Pilot Aptitude Tests

Pilot Situational Judgement Test

1. Question 1 of 10

   You are a gate agent. A passenger is unhappy about a decision you have made correctly under the airline’s rules and is demanding to speak to a manager. The duty manager is dealing with something at another gate and would take about fifteen minutes to reach you. Boarding is not affected and the passenger is not being abusive, just insistent. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Tell him there is no manager available at the moment, so that he accepts the decision and the duty manager is not pulled away from what he is dealing with at the other gate.
   2. Call the duty manager over straight away, since the passenger has asked for one and it is not for an agent to decide whether the request is reasonable.
   3. Explain the decision and the reason for it once more, and if he still wants a manager, call the duty manager and tell him honestly that it will be about fifteen minutes.
   4. Tell him that a manager will not change a decision that has been made correctly, so there is nothing to be gained by waiting for one to come to the gate.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: C. Explain the decision and the reason for it once more, and if he still wants a manager, call the duty manager and tell him honestly that it will be about fifteen minutes.

   Least effective: A. Tell him there is no manager available at the moment, so that he accepts the decision and the duty manager is not pulled away from what he is dealing with at the other gate.

   A: Denies him access by inventing an absence: a duty manager exists and could come, and the passenger is told otherwise to save an interruption.

   B: Escalates without trying: many passengers who ask for a manager want the decision explained, and calling one over before explaining it spends fifteen minutes of somebody else's time.

   D: Refuses the request on your own authority: you may well be right about the outcome, but deciding that his appeal is pointless is not a judgement for the person he is appealing about.

   The most effective response is to explain the decision and the reason once more, and if he still wants a manager, call the duty manager and tell him honestly it will be about fifteen minutes: a second explanation settles many of these, the request is his to make if it does not, and the honest wait lets him decide whether it is worth it. It beats calling the duty manager over straight away, because doing that before explaining spends fifteen minutes on something a sentence often resolves. It beats telling him a manager will not change a decision made correctly, because whether an appeal is worth making is not for the person being appealed about to decide. The least effective response is telling him no manager is available at the moment: one is, so a real route is closed with something untrue. That is worse than the other two, which are both honest about what is possible. The principle: try the explanation first, then give people the access they have asked for, with an honest account of the wait.

2. Question 2 of 10

   You are an operations coordinator. A cabin crew member is waiting at an airport away from base to find out whether she flies home tonight or stays in a hotel. The decision depends on a meeting that will not finish for about two hours. She has asked twice already and has been given no answer either time. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Wait until the meeting has finished and the answer is certain, then call her with the decision so that she is told once and told accurately.
   2. Tell her the decision has been made and that you will send it through shortly, so that she has something to hold on to while the meeting finishes.
   3. Send a message to a colleague at that airport asking them to let her know the decision is still a couple of hours away, so she hears it from somebody nearby.
   4. Call her now, tell her the decision is about two hours away and why, and say that you will ring her back as soon as it is made either way.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: D. Call her now, tell her the decision is about two hours away and why, and say that you will ring her back as soon as it is made either way.

   Least effective: B. Tell her the decision has been made and that you will send it through shortly, so that she has something to hold on to while the meeting finishes.

   A: Waits for certainty at somebody else's expense: she sits for two more hours not knowing whether to look for food, a hotel or a flight, and the silence is the part she has already complained about twice.

   B: Invents a decision that has not been taken: she stops waiting and starts planning on the strength of it, and the meeting may yet go the other way.

   C: Relays a simple message through a third person: it depends on a colleague being free and passing it on accurately, when the call would take a minute from here.

   The most effective response is to call her now, tell her the decision is about two hours away and why, and promise to ring back as soon as it is made: she cannot plan the next two hours without knowing that they are two hours, the call costs a minute, and a promised time replaces uncertainty with a wait she can manage. It beats waiting until the meeting has finished so she is told once and accurately, because the silence, not the decision, is what she has already complained about twice. It beats asking a colleague at that airport to let her know the decision is still a couple of hours away, because relaying a simple message adds delay and a chance of it arriving garbled. The least effective response is telling her the decision has been made and will follow shortly: it says an answer exists when it does not, so she plans around something that may still go the other way. That is worse than the other two, which are slow or roundabout but tell her nothing untrue. The principle: when somebody is waiting on you, tell them what you know and when you will know more, rather than waiting until you can tell them everything.

