Yay! Passed my aerodynamics exam yesterday with 90% which i'm ecstatic about!
I found this test one of the most wordy out of the 4 i've done so i thought i'd share some tips

-Definitely take your time, as with all CASA exams they make the exam more of an english assesment but with aerodynamics don't even look at the answers until you really understand the question! I re checked my entire exam about 3 times before submitting and found errors i'd made every single time i went over it.
-DRAW A DIAGRAM for almost every question. I had about 4 pages full of drawings because it just makes understanding the questions so much easier
-Study up on wake turbulence, i had a few questions on the delay before taking off after a 747, wind that makes it most dangerous (5kt tailwind), how fast the vortices sink, when it exists (from take off to touchdown) etc
-Know your stability, e.g statically stable, dynamically unstable etc
-Know all about gliding range and how different wind direction and weight can affect it (or not effect it )
-Study up on aerodynamic design features and especially their purpose as they throw some tricky questions at you on this
-Most definitely know your power req, thrust req, CL etc graphs inside out and how they all interrelate e.g best L/D = min drag = max range = 4 degrees etc as the graphs arent included in the work books anymore and some questions dont even show the graph
-Understand the forces acting in a climb, descent, climbing turn, straight and level and the tricks they could ask you e.g lift < weight in a climb
-Why we use rudder and not ailerons in a stall recovery
-Factors which make a tailwheel aircraft yaw left on the ground (asymmetric blade effect) vs as it rotates for take off (gyroscopic effect)
-Know all about rate and radius of turn and the effect of increases AOB, airspeed etc
-Study up the effects of moving COG position upon stability and controllability and understand the movement of COP through the wings with an increase in AOA
-Understand the factors which effect best range and endurance e.g. altitude and why endurance is decreased

Like pretty much all exams, its about choosing the most correct answer. Dont over think into it too much, but definitely have a thorough understanding. I find by going through a process of eliminating the obvious incorrect answers it makes it a lot easier especially considering CASA has decided to introduce option e.) to the multiple choice

Where i got tripped up was physically not understanding what CASA meant in their questions e.g. what direction does the antibalance tab move if a pilot deflects the elevator to pitch up. I understand all about antibalance tabs and how they reduce the amount of force required by moving in the same direction as the stabilator just to a greater degree. However i wasnt sure if they meant pitch up of the aircraft or of the elevator so these questions I really had to make an educated guess between the two possible right answers. Oh well, now onto my worst subject - AGK -

Goodluck to everyone sitting their exam, take your time you have an hour and a half use it! and by all means RTFQ!


Gen