FAA A&P Written Tests Explained

The Three Tests: General, Airframe, and Powerplant

The General knowledge test has 60 questions drawn from subjects that apply to both the Airframe and Powerplant ratings: FAA regulations (14 CFR Parts 43, 65, 91), ground operations, mathematics, physics, fluid lines and fittings, aircraft drawings, weight and balance calculations, nondestructive testing (NDT) methods, and electrical fundamentals. The Airframe test has 100 questions covering aircraft structures (sheet metal, wood, fabric, composites, welding), aircraft systems (hydraulics, pneumatics, fuel, ice and rain protection), and instruments, communications, and navigation systems. The Powerplant test also has 100 questions covering reciprocating and turbine engines, engine instruments, propellers, and fuel and ignition systems. All three tests must be passed regardless of whether you are seeking one rating or both.

The 70% Passing Standard

You must score 70% or higher on each test to receive a passing Airman Knowledge Test Report (AKTR). For the 60-question General test, that means answering at least 42 questions correctly. For the 100-question Airframe and Powerplant tests, the minimum passing score is 70 correct answers. There is no partial credit — each question is either correct or incorrect. Your score and the ACS codes of any missed questions are printed on the AKTR, which you must present to your DME on exam day.

Where and How to Schedule the Tests (PSI)

FAA Aviation Mechanic knowledge tests are currently administered by PSI Services LLC at hundreds of authorized test centers across the United States. To schedule, visit the PSI website, create an account, and select an FAA Mechanic knowledge test (you can schedule all three in advance or one at a time). You will need to pay the test fee at the time of scheduling. Bring a government-issued photo ID on test day — no mechanical pencils, calculators (unless the testing software provides one), or reference materials are permitted in the testing room.

The ACS Question Bank — What Is Actually Tested

The FAA publishes the complete question bank used for all Aviation Mechanic knowledge tests. Every question is tagged to one or more ACS knowledge codes, and the ACS lists the reference material (AMT handbook chapter, FAA regulation, or industry standard) that is the authoritative source for each item. This transparency is unique in professional aviation testing: you can study the exact pool of questions, learn the rationales, and identify which ACS areas you are weakest in. AMTprep's adaptive practice engine uses this pool with ACS-code tagging so every practice session closes real knowledge gaps.

AKTR Validity and the 24-Month Window

A passing AKTR is valid for 24 months from the date you passed the test. You must complete your oral and practical exam with a DME before your earliest-passing AKTR expires. If you let one expire, you must retake that test. If you fail a test, you must wait 30 days before retesting. There is no limit on the number of retakes. The 24-month clock starts on the date of your first passing test, so candidates who pass the General in January and the Powerplant in March of the same year have until January (not March) to complete the O&P — plan accordingly.

Using Your AKTR to Target Remediation

The AKTR is not just a score document — it is a diagnostic tool. The ACS codes printed for each missed question tell you exactly which knowledge area let you down. Compare those codes against the ACS document and the AMT handbook chapters they reference. Targeted study on those specific areas — rather than re-reading everything — is the fastest path to a passing retake score. Use AMTprep's ACS-code remediation feature to drill exactly those codes with fresh questions and worked rationales.

How the Three Tests Differ in Shape

All three tests are multiple choice with three options per question and a 70 percent pass mark, but they fail candidates for different reasons and reward different preparation.

General is the short one: 60 questions in two hours across twelve subject areas. It is also the most computational, because electricity and mathematics between them carry a large share of the questions. Time pressure is minimal at two minutes per question. Candidates who fail General usually failed on arithmetic they could do, executed under pressure with a formula recalled backwards.

Airframe is the broad one: 100 questions in two hours across fifteen areas, from sheet metal through avionics to rotorcraft. Its characteristic failure is thin coverage — sitting at 65 to 68 percent by knowing roughly what everything does and precisely what nothing does. It is also the test with the most memorisable numbers, because tolerances and spacing rules cannot be derived under time pressure.

Powerplant is the deep one: 100 questions in two hours across thirteen areas, dominated by two large engine families. Its characteristic failure is asymmetry — fluency on reciprocating engines and hollowness on turbines, or the reverse — and it is the test where genuinely understanding a system lets you reason out questions you have never seen.

At 100 questions in two hours, both Airframe and Powerplant leave 72 seconds per question, which is a real constraint that the General test does not impose.