3. Question 3 of 10

   You are a crewing assistant. A cabin crew member has arrived at the airport for a duty you rostered her for, and it is tomorrow’s duty, not today’s. The mistake is yours: you entered the wrong date. She has driven forty miles to get here and is standing at your desk. Your duty manager will certainly ask how it happened. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Tell her the rostering system must have shown her the wrong date, sort out her journey home, and leave it there unless the duty manager comes and asks you about it later.
   2. Deal with getting her home and her expenses first, and explain how the wrong date came to be on her roster once the immediate problem has been settled.
   3. Tell her at the desk that you entered the date wrongly, sort out her journey home and her expenses, and tell the duty manager what happened before he hears it from anyone else.
   4. Apologise for the wasted journey and arrange for her travel to be paid back, without going into who put the wrong date on the roster in the first place.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: C. Tell her at the desk that you entered the date wrongly, sort out her journey home and her expenses, and tell the duty manager what happened before he hears it from anyone else.

   Least effective: A. Tell her the rostering system must have shown her the wrong date, sort out her journey home, and leave it there unless the duty manager comes and asks you about it later.

   A: Puts your own error onto the system: she goes home believing a tool she relies on is unreliable, and the duty manager will look for a fault that does not exist.

   B: Separates the apology from the moment: she spends the drive home not knowing why she was called in, and the explanation arrives when it can no longer change how the day felt.

   D: Apologises without owning it: the money is refunded and the cause stays vague, so she cannot tell whether it was her misreading or somebody else's mistake.

   The most effective response is to tell her at the desk that you entered the date wrongly, sort out her journey home and her expenses, and tell the duty manager before he hears it elsewhere: she has driven forty miles and is owed a straight answer, the practical problem still has to be solved, and the correction reaches him from the person who knows what happened. It beats apologising and arranging for her travel to be paid back without going into who put the wrong date on the roster, because that leaves her wondering whether she misread her own roster. It beats sorting the journey and expenses first and explaining the cause afterwards, because the explanation matters most while she is standing in front of you, not after the drive home. The least effective response is telling her the rostering system must have shown the wrong date: it moves your error onto the system, so she distrusts a tool she has to use and the duty manager goes looking for a fault that is not there. That is worse than the other two, which are incomplete rather than untrue. The principle: own the mistake to the person it cost, fix what it cost them, and tell your manager before he asks.

4. Question 4 of 10

   You are a check-in agent. An hour ago a passenger asked you to let him know if a window seat came free, and gave you his mobile number before going through to the departure lounge. One has just opened up. Boarding starts in forty minutes and he is somewhere on the far side of security. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Leave it, since he will be boarding shortly anyway and a seat change this close to departure is more trouble than the window seat is probably worth to him.
   2. Put him into the window seat and tell him about it when he arrives at the gate, so that the change is already made by the time he gets there.
   3. Send him a message now saying a window seat has come free, and offer to move him to it if he still wants it before the gate opens.
   4. Leave a note on his booking so that the gate agent can offer him the window seat when he presents his boarding pass at the gate.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: C. Send him a message now saying a window seat has come free, and offer to move him to it if he still wants it before the gate opens.

   Least effective: A. Leave it, since he will be boarding shortly anyway and a seat change this close to departure is more trouble than the window seat is probably worth to him.

   A: Quietly drops a promise: he asked, gave you a number and is waiting to hear, and the decision that it is not worth it has been taken on his behalf without him knowing.

   B: Acts without asking: an hour has passed, he may have swapped with a travelling companion or stopped wanting it, and the first he hears is that his seat has been changed.

   D: Relies on the note being seen at the busiest moment: the gate agent is boarding a flight, and by then the seat may have gone to somebody else anyway.

   The most effective response is to send him a message now saying a window seat has come free and offer to move him if he still wants it: he asked to be told, he gave you the means to tell him, and a message costs nothing while leaving the choice with him. It beats putting him into the window seat and telling him when he arrives at the gate, because an hour has passed and moving him without asking assumes his plans have not changed. It beats leaving a note on his booking for the gate agent to offer it, because a note read during boarding is read too late, if it is read at all. The least effective response is leaving it because a change this close to departure is more trouble than it is worth: it drops a promise he is waiting on, and decides for him that he would not want it. That is worse than the other two, which both act on the request even if clumsily. The principle: when somebody has asked to be told and given you a way to do it, tell them, and leave the decision where it belongs.

