Just took the ASTB-E today, and got a 7/8/7, OAR 56! I'd like to share my experiences and what I would recommend for other applicants:
Study guides: Barron's Military Flight Aptitude Tests / Marine Gouge / Mechanical Gouge / Flashcards / This gold mine of a website.
The "Adaptive" nature of the test is strange. I got cut off early from most of the sections, which made me pretty nervous. In hindsight i'd have to say that this doesn't mean you're doing bad by any means, it just means that the test has a good idea of your "cap".
Math Skills Test: My most difficult OAR section. The highest math class i've taken would be Calculus in college, and I am by far no expert. Lots of probability. things like: If you are playing blackjack with a full deck of cards, what is the chance that you will be dealt an ace? I had to pick my brain to remember that there are 14 cards in one suit X 4 for a total probability of 4/48, or 1/14. Also a couple of averages, distance/time problems, and some basic math. Nothing too ridiculous, but I was still nervous. No logs or matrices.
Reading Comprehension Test: Definately my best OAR section. Almost every study guide you can find for this is perfect. The better you do, the longer, drier, and more closely related the answers become. A lot of it was Military related stuff, Nothing crazy here, just take your time and read THOROUGHLY.
Mechanical Knowledge Test: This one fell somewhere between my Reading and Math sections in terms of difficulty. Gas questions, electricity questions, mechanical advantage, pulleys, and gears. Most of it is common sense. Reading the Marine Mechanical Gouge I attached should suffice, but a look through most modern ASTB-E books would help as well.
Aviation/Nautical Information Test: My best section overall. I have a strong aviation background, and I took a couple of Naval Science classes my freshmen year to gain some Navy knowledge (well worth it!). The existing gouge is perfect for this, just look in the Personal Study Guide I attached (it's all over Airwarriors by the way). Questions like: What is an F9F Panther?
(Jet) What does a Green Jacket do on an aircraft carrier
(Cargo), What is the highest deck of a ship?
(Quarterdeck, I believe). Many have said that this section is the easiest to study for as most of it is rote, and I would have to agree!
NATFI: "Ehh" is all I can say about this one. Officers need to be calm in emergencies, need to work well in groups, and need to respect authority, that's the hints I kept seeing from the answer choices. You can start to see where they're going with these answers, but it doesn't really matter either way. Be honest, and if you're at a crossroads, pick the lesser of two evils. Don't try and game it, I think the test can tell.
UAV Section: Use the practice section!! After 8 practice questions, it will ask you to continue, but just press the back key and do it again until your answer choices are around a couple seconds apiece. I got 45/48 right, and missed those 3 for my own dumb reasons.
Dichotic Listening: Pay attention to the practice sections thoroughly, and try to learn your head in the direction that you're being tested. The test will say "RIGHT" or "LEFT" depending on which ear it want's you to pay attention to. After that, it will start with a string of about 10 combination pairs of either numbers of letters (One letter/number will be in each ear, and it's totally random). Try to learn your head in the direction that you're being tested. For example: If you're being tested on the "LEFT", tilt your head to the left and focus solely on that ear. When you hear an even number (as opposed to an odd number or a letter), pull the trigger. When you hear an odd number (as opposed to an even number or a letter), push the "clutch." By tilting your head, it makes it easier to remember which side you need to pay attention to. What threw me off was that the letters or numbers both went
simultaneously in each ear, so you had to phase one out. Just relax, this one isn't hard if you stay calm.
Vertical Tracking: Another easy one (Well, relatively easy, compared to the hysteria that occurs in the last two PBMS...) You will be following an airplane thats going haywire via a red reticle, and are tying to stay on top of it. Just remember that throttle up = reticle goes up. Throttle down = reticle goes down. You can start to predict the plane's movements after awhile, and can combine that with the input delay of the throttle to start keeping it "in the green" for quite awhile.
2D Tracking: Good lord. The LT that administered the test reminded me just as he walked out that the joystick has been "coming unplugged" and "acting strange" lately. So if I were to see it start messing up, just plug it back in.... The joystick was really hectic and quirky near the boundaries of the screen, so I just did my best. Follow it around the screen and don't feel bad if you think you're failing miserably, I know I thought I was at the time.
Vertical/2D Combo: Use your peripheral for the throttle, and focus mainly on the 2D. This is where you start to feel like you're having a spasm, and that's ok. Just get through it.
Vertical/2D/Listening Triple Threat: Same as above, combined with the listening section. Just lean your ears again, and try you're best. Priority goes: Listening/2D/Throttle (in my opinion)
Vertical/2D/Emergencies: WRITE DOWN YOUR EMERGENCY PROCEDURES!! Not trying to scream here, but seriously, this is what saved me. Reference the image below:
The two circular knobs with the black stripes on the throttle control your fuel gauge (top knob) and engine gauge (bottom knob). The bottom knob also has a button on the center that acts as your "clutch" (which is the button you press once getting your two knobs into the correct positions per the specific emergency) The emergencies are stated verbally for you, and a warning comes up on your screen. Drop what you're doing on the tracking part, and focus on these. I remember reading in the instructions itself that it said: "Your highest potential score will be determined by how many emergencies you get correct" or something like that, so prioritize those heavily. The emergencies are as follows:
PROPELLER: Leave the fuel knob at neutral (requires no input on your part), and put the engine knob* to full (highest point on the gauge, you may have to tinker with the knob to figure out which direction makes it go "up"), then press the clutch button.
FIRE: Bring the fuel knob all the way down, and the engine knob* all the way down as well. Then press clutch.
ENGINE: Put both knobs all the way up, and press clutch.
*(I forget this knob's name)
You'll only get one of each maneuver, so when they're all done, continue tracking.
Here's a picture of the joystick I used. You can see the two knobs on the throttle, and the trigger behind the joystick.
Overall, it wasn't that bad. my biggest suggestions would be:
1. RELAX. It's not too hard, and unnecessary stress is detrimental.
2. Use process of elimination to make you're answering easier. I cannot tell you how many times this saved me. This quickens you're response times, and makes answering that much easier.
3. Don't rush, but don't get stuck on a question. If you're drawing blanks, and have thought about if for a minute, guess and move on.
4. Read the question carefully. Multiple times I would look at a question for awhile and go "Ooh, THAT'S what it means!" Still try and move quickly though, as per suggestion 3^
5. Write things down, and/or practice before the section starts. The UAV, and PBM sections greatly benefitted from taking time to better understand them prior to being tested, and I would suggest doing so.
That's it! I attached the guides I used. Pick up a Barron's Military Flight Aptitude Test if you can, and go to the following sites for more good gouge. (Mods, if this isnt cool, feel free to delete these, i'm not advertising for them in any way.)
Flashcards: (Search ASTB Flashcards on Google)
Marine Gouge Website: ( Search MarineGouge on Google)
Hope this helps you guys!
