After successfully completing all 7 CPL exams, IREX has now been ticked off as well. I passed IREX on my first attempt just, with a score of 72%
The exam consisted of 40 questions. There was about 3-4 questions from each topic so it was fair to say you need to know every aspect of the subject. I had 2 questions on thunderstorms relating to where you would encounter hail and where you would go to avoid microbursts.
Here are a few questions that may give you an idea for what you are up for. These are not word for word but they are somewhat close to what you might get on the day.
1) You are flying from king Island to Hobart with an ETA of 12:45 UTC. What is the range on Hobart NDB?
- note that with this style of question its a very easy mark, make sure to take into account the time (in this case at night) and what your flight is tracking over ( Ocean vs Land)
2) After departing XXXX at melbourne up to 2000 feet, when should the pilot compensate for wind ? (This question was referring to track vs heading and the reference can be found in the AIP)
3) You are flying from Horseham to Moorabbin, what route would you take?
- You need to refer to your ERC and take the quickest route possible.
4) 2 questions where they said PEC was 20 feet but both approaches were LOC so they tried to trick you
5) The fuel calculation questions were at a PPL level although they can easily be mislead as they said PVT IFR which has no variable reserve and it was a type in answer
6) Very simple NDB questions
⁃ you have a track of 270 with an NDB to your north west. You are holding 10 degrees right drift. What ADF indication would you expect when you are abeam the aid? Answer being 100
7) I had a question where you were conducting an NDB approach and your aid failed, you are before the MAPT but below the MSA, what should you do? The answers were along the lines of:
⁃ Keep descending until you are visual
⁃ Conduct missed approach
⁃ Fly at level until MAPT then conduct missed approach
8) You are being radar vectored and have just been told to take up a heading by APPROACH when your radio fails. What are your actions ? Refer EMERG ERSA
9) You are taking off from COWRA to xxxx, in the event of a single engine failure, you ARE able to fly to your destination. The take off minima would be (Ceiling)?
The answers were along the lines of: the LAST, the MSA, 300 feet
10) There was a calculation of LSALT: highest man made object is 270, elevation is 1320, what is the LSALT
11) your departure at alpha has an aid but your destination at bravo does not. What angle is required either side of tack if the distance is 150NM?
12) Compulsory reporting points - fairly straight forward, just refer to legend.
13) From X to X refer ERC 2, what is the lowest cruising level if the freezing level is 0750 (Track of 068). LSAT 6700
14) alternate minima for Sydney RWY 14 with one VHF unserviceable and one HF unserviceable?
Again I want to say that these aren't word for word and that learning these questions won't help you pass the exam. If you see these questions and know how to attack them then you are in a good position.
I hope this gives you an insight into into the current IREX exam. My advice to future students would be this: Make sure to complete ALL of the Bob Tait questions in the book. Make sure to sit as many practice exams as possible. The Bob Tait online exams are a little bit easier than the actual exam, having said that though, they can help identify areas in which you need work. Knowing your AIP and what the text actually means is half the battle. It's one thing to know where a reference is but its a whole other ball game knowing what that paragraph means when put into a question.
Every mark is worth 2.5% so don’t get bogged down on something for 20 minutes. Simply flag it and come back to it later. The first 5 questions had me scratching my head. It is easy to loose confidence at the start, after question 10 I just started punching through all the questions and my confidence was quickly regained. The lesson learnt here is that just because the first few questions may be hard doesn’t mean the rest of the exam will be like that.
When it comes down to it, you need to know your stuff.
Take your time studying for this exam, I'd say 4 weeks should put you in a good position to pass if you are putting in the hours. Read the book twice as there is nothing in the exam that Bob doesn't cover. The exam cost 200$ to sit so I would highly recommend buying the online exams and if you are getting around 85-90% then you should have confidence is a pass (I averaged 85).
Thats unfortunately the last of the Bob Tait theory for me as I move onto ATPL's. Thank you very much for getting me through all 10 exams!
Good luck with your studies everyone and if you have any questions feel free to comment or send me a personal email on This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Cheers Dave