5. Question 5 of 10

   You are a lounge host. The coffee machine has run out and about twenty people can see you noticing it. At the same moment you realise the lounge flight board still shows the old departure time for a flight that has been brought forward, and the passengers on it need to leave for the gate within about five minutes. Refilling the machine takes ten minutes. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Correct the flight board and announce the earlier departure so those passengers can leave for the gate, then refill the coffee machine once they are on their way.
   2. Correct the flight board quietly and then start refilling the coffee machine, without saying anything to the passengers whose flight has been brought forward.
   3. Apologise to the people waiting for coffee, explain that supplies are being fetched, and deal with the flight board once the queue at the machine has settled down.
   4. Ask one of the people waiting at the coffee machine to keep an eye on it while you go and sort out the flight board and speak to the affected passengers.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: A. Correct the flight board and announce the earlier departure so those passengers can leave for the gate, then refill the coffee machine once they are on their way.

   Least effective: C. Apologise to the people waiting for coffee, explain that supplies are being fetched, and deal with the flight board once the queue at the machine has settled down.

   B: Fixes the display and not the people: the board is right, and the passengers who read it twenty minutes ago and settled down with a newspaper have no reason to look at it again.

   C: Buys calm with an announcement about the wrong thing: the passengers who could still make their gate hear nothing at all, and the only person who knew the board was wrong has turned to the coffee queue.

   D: Hands a job to somebody who does not work here: a passenger cannot refill a machine or answer for the lounge, so the coffee is no nearer and you have delegated your own role to a guest.

   The most effective response is to correct the flight board and announce the earlier departure so those passengers can leave for the gate, then refill the coffee machine: the board is wrong about something that expires in five minutes, and passengers who miss a gate because they read it cannot get that back, while coffee is an inconvenience that keeps. It beats correcting the board quietly and starting on the coffee machine, because a silent correction helps only the passengers who happen to look again, and the ones who already read it have no reason to. It beats asking someone waiting at the machine to keep an eye on it while you go, because a passenger cannot take over a lounge job, so nothing is actually covered. The least effective response is apologising about the coffee supplies and dealing with the board once that queue settles: it makes an announcement about coffee and none about the flight, so the people with a gate to reach are the only ones left uninformed. That is worse than the quiet correction, which at least intends to fix the board next, and worse than delegating the machine, which is at least heading for the board. The principle: the thing that expires goes first, however few people are watching it.

6. Question 6 of 10

   You are an operations coordinator on a day of heavy disruption. An evening flight has been cancelled and its thirty passengers need rebooking onto the last service of the night, where seats are being taken by other cancelled flights as you work. You also owe your manager the delay report for this morning, which she needs by the end of the day. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Write the delay report first while this morning is still fresh in your mind, then turn to the rebooking with whatever seats on the night service are still showing as available.
   2. Ask your manager which of the two she would rather have finished tonight, and begin whichever she names once she has come back to you with an answer.
   3. Rebook the thirty passengers onto the night service straight away, then write the delay report afterwards and send it to your manager before you finish for the day.
   4. Rebook the passengers whose journeys look most complicated, then write the report, and come back to the remaining rebookings if there is time before the end of your shift.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: C. Rebook the thirty passengers onto the night service straight away, then write the delay report afterwards and send it to your manager before you finish for the day.

   Least effective: A. Write the delay report first while this morning is still fresh in your mind, then turn to the rebooking with whatever seats on the night service are still showing as available.

   A: Spends a contested resource on a fixed one: the report can be written at any hour of the day, while the seats disappear as you type, and the passengers who lose them cannot be told why.

   B: Hands back a decision you can make: the seats are going while the question sits in her inbox, and nothing about the choice needs information you do not already hold.

   D: Splits effort so nothing finishes: the passengers left until later are competing for the same shrinking seats, and are no less stranded for having simple itineraries.

   The most effective response is to rebook the thirty passengers onto the night service straight away, then write the delay report and send it before you finish: seats are being consumed by other people while you decide, and the report is due at a time of day rather than at a moment, so the rebooking is the only task that gets harder every minute you leave it. It beats rebooking only the passengers whose journeys look most complicated, because that still leaves the rest chasing a shrinking pool, and simple itineraries do not make a passenger less stuck. It beats asking your manager which she would rather have finished tonight, because she has no information you lack, and the seats go while the question waits. The least effective response is writing the delay report first while the morning is fresh: it spends the contested resource to protect a deadline that was never in danger, so passengers lose seats that were there when the shift started. That is worse than the partial rebooking, which at least books some of them, and worse than asking your manager, which loses minutes rather than the whole night. The principle: when one task is competing for something that is running out and the other is not, the scarce thing decides the order.

