tellEmViperSentYou
New Member
TLDR; good at math, bad at video games. studied 2 weeks, did okay.
Took the ASTB-E at a Marine Officer Selection Station today (12/11).
Experience and lessons learned:
1) This is my second time taking it. I took it once when I was 19 without preparing at all because my recruiter told me it "wasn't something you can study for." The first time I took it, I scored a 61, 6/4/5. Was not selected for PLC Air... shocker.
2) I have since graduated college (Mechanical) and have an engineering job while taking graduate classes.
I studied for about Two Weeks this time.
OAR/ANIT:
Barron's 5th Edition (2018) Military Flight Aptitude Tests with 2 ASTB Practice Tests. link
Personally, I didn't have trouble with the OAR sections, moved onto the ANIT-related content in the book: I read a lot almost all of the content in the Technical chapter. It mostly covered airplane controls and flight dynamics, super intriguing to learn about. I made flash cards for a lot of this information. If I had it to do over again, I would've still done this. But that's partially because I'm a geek. But, to adequately prepare applicants for the ASTB, Barron's should focus more on the Naval content. The book is written for all branches, so there isn't as disproportionate of a bias towards ships in this book's content as there is on the ASTB-E Exam.
5th Edition ARCO Military Flight Aptitude Tests used (2005)... $4! link
The test had changed entirely, but I still took the math and reading portions (there were mistakes) just to stay fresh. Interestingly, there is a mock-NAFTI in there from an archaic ASTB. Asks questions about how you grew up and... well it's interesting to me that the Navy decided that the method of transport you took to school as a kid had a bearing on if you were apt for aviation.
Books don't prepare you for the test as well as you probably expect. The questions they draw from reflect a small subset of the portions truly tested on the ASTB-E. That goes for all 4 knowledge tests (MST, RCT, MCT, ANIT).
Watch the MIT Ground School Videos, and use all of the study guides you can find. Don't just use the Cram flashcard set everyone passes around. I could have done a better job at that.
And then get curious. I went to the Sullenberger Museum in Charlotte because I was driving through... that kind of hands-on experience connects things and helped me retain knowledge of platforms.
-----------------------------
PBM:
UAV-
On the UAV Section, make sure to unplug your headphones or otherwise mute the audio. The audio cue is so loud and unhelpful.
I didn't practice with the app, thinking it would be trivial to use the compass. I had an average response time of probably 3 seconds and made 4 mistakes. While I didn't prepare enough for this section, I prepared enough to be surprised by how much harder the real test is.
SIM-
I also bought a Hotas X52 on Amazon, used it for a week doing 15 consecutive 60 second attempts.. and returned it for a full refund.
I (of course) used Mike and Jantzen's Sim ... here are my scores:
Interestingly,^ scores didn't improve appreciably from Trial 1 to 15 each day... I thought they would have.
Three mistakes I made:
1) Make sure the practice test is playing out of each ear separately (stereo). If it isn't, fix your computer.
2) The ASTB-E prompts EVENS on the trigger (right) and ODDS on the clutch/I-Button (left). Turn your headphones around to prepare for this.
3) Start with slow speed and master each skill individually before gradually increasing the speed. Make sure your AntiMicroX mapping allows for fast enough motion to simulate the real test. I could guess what that is, but there's
4) The first time I took the ASTB in 2020 when I was 19, there was no emergency situation. So I didn't try it while practicing. I don't know how I did... so probably poorly. I have a premonition that the key is to be methodical and say the tasks out loud.
LCAC-
I didn't know this would even be on there.
My strategy was to find an identifiable object and estimate how many degrees counter clockwise it rotated. First was a course calculation (0, 90, 180, or 270/90 clockwise) and then to figure out how far off of that coarse estimate the rotation was (exact, a little more, a little less).
-----------------------------
Score:
Stanine Reported Percentile
OAR - 9.00 71 99.08%
AQR - 8.00 8 91.45%
PFAR - 6.00 6 58.10%
FOFAR - 6.00 6 64.12%
LPSS - 6.00 54 74.08%
Context:
3.6/4.0 GPA (Mechanical Engineering)
1530 SAT
I decided to run a PFT after and ran a 292/300 (USMC).
My recruiter told me that I am ~guaranteed~ an OCS Air spot within the next year with these numbers.
I talked to a Navy recruiter who basically told me that my scores weren't competitive.
I am going to let the Marines send me to Pensacola for a flight physical in January. If Med comes up sunshine & rainbows, I'll have to chose:
Wise folks of AirWarriors, please correct me if I have erred! Corrections & suggestions welcomed.
ASTB takers, godspeed.
Took the ASTB-E at a Marine Officer Selection Station today (12/11).
