Left or right: mental rotation practice

You decide which hand a person is holding a ball in, or whether an aircraft's highlighted wing is its left or right, with the figure facing towards or away from you and at any angle. It measures mental rotation and orientation.

Why it matters for ATC selection

Left-right orientation matters in radar control: an aircraft flying towards you turns left on your screen when it turns right in the cockpit. Tests like this appear in ATC selection for that reason.

How the practice works

• You will see a person holding a ball, or an aircraft with one wing highlighted.
• Say which of the person's own hands holds the ball, or whether the highlighted wing is the aircraft's own left or right.
• The person may be seen from the front or the back, and the aircraft from above or below. Either may be at any angle.
• Use the arrow keys, or tap the buttons. The test runs for 2.5 minutes.

The full-length test is free with an account. Every practice item is original. Full access adds feedback on where you lost marks and how to improve.

Tips

• Put yourself in the pilot's seat facing the direction of travel.
• An aircraft flying down the screen reverses left and right.
• Settle into a steady rhythm. Most errors on easy angles are speed errors.