Tougher test for fighter pilots from December

Come December and fighter pilot aspirants will have to tackle more than a set of levers to qualify. The Indian Air Force is set to introduce...

Come December and fighter pilot aspirants will have to tackle more than a set of levers to qualify. The Indian Air Force is set to introduce a new Pilot Aptitude Battery Test (PABT) then.

The earlier PABT was nearly four decades old, notwithstanding a few upgradations by IAF. The new test comes armed with modern software, is a lot less subjective in its assessment and tests the cognitive skills of the aspirants.

Jointly developed by Defence Institute of Physiology and Allied Sciences (Dipas) and IAF, PABT will be a quantum jump over earlier mandatory tests. Whereas the earlier PABT tested the eye-limb coordination of the candidate with an assessor close by to decide on his future, this one will use software to decide whether the candidate is good enough for the job. It tests the cognitive skills as present day fighter pilots have to ‘‘deal with so much information’’ coming at him.

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‘‘Today, the helmet is telling him a lot more in its head-up displays than earlier and things are happening a lot faster. So it takes a lot more than just psycho-motor skills to deal with the demands of flying these days,’’ say sources.

Dipas has been working on the test along with IAF for a year now. If successful, the PABT will enter into service early next year or could go in for a ‘‘little bit of fine-tuning, if required.’’