Experience and lessons learned:
1) This is my second time taking it. I took it once when I was 19 without preparing at all because my recruiter told me it "wasn't something you can study for." The first time I took it, I scored a 61, 6/4/5. Was not selected for PLC Air... shocker.
2) I have since graduated college (Mechanical) and have an engineering job while taking graduate classes.
I studied for about Two Weeks this time.
OAR/ANIT:
Barron's 5th Edition (2018) Military Flight Aptitude Tests with 2 ASTB Practice Tests. link
Personally, I didn't have trouble with the OAR sections, moved onto the ANIT-related content in the book: I read a lot almost all of the content in the Technical chapter. It mostly covered airplane controls and flight dynamics, super intriguing to learn about. I made flash cards for a lot of this information. If I had it to do over again, I would've still done this. But that's partially because I'm a geek. But, to adequately prepare applicants for the ASTB, Barron's should focus more on the Naval content. The book is written for all branches, so there isn't as disproportionate of a bias towards ships in this book's content as there is on the ASTB-E Exam.
5th Edition ARCO Military Flight Aptitude Tests used (2005)... $4! link
The test had changed entirely, but I still took the math and reading portions (there were mistakes) just to stay fresh. Interestingly, there is a mock-NAFTI in there from an archaic ASTB. Asks questions about how you grew up and... well it's interesting to me that the Navy decided that the method of transport you took to school as a kid had a bearing on if you were apt for aviation.
Books don't prepare you for the test as well as you probably expect. The questions they draw from reflect a small subset of the portions truly tested on the ASTB-E. That goes for all 4 knowledge tests (MST, RCT, MCT, ANIT).
Watch the MIT Ground School Videos, and use all of the study guides you can find. Don't just use the Cram flashcard set everyone passes around. I could have done a better job at that.
And then get curious. I went to the Sullenberger Museum in Charlotte because I was driving through... that kind of hands-on experience connects things and helped me retain knowledge of platforms.
-----------------------------
PBM:
UAV-
On the UAV Section, make sure to unplug your headphones or otherwise mute the audio. The audio cue is so loud and unhelpful.
I didn't practice with the app, thinking it would be trivial to use the compass. I had an average response time of probably 3 seconds and made 4 mistakes. While I didn't prepare enough for this section, I prepared enough to be surprised by how much harder the real test is.
SIM-
I also bought a Hotas X52 on Amazon, used it for a week doing 15 consecutive 60 second attempts.. and returned it for a full refund.
I (of course) used Mike and Jantzen's Sim ... here are my scores:
Interestingly,^ scores didn't improve appreciably from Trial 1 to 15 each day... I thought they would have.
Three mistakes I made:
1) Make sure the practice test is playing out of each ear separately (stereo). If it isn't, fix your computer.
2) The ASTB-E prompts EVENS on the trigger (right) and ODDS on the clutch/I-Button (left). Turn your headphones around to prepare for this.
3) Start with slow speed and master each skill individually before gradually increasing the speed. Make sure your AntiMicroX mapping allows for fast enough motion to simulate the real test. I could guess what that is, but there's
4) The first time I took the ASTB in 2020 when I was 19, there was no emergency situation. So I didn't try it while practicing. I don't know how I did... so probably poorly. I have a premonition that the key is to be methodical and say the tasks out loud.
LCAC-
I didn't know this would even be on there.
My strategy was to find an identifiable object and estimate how many degrees counter clockwise it rotated. First was a course calculation (0, 90, 180, or 270/90 clockwise) and then to figure out how far off of that coarse estimate the rotation was (exact, a little more, a little less).
-----------------------------
Score:
Stanine Reported Percentile
OAR - 9.00 71 99.08%
AQR - 8.00 8 91.45%
PFAR - 6.00 6 58.10%
FOFAR - 6.00 6 64.12%
LPSS - 6.00 54 74.08%
Context:
3.6/4.0 GPA (Mechanical Engineering)
1530 SAT
I decided to run a PFT after and ran a 292/300 (USMC).
My recruiter told me that I am ~guaranteed~ an OCS Air spot within the next year with these numbers.
I talked to a Navy recruiter who basically told me that my scores weren't competitive.
I am going to let the Marines send me to Pensacola for a flight physical in January. If Med comes up sunshine & rainbows, I'll have to chose:
- USMC Pilot all-but guaranteed (especially if I can bring my 3-mile from 19:16 to 18:00).
- Or study comprehensively/retake (last attempt Hail Mary) & pray for 9s/go Navy. I feel confident that if I study for 60 days, I will get at least a 7.
Wise folks of AirWarriors, please correct me if I have erred! Corrections & suggestions welcomed.
ASTB takers, godspeed.
