Module overview
What the test trains
This module focuses on mental arithmetic, speed-distance-time reasoning, time arithmetic, route reading and reference-table use. 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 fixed map of named locations connected by routes with mileages.
- Identify the start point, destination, route, current time and parcel weight.
- Add each travelled route leg, determine the relevant speed, and calculate Time = Distance ÷ Speed.
- Convert decimal hours into minutes, add the journey time to the current time, and enter the result as four-digit HHMM time.
Practice screen example
These screenshots show CBAT Academy’s independent practice version of the task.
Learn by doing
Speed, distance and time: worked examples
Keep distance in nautical miles (NM), speed in knots (NM per hour), and time in hours when using distance = speed × time. For minutes, use time = distance ÷ speed × 60. These original examples practise the arithmetic behind route problems.
1. Find the flight time
A route leg is 90 NM long. At a constant ground speed of 180 knots, how many minutes does it take?
Show answer and method
- Time = 90 ÷ 180 = 0.5 hours.
- Convert hours to minutes: 0.5 × 60 = 30 minutes.
- Sense check: at 180 knots you cover 3 NM per minute; 90 ÷ 3 = 30.
30 minutes.
Watch out: 0.5 hours is 30 minutes, not 50. Treat the decimal as a fraction of an hour.
2. Work backwards from arrival time
You must arrive at 14:20 after flying 120 NM at 240 knots. When should you depart, assuming no other delays?
Show answer and method
- At 240 knots, you cover 4 NM per minute.
- 120 ÷ 4 = 30 minutes of flight time.
- Subtract 30 minutes from 14:20: 13:50.
Depart at 13:50.
Watch out: Cross the hour boundary carefully. Clock minutes use base 60, not base 100.
3. Combine two route legs
Fly 60 NM at 180 knots, then 80 NM at 240 knots. What is the total flight time?
Show answer and method
- First leg: 60 ÷ 180 × 60 = 20 minutes.
- Second leg: 80 ÷ 240 × 60 = 20 minutes.
- Add the leg times: 20 + 20 = 40 minutes.
40 minutes.
Watch out: Do not average the two speeds and divide the total distance by that value. Calculate each leg separately.
A short drill before you start
Before opening the trainer, convert 120, 180, 240 and 300 knots to NM per minute: 2, 3, 4 and 5. Then solve three single-leg questions accurately before adding arrival times or multiple legs.
Try free Airborne Numerical practice →Build the next skill
- Angles, Bearings & Degrees: worked examples and practice
- Instrument Comprehension: worked examples and practice
Original CBAT Academy training examples. These are not official RAF questions.
Interface briefing
Controls and test flow
Controls
Read the displayed flight figures and select your answer from the on-screen A–E choices using the keyboard or a click.
How the Academy version works
CBAT Academy presents an independently developed browser exercise with its own questions, graphics, timing and scoring. The instruction screen explains the current workload before launch; it does not claim to reproduce an official assessment screen or confidential question set.
Performance briefing
Difficulty and scoring
Difficulty and settings
Practice runs range from 8 questions in 8 minutes at Easy up to 16 questions in 16 minutes at Hard. Assessment mode blends all three automatically.
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
- Several pieces of information must be combined without losing track of the route.
- A route-reading error contaminates the entire calculation.
- Decimal-hour conversion creates a second arithmetic step after the division.
- Time arithmetic can cross an hour boundary or midnight.
- Looking up reference information costs time while the calculation is active.
Preparation tips
- Memorise Speed = Distance ÷ Time and rearrange it instantly.
- Become fluent with common fractions: 0.25 h = 15 min, 0.5 h = 30 min and 0.75 h = 45 min.
- Add route legs in a fixed order and hold one intermediate value at a time: distance, journey time, then arrival time.
- Estimate before finalising. A 200-mile journey at 200 mph should take about one hour.
- Practise 24-hour time arithmetic, including carrying minutes over an hour and crossing midnight.
Common mistakes
- Using direct distance instead of the highlighted route distance.
- Forgetting an intermediate leg or counting the same leg twice.
- Treating 0.5 hours as 50 minutes instead of 30 minutes.
- Entering 10:05 as 105 instead of 1005.
- Using the wrong speed or calculating before confirming what the question asks.
Useful practice drills
- Twenty rapid decimal-hour conversions.
- Ten 24-hour-clock addition problems.
- Route totals from simple network diagrams.
- Speed-distance-time problems where only one variable changes.
- Full mixed questions under a short timer once the arithmetic is reliable.
Common questions
Frequently asked questions
Is this the same as an official Airborne Numerical 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?
Using direct distance instead of the highlighted route distance.
What actually helps here?
Memorise Speed = Distance ÷ Time and rearrange it instantly.
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. Details not established by an official source are treated as independent training methodology.
This guide describes CBAT Academy’s independently developed practice modules. It is not an exact specification of any current RAF, Canadian Forces or Ministry of Defence 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.