Airline Assessments - part 3

Dear reader,

I'm very happy to share with you my third article in the 'Airline Assessment' series. As with the first and the second part, it is my intention to share information, knowledge and experiences which can assist you with your preparation for an upcoming airline assessment.

If you haven't read part one or part two, I strongly recommend you to take a look at them before diving into this article. You can find them in the 'featured section' on my LinkedIn profile. I'm sure you'll find them insightful and very useful.

(I've noticed that some of the pictures attached to the articles one and two might load incorrectly when using a desktop browser instead of a mobile browser. Please let me know if this problem persist so I can investigate further.?????? The problem will not occur if you are viewing these articles via a mobile browser.)

In today's article I will discuss another airline screening. As with the previous articles, all the questions mentioned herein are actual questions from assessments. I would like to point out that I do not own any of this information and that, due to to copyright protection, I will not disclose the name of the company involved. Furthermore, I strongly disagree with firms and flight schools who opt to treat this kind of information as their own intellectual property. In the words of Margaret Fuller; "If you have knowledge, let others light their candle at it."

- BEFORE ANYTHING ELSE, PREPARATION IS THE KEY TO SUCCESS - ?

As explained before, airline assessments are usually divided into several phases and spread out over numerous days. At the end of each phase, one will be informed if he/she has made it to the next round. The interviewers will assess a candidate's theoretical knowledge, his/her flying skills, perform group assessments, personal interviews & psychological assessments. The level of difficulty of each phase as well as the number of phases, differ strongly from company to company. Some firms might choose not to include group assessments or additional medical evaluations, others might prefer to combine several phases or even favour to outsource the entire recruitment process.

The company I'm discussing today, operates a medium-sized fleet which serves both short, medium and long haul destinations. The selection process consists of four stages and is spread out over two days. Day one consists of a group assessment, a technical interview and a personal interview. Successfully passing each stage allows you to participate in a simulator assessment and a psychological screening on day two. The entire airline assessment takes place at the company's headquarters. Not a single stage of the recruitment process is outsourced to an external company.

1. Group assessment?

A group of candidates is presented with a task which needs to be solved within a specified time limit (+/- 30 minutes). Throughout the exercise four employees of the company's human resource (HR) department, positioned at different locations across the room, are continuously observing the interaction between the candidates while making the necessary notes.

Upon completion of the first stage, each candidate is invited, one by one, for a combined personal-technical interview.

2. Personal-technical interview ?

The interview has a duration of approximately 60 minutes and is conducted by a technical pilot and the company's HR manager. While the technical pilot verifies the candidate's license, logbook and certificates, the HR manager initiates the personal interview. One can expect questions concerning:

• the candidate's background and chosen career path;
• his/her motivational reasons to become an airline pilot;
• the reasons why he/she applied for a position with this company;
• his/her knowledge about the company, recent developments, etc.

When the HR manager finishes her part of the interview, the technical pilot continues with the technical interview. Below you'll find a list of some of the questions one can expect.

Within 30 minutes after completion of the interview, one is informed if he/she can proceed to the next round. Here, one can expect a simulator assessment as well as a two-hour psychological evaluation.

3. Psychological assessment ?

This stage consists mainly of classic Intelligence Quotient (IQ) tests. The aim of the assessment is to measure your logical reasoning, math skills, language abilities, spatial relations skills, abstract thinking skills and memorisation skills. Some of the exercises have to be completed within a certain time limit in order to assess your performance under stress. Pen and pencil are provided but no calculator. Below you'll find some sample questions (not the actual questions) of what to expect.

One can prepare quite easily for these type of exercises by use of IQ trainers (smartphone applications, online websites or books).

4. Simulator assessment ?

The last phase of the assessment consists of a simulator check. Here you are paired together with another candidate. Your manual flying skills as well as your expertise concerning Multi Crew Cooperation (MCC) techniques will be put to the test. The candidate will perform the scenario twice. Once as Pilot Flying (PF) and once as Pilot Monitoring (PM). The simulator is a fixed base device which resembles a twin-engined, short-to-medium range, narrow-body aircraft. The assessment is flown without the usage of autopilot, autothrottle nor flight director.

The scenario is straightforward, not too complex and is conducted in the vicinity of a major European aerodrome. Please find below a general outline of the assessment.

• Visual circuits;
• Standard Instrument Departure (SID);
• Different combinations of QDM, QDR interceptions;
• VOR based holds;
• Inflight emergency due to technical malfunctions (e.g. engine fire, etc.);
• Vectors for an ILS approach which results in a go-around.

Upon completion of this phase, the candidate receives final feedback within one or two weeks time.

- KEEP CALM AND STAY POSITIVE - ?

That's it for now folks! I hope that this information can help you with your preparations for any upcoming assessments. Due to my own experiences, I'm quite familiar with the level of stress that comes with these type of screenings. However, tackle this nervousness by having faith in your preparation, your acquired knowledge and the thorough flight training you have received. Believe in your acquired skills and competences. Furthermore, never forget that the recruiters (usually) are very nice people who want nothing more than to see you succeed!

All the best of luck and stay calm, you've got this!??

Have a great one!??