Visual + Spatial
Not publishedof exam
Army Aviation
Not publishedof exam
Reading + Math
Not publishedof exam
Mechanical Reasoning
Not publishedof exam
Quick Facts
- Exam
- SIFT
- Owner
- U.S. Army
- Sections
- Seven
- Score
- 20-80
- Qualify
- 40
- Attempts
- Two total tests
- Retest
- 45 days after failure
- Appointment
- Up to 3 hours
- Format
- Web-based only
- Weights
- Not published
Attitude Scan
Bank, Pitch, Position
Tilt: bankHeight: pitchTerrain: position
Rotation vs Reflection
Rotation
- Turns figure
- Handedness preserved
- Feature order stays
Reflection
- Mirrors figure
- Handedness reverses
- Feature order flips
Turn vs mirror
Visual Picker
- One figure differs→Feature scan(SD)
- Target is embedded→Anchor then trace(HF)
- Horizon is tilted→Classify bank(SAT)
- Horizon is low→Test nose-high(SAT)
- Horizon is high→Test nose-low(SAT)
- Directions feel reversed→Reset cockpit view
Simple Drawings
- Goal
- Find one different figure
- Closure
- Check gaps first
- Orientation
- Compare matching directions
- Line count
- Count decisive segments
- Angle
- Spot sharpness changes
- Symmetry
- Check mirror balance
- Pacing
- Fast, accurate scanning
Pitch vs Flight Path
Pitch
- Nose attitude
- Horizon-height cue
- Not climb proof
Flight path
- Movement direction
- Needs additional cues
- May oppose pitch
Attitude vs movement
Spatial Apperception
- Viewpoint
- Stay inside cockpit
- Horizon tilt
- Shows aircraft bank
- Low horizon
- Suggests nose-high attitude
- High horizon
- Suggests nose-low attitude
- Level horizon
- Suggests wings level
- Terrain
- Supports position cues
- Flight path
- Not pitch alone
Three Controls
Cyclic tilts; Collective lifts; Pedals yaw
Cyclic: directionCollective: total pitchPedals: heading
Cyclic vs Collective
Cyclic
- Cyclic blade pitch
- Tilts rotor disc
- Changes direction
Collective
- All blades together
- Changes rotor thrust
- Coordinates power
Tilt vs total thrust
Control Picker
- Tilt rotor disc→Cyclic
- Change total thrust→Collective
- Control yaw→Pedals
- Counter rotor torque→Tail rotor
- Transfer pilot inputs→Swashplate
- Engine loses power→Autorotation(Airflow drives rotor)
Flight Controls
- Cyclic
- Tilts rotor disc
- Collective
- Changes all blade pitch
- Pedals
- Control yaw
- Swashplate
- Transfers control inputs
- Throttle
- Controls engine power
- Main rotor
- Produces primary thrust
- Tail rotor
- Counters main-rotor torque
Pitch vs Angle of Attack
Pitch attitude
- Aircraft versus horizon
- Nose orientation
- Cockpit cue
Angle of attack
- Chord versus wind
- Controls airfoil lift
- Critical angle stalls
Horizon vs relative wind
Flight Forces
- Lift
- Aerodynamic upward force
- Weight
- Gravity downward
- Thrust
- Propulsive force
- Drag
- Opposes relative motion
- Relative wind
- Opposite flight path
- Angle of attack
- Chord versus relative wind
- Stall
- Critical angle exceeded
Rotor Flight
- Ground effect
- Near-ground rotor efficiency
- Translational lift
- Cleaner airflow efficiency
- Dissymmetry
- Unequal blade airspeeds
- Blade flapping
- Balances rotor lift
- Autorotation
- Airflow drives rotor
- Torque reaction
- Fuselage opposes rotor
- Density altitude
- Higher reduces performance
Motion Triangle
Distance = Rate x Time
d = rtr = d/tt = d/r
Passage vs Outside Facts
Passage proof
- Text supports
- Scope matches
- Few assumptions
Outside fact
- May be true
- Text never proves
- Reject on RCT
Supported beats familiar
Guessing Picker
- SD time nearly ends→Avoid random guesses
- HF time nearly ends→Avoid random guesses
- AAIT items remain→Educated guesses
- SAT items remain→Educated guesses
- RCT items remain→Educated guesses
- Adaptive clock runs→Keep brisk accuracy
Section Clocks
- SD
- 100 Q / 2 min
- HF
- 50 Q / 5 min
