressure
Why this becomes difficult
- Wrapping past 360 degrees is a common source of arithmetic slips.
- Relative and absolute bearing are easy to confuse under time pressure.
- At higher difficulty, answer options sit close together, so a small misjudgement changes the answer.
- Rotated silhouettes require holding a mental image steady while comparing it to the stated heading.
Preparation tips
- Always work relative-plus-heading, then wrap — do the addition before worrying about which option looks right.
- Use the eight principal compass points (000, 045, 090…315) as fixed anchors for quick checks.
- For silhouette matching, orient yourself to “nose direction” first, then compare it to the stated heading.
- Commit once an answer is clearly closest rather than refining an estimate that is already good enough.
Common mistakes
- Forgetting to wrap the result past 360 degrees.
- Adding the relative bearing to the wrong reference.
- Confusing a relative bearing question with an absolute bearing question.
- Overthinking a silhouette that is only a small rotation away from the reference.
Useful practice drills
- Practise bearing addition problems that deliberately cross the 360-degree wraparound.
- Build automatic recall of the eight principal compass bearings.
- Rotate a simple shape mentally through 45-degree steps and name the resulting heading.
- Increase angle precision only after wraparound arithmetic is reliable at coarse angles.
Common questions
Frequently asked questions
Is this the same as an official Spatial Orientation test?
No. It trains related skills with an independently developed task. Rules, controls, timing, visuals and scoring can differ from an official assessment.
What's the most common mistake on this task?
Forgetting to wrap the result past 360 degrees.
What actually helps here?
Always work relative-plus-heading, then wrap — do the addition before worrying about which option looks right.
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.