7. Question 7 of 10

   You are a crewing assistant. Tomorrow’s roster takes about two hours to build and has to be published tonight. Every ten minutes or so a crew member telephones with a short query, and each interruption means going back over what you were doing. At this rate the roster will not be finished in time, and the queries themselves are all straightforward. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Keep taking the calls as they come and publish the roster at the deadline in whatever state it has reached, without mentioning that it was built between interruptions.
   2. Carry on answering every call as it arrives and accept that the roster will be published late, since crew who telephone deserve an answer when they ring.
   3. Tell the desk you are unavailable for the next hour and will answer queries after that, put the calls to the shared line, and finish the roster.
   4. Stop picking up the telephone for the rest of the evening so you can concentrate, and deal with whatever messages have built up once the roster has been published.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: C. Tell the desk you are unavailable for the next hour and will answer queries after that, put the calls to the shared line, and finish the roster.

   Least effective: A. Keep taking the calls as they come and publish the roster at the deadline in whatever state it has reached, without mentioning that it was built between interruptions.

   A: Publishes work you have reason to doubt: crew plan their day around a roster built in ten-minute fragments, and nobody reading it knows to look twice at it.

   B: Lets the interruptions set the order: a dozen short queries that could wait an hour take priority over the document all of those crew need tonight.

   D: Goes quiet without telling anybody: crew ring a desk that simply does not answer, and the people covering the shared line have no idea they are covering.

   The most effective response is to tell the desk you are unavailable for the next hour, put the calls to the shared line, and finish the roster: it is what every one of those crew members actually needs tonight, an hour of clear time finishes it, and announcing the arrangement means the calls still land somewhere. It beats stopping picking up the telephone for the rest of the evening to concentrate, because going silent without telling anyone leaves crew ringing an unanswered desk and colleagues covering without knowing. It beats answering every call as it arrives and accepting a late roster, because a dozen queries that could wait an hour are allowed to delay the document all of them depend on. The least effective response is publishing at the deadline in whatever state it has reached without mentioning how it was built: it hands out a roster the author knows was assembled in fragments, so nobody knows to check it. That is worse than the other two, which both produce a roster somebody concentrated on. The principle: protect a block of time for the work everyone is waiting on, and tell people where their queries should go meanwhile.

8. Question 8 of 10

   You are a gate agent. A colleague you are friendly with has been asked to account for an incident at the gate yesterday, and asks you to confirm her version to the duty manager. You were there. Her account is broadly right, but on one important point, what she said to the passenger, your memory is clearly different. She is anxious and treats your agreement as settled. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Give the duty manager only the parts of the incident you are certain about, and leave out the point where your memory differs from hers, so that you contradict nobody.
   2. Tell her before you speak to anyone that you remember what she said to the passenger differently, and that you will have to give your own account of that part.
   3. Tell her you would rather not be drawn into it, and ask the duty manager to leave you out of the account since there were other people at the gate who also saw it.
   4. Confirm her version as she has described it, since she is a friend, she is right about most of it, and the point where you remember things differently is a detail.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: B. Tell her before you speak to anyone that you remember what she said to the passenger differently, and that you will have to give your own account of that part.

   Least effective: D. Confirm her version as she has described it, since she is a friend, she is right about most of it, and the point where you remember things differently is a detail.

   A: Edits an account to avoid a collision: the duty manager is left with a version shaped by what you chose to omit, and neither he nor she knows that something has been left out.

   C: Withdraws from something you witnessed: you were there and the point at issue is one you remember clearly, so declining to say so leaves the question to people who saw less.

   D: Puts loyalty into an account of fact: what she said to the passenger is the part being examined, and it is being confirmed by somebody who remembers it differently.

   The most effective response is to tell her before you speak to anyone that you remember what she said to the passenger differently and will have to give your own account: your account has to be your own, and telling her first means she is not ambushed and can decide what to say herself. It beats giving the duty manager only the parts you are certain about, because leaving out the disputed point produces a version that is misleading precisely where it matters, and nobody knows it has been edited. It beats asking to be left out of the account because others also saw it, because you saw the thing in question, and standing back leaves it to people who saw less. The least effective response is confirming her version as she has described it: it presents as fact something you remember differently, on the strength of a friendship, and the point confirmed is the one under examination. That is worse than the other two, which are evasive rather than untrue. The principle: give your own account, and warn the person in advance where it will differ from theirs.