- AAIT
- 40 Q / 30 min
- SAT
- 25 Q / 10 min
- RCT
- 20 Q / 30 min
- MST
- Adaptive / 40 min
- MCT
- Adaptive / 15 min
Reading Proof
- Main idea
- Central supported claim
- Detail
- Locate exact support
- Inference
- Fewest added assumptions
- Absolute
- Requires absolute support
- Scope
- Match passage boundaries
- Outside facts
- Do not import
- Tie-breaker
- Choose stronger evidence
Math Core
- Percent change
- Difference / original
- Proportion
- Cross-multiply equal ratios
- Average
- Sum / count
- Weighted average
- Weighted sum / total weights
- Rate
- Quantity / time
- Work rate
- Add reciprocal times
- Estimate
- Check sign and scale
Math Formulas
- Distance
- d = rt
- Rectangle area
- A = lw
- Triangle area
- A = bh / 2
- Circle area
- A = pi r squared
- Circumference
- C = 2 pi r
- Right triangle
- a squared + b squared = c squared
- Slope
- Rise / run
Mechanics Trio
Torque turns; Work moves; Power rates
T = F x armW = F x dP = W/t
Torque vs Power
Torque
- Turning effect
- Force x arm
- About a pivot
Power
- Work rate
- Work / time
- Speed of transfer
Turning vs work rate
Mechanics Picker
- Turning about pivot→Torque
- Force moves object→Work
- Work rate asked→Power
- Fluid force asked→Pressure x area
- Circuit values given→V = IR
- Pulley force asked→Count support strands
Forces + Machines
- Net force
- Causes acceleration
- Torque
- Force x moment arm
- Work
- Force x distance
- Power
- Work / time
- Lever balance
- Opposing torques equal
- Pulley advantage
- Count supporting strands
- Meshed gears
- Opposite directions
- Large driven gear
- Less speed, more torque
Series vs Parallel
Series
- One path
- Same current
- Open breaks all
Parallel
- Multiple branches
- Same branch voltage
- Other branches continue
One path vs branches
Fluids + Circuits
- Pressure
- Force / area
- Hydraulics
- Pressure transmitted through fluid
- Buoyancy
- Displaced-fluid weight
- Ohm law
- V = IR
- Electric power
- P = VI
- Series current
- Same through components
- Parallel voltage
- Same across branches
- Open circuit
- No current path
Common Traps
Published time vs score
Section clocks are official ≠ Scoring weights unpublished
Visual guessing
SD/HF penalize wrongs ≠ Avoid random guessing
Fixed unanswered items
AAIT/SAT/RCT count wrong ≠ Use educated guesses
Adaptive pacing
Length varies ≠ Too few may penalize
Pitch vs climb
Nose-high is attitude ≠ Climb needs movement cues
Machine advantage
Force decreases ≠ Distance increases
Gear direction
Adjacent gears reverse ≠ Belt rules differ
Passing retest
Qualifying score is final ≠ No improvement retest
Last Minute
- 1.40 qualifies; score range 20-80
- 2.Seven subtests; two are adaptive
- 3.SD/HF: accurate, no random guesses
- 4.AAIT/SAT/RCT: fill remaining items
- 5.MST/MCT: brisk, accurate progress
- 6.SAT: cockpit view, horizon first
- 7.RCT: passage proof beats familiarity
- 8.Cyclic tilts; collective changes thrust
- 9.Pedals control yaw
- 10.Angle of attack uses relative wind
- 11.Torque = force x moment arm
- 12.Pressure = force / area
- 13.V = IR; power = VI
- 14.Passing score cannot be retaken
Buy on Amazon
Online course on MometrixSame family resources
Explore More Military Officer Aptitude Tests
Continue into nearby exams from the same family. Each card keeps practice questions, study guides, flashcards, videos, and articles in one place.
More From This Family
Videos and articles for deeper review.
VideoFREE AFOQT Study Guide 2026: All 12 Subtests + ScoringVideoFREE OAR Study Guide 2026: Officer Aptitude Rating (ASTB-E)ArticleFREE OAR Study Guide 2026: Officer Aptitude Rating (ASTB-E)26 min readArticleFREE OAR vs ASTB Guide 2026: Which Navy Test?12 min readArticleFREE AFOQT Study Guide 2026: All 12 Subtests + Scoring28 min read