SIFT Study Guide: How to Prepare for Every Subtest
The seven subtests of the Army’s Selection Instrument for Flight Training, what each one measures, and how to pace and score well on it. Every section ends with a free drill.
How the SIFT works
The SIFT is web-based and taken with a test control officer present. Its seven subtests add up to 132 minutes, and the whole visit can take up to 3 hours. The Army combines the subtests into one score from 20 to 80 with a compensatory formula, so a strong subtest can make up for a weak one; 40 is the minimum to apply. You can take it at most twice, and a pass cannot be retaken to raise your score.
The scoring rules differ by subtest, and so does the right strategy. On the two speed subtests, wrong answers cost part of a point, so skip what you cannot see. On the fixed-length knowledge and spatial subtests, blanks count as wrong, so answer everything. On the two adaptive subtests, finishing too few items may be penalized, but random guessing usually costs more.
1. Simple Drawings (SD)
2 minutes · 100 questions
What it measures: How quickly you recognize patterns within groups of images.
What you see in our practice: Each question shows five small drawings. Four are the same; pick the one that is different. One click answers and moves on.
FAQ strategy: Work quickly and do not guess. Wrong answers cost part of a point, and most people do not reach all 100 questions.
- Look at all five at once instead of comparing pairs. The odd drawing usually stands out in your peripheral vision.
- Keep a steady rhythm: about a second per question gets you near the end of the 100.
- Skip a question you cannot see in two seconds. A skipped question costs nothing; a wrong one costs part of a point.
3. Army Aviation Information Test (AAIT)
30 minutes · 40 questions
What it measures: Knowledge of aviation terminology, aircraft components and their function, basic aerodynamic principles and basic flight rules and regulations.
What you see in our practice: Multiple-choice questions on helicopter flight, controls and systems, aerodynamics, airspace, weather and flight rules.
FAQ strategy: Work quickly, and guess at any question you have not reached when time is about to expire. Blanks count as wrong.
- This is the one subtest you can study for directly, and the FAQ says examinees with aviation experience typically do well on it.
- Learn rotary-wing basics first: the three flight controls, the main and tail rotor, and why a helicopter needs anti-torque.
- Know the effects named in the FAA Helicopter Flying Handbook: translating tendency, dissymmetry of lift, effective translational lift, ground effect, settling with power and autorotation.
4. Spatial Apperception Test (SAT)
10 minutes · 25 questions
What it measures: The ability to perform mental rotations to determine the orientation of an aircraft in three-dimensional space.
What you see in our practice: Each question shows the view from the cockpit over a coastline. Pick the outside view of the aircraft that matches it: climbing, diving or level; banking left, banking right or wings level; and its heading relative to the coast.
FAQ strategy: Work quickly, and guess at any question you have not reached when time is about to expire. Blanks count as wrong.
- Read the cockpit view in three passes: horizon tilt for bank, horizon height for climb or dive, and the coastline for heading.
- When the horizon sits higher on the right side of the windshield, the aircraft is banking right. More ground than sky means the nose is down.
- Sea straight ahead with no coast in view means the aircraft is flying out to sea; a coastline running away from you means it is flying along the coast.
Practice all seven together
All seven subtests in order, each on its own clock: 132 minutes and up to 285 questions, with your standing on every subtest.
Free Hidden Figures drill5. Reading Comprehension Test (RCT)
30 minutes · 20 questions
What it measures: The ability to extract meaning from written passages.
What you see in our practice: Short passages, each followed by questions on the main idea, details, inferences and the meaning of words in context.
FAQ strategy: Work quickly, and guess at any question you have not reached when time is about to expire. Blanks count as wrong.
- Read the question before the passage when a passage is long, so you know what to look for.
- Answer from the passage, not from what you already know about the topic.
- You have 90 seconds a question on average; do not let one passage take ten minutes.
6. Math Skills Test (MST)
40 minutes · test length varies (adaptive)
What it measures: Mathematical skills and aptitude: arithmetic, algebra, geometry and word problems, without a calculator.
What you see in our practice: One question at a time. Each answer sets the difficulty of the next, and you cannot go back. No calculator; scrap paper only.
FAQ strategy: Work quickly and do not guess. The FAQ says scores of examinees who finish too few items may be penalized, and random guessing usually hurts more than that penalty.
- Practice without a calculator: fractions, percentages, ratios, exponents and simple equations by hand.
- Budget about a minute and a quarter per question so you finish the section.
- Because the test adapts, harder questions are a sign you are doing well. Keep your pace.
7. Mechanical Comprehension Test (MCT)
15 minutes · test length varies (adaptive)
What it measures: Familiarity with mechanical concepts and simple machines.
What you see in our practice: One question at a time on levers, pulleys, gears, springs, pressure and motion, often with a diagram. Each answer sets the difficulty of the next, and you cannot go back.
FAQ strategy: Work quickly and do not guess. Finishing too few items may cost you, and random guessing usually costs more.
- Learn the few rules that answer most questions: mechanical advantage, gear direction and speed, and moments about a pivot.
- Fifteen minutes is short. Aim for about 45 seconds a question.
- Sketch forces on scrap paper when a diagram has more than two parts.
A two-week plan
- Days 1–2: one free drill of every subtest. Note your two lowest.
- Days 3–8: study aviation information daily, practice math without a calculator, and do one timed run of Simple Drawings and Hidden Figures each day.
- Days 9–10: a full mock exam, then a worked review of every wrong answer.
- Days 11–13: drill your two lowest subtests and keep the daily speed runs.
- Day 14: a second mock exam to rehearse the pacing, then rest before test day.
Start with the full mock exam
All seven subtests in order, each on its own clock: 132 minutes and up to 285 questions, with your standing on every subtest.
Free Hidden Figures drillSources
- Army Personnel Testing: Frequently Asked Questions about the SIFT (Texas Military Department copy)
- Army Personnel Testing: Frequently Asked Questions about the SIFT, V2.0 (Minnesota National Guard copy)
- Washington National Guard: aviator application checklist (SIFT minimum score of 40)
- FAA: Helicopter Flying Handbook (FAA-H-8083-21B)
- FAA: Aeronautical Information Manual
Independent practice with original questions. Not affiliated with, endorsed by or connected to the U.S. Army, Army Personnel Testing or the U.S. Army Recruiting Command. These are not actual SIFT questions, and our results are not SIFT scores.