9. Question 9 of 10

   You are working the ticket desk alone. Two passengers are waiting. The first to arrive wants to book a trip for next month. The second is trying to reach a flight that closes in fifteen minutes and needs a ticket reissued to do it. No other agent is free, and the booking will take longer than fifteen minutes. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Deal with them in the order they arrived, because queueing in turn is the fairest way to run a desk, and say nothing to either about the flight that is closing.
   2. Ask the passenger who arrived first to come back later, and start on the reissue, without going into why the order is being changed.
   3. Ask both what they need, take the reissue first because that flight closes in fifteen minutes, and tell the other passenger how long he will be waiting.
   4. Deal with the reissue first because it is urgent, and leave the other passenger standing at the desk without saying anything about the change in order or how long he will wait.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: C. Ask both what they need, take the reissue first because that flight closes in fifteen minutes, and tell the other passenger how long he will be waiting.

   Least effective: A. Deal with them in the order they arrived, because queueing in turn is the fairest way to run a desk, and say nothing to either about the flight that is closing.

   A: Treats order of arrival as the only fairness: a passenger loses a flight that could have been saved, and neither of them is even told that a choice was being made.

   B: Reorders without explaining: the right passenger is served, but the first is moved aside with no reason given and no idea when to return.

   D: Gets the order right and the person wrong: he watches somebody who arrived after him being served first, with nothing said, and concludes the desk is simply arbitrary.

   The most effective response is to ask both what they need, take the reissue first because that flight closes in fifteen minutes, and tell the other passenger how long he will be waiting: one need expires and the other does not, asking is what reveals that, and a sentence to the waiting passenger costs nothing and keeps him with you. It beats dealing with the reissue first and leaving him standing without a word, because getting the order right in silence leaves him watching a queue jump he cannot explain. It beats asking the passenger who arrived first to come back later without explaining why, because sending him away with no reason and no return time is a worse version of the same conversation. The least effective response is dealing with them strictly in arrival order and telling neither about the closing flight: it holds to the queue while a flight closes. That is worse than the other two, which both save the flight even if they handle the other passenger poorly. The principle: order the queue by what expires, and tell the person who waits why they are waiting and for how long.

10. Question 10 of 10

    You are a gate agent. A flight has just gone to a three-hour delay and the new departure time is confirmed. Passengers are asking about meal vouchers. The airline usually issues them for a delay of this length, but the decision has not been taken yet and you have been told it will come within the hour. The gate room is full and people are making plans. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

    1. Tell the gate room that you have no information at present and that everyone should watch the screens, so that nothing you say can turn out to be wrong later on.
    2. Announce the new departure time and say nothing at all about vouchers until the airline has made its decision and you can give a definite answer.
    3. Announce the confirmed departure time, say that the decision on vouchers is being taken and is not yours, and tell them the time by which you will come back with the answer.
    4. Announce the new departure time and tell the room that vouchers are normally issued for a delay this long, so they should expect to be given them shortly.
    Show the answer

    Most effective: C. Announce the confirmed departure time, say that the decision on vouchers is being taken and is not yours, and tell them the time by which you will come back with the answer.

    Least effective: A. Tell the gate room that you have no information at present and that everyone should watch the screens, so that nothing you say can turn out to be wrong later on.

    A: Denies holding information you do hold: the confirmed departure time is the one fact passengers need to plan an evening, and pleading ignorance about all of it is untrue.

    B: Leaves a question hanging: the room is asking about food, and silence on the point they care about invites them to keep queueing at your desk for an answer you could have framed.

    D: Over-promises on somebody else's decision: if the answer comes back no, the passengers were told otherwise by the only member of staff in the room, and every one of them heard it from you.

    The most effective response is to announce the confirmed departure time, say that the decision on vouchers is being taken and is not yours, and give the time by which you will come back: it hands the room the fact that is settled, is honest that the other is not yours to settle, and replaces an open question with a time. It beats announcing the departure time and telling the room vouchers are normally issued for a delay this long, because that commits the airline to a decision it has not made, in front of a full gate room. It beats announcing the departure time and saying nothing about vouchers, because passengers are asking about food, and refusing to acknowledge the question keeps them at the desk instead of settling them. The least effective response is telling the gate room you have no information and that everyone should watch the screens: it claims you know nothing when you have a confirmed departure time in your hand, so people plan an evening around a blank. That is worse than withholding only the uncertain half, and worse than the voucher promise, which is generous rather than untruthful. The principle: say what is certain, be plain about what is not, and give a time for the rest.