I__. - International Military Testing Association

Introduction
Flight Psychological Selection System - FPS 80:
A New Approach to the Selection of Aircrew Personnel
H.D. Hansen
Ministry of Defense, Bonn, Germany
The Selection of Ah-force and Navy flight personnel is a progressive process, commencing. _ .
before the enlistment of the candidates (Phases 1 and 2) and continuing after the normal military
training (which lasts for approximately one year) into Phase 3.
The first Phase is a general screening of such factors as Intelligence and Leadership qualities,
carried out in the respective Officer or NC0 Selection Centres.
The second Phase is a preliminary flight-aptitude screening, using Computer-based psychological
tests, grading candidates as broadly ‘Suitable’ or ‘Unsuitable’.
The third Phase is more precise, making a final decision as to candidate suitability and further
predicting what particular activity each candidate would be best suited for (e.g. Jet, WSO, Prop,
Helicopter or Navigator).
It consists of 3 weeks Navigation/Academic instruction, 1 week FPS 80 Selection and for those
who have survived thus far, 5 weeks Plying instruction on light prop aircraft, including 18 flying
hours.
FPS 80 is the abbreviation for the Flight Psychological Selection System of the Aviation
Psychology Section, Aerospace Medical Institute of the German Airforce.
As the need was identified to improve the effectivity and reliability of the Selection System,
FPS 80 was conceptual&d. It was then designed and a detailed Functional Specification was
prepared, from which the required Hardware and Software was commissioned.
FPS 80 was installed in July of 1987, from which time it was further tested and standardized. It
was introduced as part of the selection process on the 1st April, 1990.
In this paper, we will concern ourselves with a description and statistical evaluation of the FPS
80 Selection system.
An overview of FP!S 80
All those skills which are very difficult or impossible to test in the flying part of the screening,
need to be evaluated, and this is the principal function of FPS 80 - to determine the particular
skills of each individual candidate.
Such particular skills as the multiple tasks required of a WSO, speed of information processing,
estimation abilities in formation flying, spatial orientation and visualization. FPS 80 is much
better capable of categorizing these particular skills, than the later Flying screening.
FPS 80 makes use of a complex simulator-like device, which provides a test-environment very
close to actual flying. The advantage of such a device compared with an aeroplane, consists of
the ability to make an objective measurement of candidate performance in a standardized test
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