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Selection process for future Skywings students: a student’s perspective

Becoming an airline pilot is not for everyone. You need a specific variety of skills and a proper foundation in the basics of mathematics, physics and English. That is why Skywings Flight Training has an extensive selection process of 3 days, aiming to ensure that we can train you to become a pilot and be successful in a screening with an airline. We asked student Olivier about his experiences during the selection he did in the end of 2020.

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How did you come to your decision to start your flight training with Skywings?

When I decided to finally start my pilot training, I was dedicated to look for the best school with the best instructors. In the end, pilot training is a different kind of training where your safety often depends on the equipment used as well as the instructors that teach you how to fly.

After having spoken with many airline pilots who absolutely recommended Skywings Flight Training, and after having recognised many of the good instructors that worked for other schools prior, but now work for Skywings Flight Training, my decision was easily made, and I haven’t yet regretted it for a split second.

Also, the communication between Skywings Flight Training and myself was never distant, but rather as if I knew them since much longer than in reality. Questions were always replied to rapidly and in a non-distant, friendly manner, which lowered the barrier. This trend was put through to the flight training itself were it is extremely noticeable that everyone is very approachable and eager to help.

How long did you book your screening in advance?

The actual booking of my screening was about 2 weeks in advance, however I prepared myself about 1 month in advance, full time. I quit my job and focused 100% on the new challenge ahead.

How did you prepare for the selection procedure?

During secondary education, I studied economics and modern languages. I was never really good at mathematics, neither for physics, so it’s safe to say I had to start all over again, knowing that I already graduated from secondary education 13 years ago. My biggest fear was the maths and physics test, so I used the book: “Math & Physics for pilots”, written by engineer and airline pilot Jelle Vanderhaeghe which I bought at Skywings.

I cannot recommend this book enough. It literally starts by explaining basic mathematics and finishes with thermodynamics and electricity. As the author himself is an airline pilot as well, all examples and explanations are applied on aviation. All questions use aircraft in them, so it is both fun and very much recognisable as I already was with my mind in the skies.

I was able to fully work through the book in three weeks time and ended up scoring 18/20 for the physics test, which made me very happy. Skywings Flight Training often offers Physics refresher courses during weekends. Even though I haven’t followed these, I can strongly recommend them. Self study works perfectly, but if someone explains it to you, you always understand it faster.

The compass test was another big part of the selections, but it is less possible to prepare for it. I googled compass test preparation programs and some of them were useful to already have a look at what you can expect, so I would definitely recommend browsing the web for examples. Mostly, I took Skywings’s advice on having a good night’s rest beforehand, which I suppose helped the most in obtaining a nice result with a clear mind.

The psychological test isn’t anything you can prepare for, just be yourself and most importantly, don’t pretend to be better than you are. It is a personality type test, so it’s not really useful to pretend, as those can trigger alarm signals that could work to your disadvantage.

Which step of the screening did you find the hardest?

The compass test itself with general aviation knowledge was the toughest, however, I needed most of my time to prepare for the physics and mathematics test. During this test, calculators are not accepted, so you can only use mental maths. This is something you can train beforehand, so you should be fine. During the first PPL Theory phase, it was very noticeable that you need a thorough understanding of mathematics and geometry, otherwise you will feel lost quite rapidly.

During the first theory phase, it was very noticeable that you need a thorough understanding of mathematics and geometry, otherwise you will feel lost quite rapidly.

How difficult is the level of English?

It is rather difficult for me to say as my English is really good. I didn’t have any issues with English, but the English test itself wasn’t difficult to me at all. As long as you understand the grammar rules and truly know how to speak English conversation-wise, you will be ok. Grab an English book, watch some Netflix without subtitles, try to think in English day in day out and I’m sure you will succeed.

What were your experiences regarding the psychological questionnaire?

The psychological questionnaire was mostly lots and lots of questions with 2 types of responses where you needed to pick the one that suited you best. Eg: a) I feel most at ease in a group. B) I feel most at ease alone.

As mentioned earlier, I can only advise to answer honestly as that is the only true correct answer.

How did the simulator assessment go?

The simulator assessment was by far the most fun selection test of them all. Who doesn’t like simulators, right?

Starting off by half an hour of study, memoriing a pitch/power table and reading through the manual of a Garmin G1000, it was time to fly. First there was an exploratory flight where they explained all flight instruments and their effects. Then I had about 15 minutes time to memorise and understand a flight pattern that had to be flown. During this flight pattern several questions were asked to put me off guard, but as I knew this was to be expected, I reacted quite well. (Eg: how old are you, set transponder to 1234, how much is 321-217,…)

I perform very well under stress, so the simulator assessment went well, but it wasn’t easy at all! Fly the simulator at home, understand the flight controls, try to fly a 360° maintaining current altitude and try to do some mental maths while you’re at it.

The most important thing was to show improvement throughout the screening, so they don’t expect you to be perfect pilots yet.

How was your final interview?

The final interview lasted for about an hour and was with 2 former airline pilots and one psychologist. It was a formal chat where they asked the standard interview questions you can easily prepare for:

– What are your key strengths/weaknesses?
– Why did you choose skywings?
– Do you prefer to work in team or alone?
– Do you like wearing uniforms?
– How will you finance your training?

As long as you can keep your cool when being asked questions and you’re not easily offset when they question some of your responses, it should be a very pleasant conversation.

Do you have some good advice for people that would like to start the selection process?

Most of my advice is written above, but to summarise it as a whole:

– Use the Math & Physics for pilots and know your formulae!
– Follow the physics refresher course;
– Often practice mental maths, there are plenty of apps on smartphones that can help;
– If you fear the English test, prepare for it, listen to podcasts, watch movies without subtitles, read a book;
– Be yourself during the psychological tests;
– Try to have a go at a flight simulator, try to fiddle around with a Garmin G1000, understand how a compass works and where to read speed, altitude and heading;
– Google for some preparatory examples for the compass test.

But mostly, don’t come to the tests unprepared. You’d rather want to have high scores than to succeed with the bare minimum, as bare minimum is never enough in aviation.

Good luck, and see you in the skies!

Ready for your selection? Or need some more practise?

You can book a math & physics refresher to start off with (next course is on 19-20 JULY.

Ready for your screening? You can book your day 1 online directly.

Need more info about our screening process? Check out our screening page.

Pieter Brantegem

Boeing 747 pilot and flight instructor

Ready to make your dream come true?