Ask & Answer: India's Largest Education Community

Questions in the General Awareness section in the AFCAT exam are asked from History, Geography, Civics, Politics, Current Affairs Environment, Basic Science, Defence, Art, Culture, Sports, etc. Candidates must keep an watch on the latest national and international news for the Current Affairs. They must prepare the Current Affairs of last one year to six months. The tips and tricks to ace the General Awareness section are given below:

• Candidates must read newspapers, magazines, current affairs regularly inorder to get updated with the recent happenings
• Candidates must focus on important topics such as Indian History, Geography, Indian Polity, Economy, Sports, Science and Technology, Awards and Honors, etc.
• Candidates must take online quizzes and mock tests to check their knowledge and identify weak areas
• Candidates must make notes of important facts and figures for quick revision

There are very lesser chances of questions getting repeated from the AFCAT previous years' paper. However, candidates must practice the previous years' question papers to know the type of questions asked in the exam. Solving the question papers will help candidates to improve their question solving ability. AFCAT syllabus outlines the topics and sub-topics which candidates need to prepare for the exam. AFCAT syllabus carries questions from the topics- General Awareness, Verbal Ability in English Numerical Ability and Reasoning, and Military Aptitude Test. English section carries questions from Antonyms and Synonyms, English Grammar, Idioms and phrases, Comprehension, etc. Reasoning and Military Aptitude carries questions from Verbal and Non-Verbal Reasoning. Maths section carries questions from Decimals, Fractions, Profit & Loss, Average, Percentage, Ratio and Proportion, Speed, Time and Distance, etc.

The Indian Air Force administers the Air Force Common Admission Test (AFCAT) to identify Class-I Gazetted Officers for roles in Flying and Ground Duties, including both Technical and Non-Technical positions. This biannual exam takes place in February and August/September. AFCAT is highly sought after, attracting numerous candidates aspiring to join the Air Force Academy. To excel in the AFCAT exam, candidates should diligently prepare by familiarizing themselves with the exam pattern, syllabus, previous year question papers, and engaging in mock tests. AFCAT serves as a pathway for both male and female applicants aspiring to join the Indian Air Force, offering opportunities for Short Service Commission in the Flying Branch and Permanent Commission/Short Service Commission in Ground Duties, encompassing roles in both Technical and Non-Technical domains.

Selection is contingent on candidates' performance in the online exam and the subsequent Air Force Selection Board (AFSB) interview. Those opting for Ground Duty (Technical) positions must participate in both AFCAT and the Engineering Knowledge Test (EKT).

The syllabus of AFCAT comprises topics from General Awareness, Verbal Ability in English Numerical Ability and Reasoning, and Military Aptitude Test. The syllabus of EKT comprises topics from Mechanical, Computer Science, and Electrical and Electronics. Candidates must prepare as per the syllabus of AFCAT to score good marks in the exam. AFCAT syllabus is formulated as per the latest exam pattern and preparing accordingly will help candidates to formulate proper strategy for the exam. Candidates can check below AFCAT syllabus:

English: Comprehension, Detect Error in Sentence, Sentence Completion/ Filling in of correct word, Synonym/ Antonym, Cloze Test or Fill in the Gaps in a paragraph, Idioms and Phrases, Analogy, Sentence Rearranging, Substitution in a Sentence/ One Word Substitution.

General Awareness. History, Geography, Sports, National & International Organizations, Art & Culture, Personalities, Environment & Ecology, Indian Polity, Economy, Basic Science Based Knowledge, Science & Technology, Current Affairs (National & International), Defence

Numerical Ability. Decimal Fraction, Time and Work, Average/ Percentage, Profit & Loss, Ratio & Proportion, Simple and Compound Interest, Time & Distance and Races (Trains/ Boats & Streams), Area and Perimeter, Probability, Number System & Number Series, Mixture & Allegation Rules, Clocks.

Reasoning and Military Aptitude Test. Verbal and Non-Verbal Reasoning

Once the payment process is successful, the system displays the AFCAT registration number. This means that the payment is successful. Candidates must verify the correction of information entered in the application form before proceeding with the 'Make Payment' option. Applicants will not be able to edit the previous details entered after the selection of 'Course Preferences' step and after the 'Make Payment' step. No cash or cheque or demand draft (DD) is accepted towards payment of examination fee. The examination fee can be paid using credit/ debit cards/ net banking through the payment gateway. Applicants are advised to follow the instructions/ steps given on the payment gateway, and also print/keep the transaction details for their records. After confirmation from bank that the payment is received, the 'Payment Status' display 'Registration Number' which the candidate may note down for future correspondence. Simultaneously, candidates also receive a confirmatory sms/ e-mail.

No cash/cheque/demand draft is accepted for AFCAT fee payment. Candidates are required to pay the application fees online only. The application fee can be paid through the 'Make Payment' step on the main menu of the online application. The examination fee can be paid using credit/ debit cards/ net banking through the payment gateway. The steps to pay the application fees for AFCAT exam are given below:

• Visit the official website of IAF
• Go to the candidate login section on the home page
• Candidates need to first register for the exam
• After registering, they can fill their AFCAT application form
• Once they submit the application form of AFCAT, candidates are directed to the payment page
• Candidates need to pay the required fees and take printout of the transaction receipt

AFCAT 2 application form 2023 was released on June 1, 2023. The application form for AFCAT 2 was released for the courses commencing from July 2024. Interested candidates could fill the application form online only. Candidates were not required to send the hard copy of their application forms to the examination authority. The steps to fill AFCAT application form are given below: Visit the official website of IAF Go to the AFCAT 2 2023 cycle from the Candidate Login section Register for the exam by entering the full name, father's name, mother's name, email ID, mobile number, secret question, etc. After successful registration, candidates receive password Candidates need to login with email ID and password Candidates need to select the branch for which they want to submit the application form Read the notification carefully before applying to the exam Candidates need to fill personal details, course preference, communication details, upload documents, etc. Candidates need to pay the application fee and submit the application form