Booking, ID, and What Test Day Looks Like

The three knowledge tests are delivered at FAA-authorised testing centers operated by PSI. You register with PSI, choose a center and a slot, and pay per test. Confirm the current fee with them directly; it has changed more than once and any figure on a prep site ages badly.

There is no required order and no requirement to sit them on separate days. Some candidates book all three across two days; most take General first, because its material underpins the other two and passing it makes the next two easier. What does drive the sequence is the 24-month clock: every pass expires two years from the date on its report, so there is nothing to gain from sitting one long before you expect to be eligible for the oral and practical.

Bring government-issued photo identification showing your name, date of birth, signature, and a physical residential address. If your primary document lacks any of those four items — a passport typically has no address — bring a second document that supplies it. Candidates are turned away for this.

Nothing else goes into the room. Phones, watches, notes and reference material stay in a locker. Scratch material and something to write with are provided. Calculator rules are set by the testing provider and have changed, so confirm when you book rather than arriving with a device that is not permitted.

A Study Plan That Works Backwards From Your Test Date

Pick the test date first and work backwards. An open-ended plan to study until ready is the one that does not finish.

Four weeks out, take a full-length diagnostic across every subject area on that test. The purpose is not the score; it is the per-area breakdown, and it is nearly always surprising. Working mechanics tend to be strong in whatever their shop touches and genuinely weak elsewhere, and the weak set is rarely the one they predicted.

Weeks three and two go to the bottom third of those areas, one area per session, reading the handbook chapter before drilling the questions. Track each area's score separately so you can see a gap close rather than assume it has. Build a one-page numbers sheet as you go — every tolerance, pressure and spacing rule you meet — and review it daily, because those are pure recall and cannot be reasoned out on the day.

The final week is rotation, not new material. Cycle all areas to keep them warm and sit at least one full-length timed run under real conditions, because pacing across 100 questions is its own skill.

Book only when you are consistently above 85 percent. A 70 percent pass mark carries no margin for an unfamiliar phrasing or a bad night.

Four Things Candidates Believe That Are Not True

Some beliefs about the mechanic knowledge tests circulate widely enough to be worth addressing directly, because each one leads to a specific and avoidable mistake.

That the tests are drawn from a published bank you can simply memorise. The FAA publishes the ACS, which defines what is examinable, and it has published sample questions — but the operational test bank is not public. Preparation built on memorising remembered questions from a forum is preparation built on a sample of unknown accuracy and unknown currency, and it produces recognition rather than knowledge, which the oral then exposes.

That passing at 70 percent is a comfortable result. It is a pass, and a pass is a pass. But the same report that records it lists an ACS code for every one of the thirty questions you may have missed, and every one of those codes is an item your examiner is directed to revisit at the oral. A marginal written pass buys a longer oral.

That the order matters regulatorily. It does not; you may take the three tests in any order or on the same day. What does matter is the 24-month expiry running from each report date.

That the General test is the easy one. It is the shortest and the least time-pressured, but it is also the most computational, and arithmetic executed under pressure with a formula recalled backwards fails candidates who genuinely understood the physics.

Frequently asked questions

Do I have to take all three tests before scheduling the oral and practical?

Yes. All three knowledge tests (General, Airframe, and Powerplant) must be passed before you can schedule the oral and practical exam with a DME.

Can I take the three tests in any order?

Yes. The FAA does not require a specific sequence. Most candidates take General first because it covers foundational material that underpins both Airframe and Powerplant subjects. However, the order is your choice.

How long is each test?

The testing software enforces time limits: typically 2.5 hours for the General test and up to 4 hours for the Airframe and Powerplant tests. Most well-prepared candidates finish well within the allotted time. PSI's scheduling page shows the exact time limit for each test.

Are reference materials allowed during the test?

No printed references are permitted in the testing room. The PSI testing software provides any figures or charts you need as part of the on-screen question. Practice reading aviation charts and diagrams on-screen so the format is familiar on test day.

What happens if I pass two tests but let the third expire before taking it?

There is no mechanism for the third test to 'expire' before you take it — the 24-month clock runs from the date you passed a test. If you passed General and Airframe but have not yet attempted Powerplant, the General AKTR expires 24 months after you passed it. If you then pass Powerplant but your General AKTR has lapsed, you must retake General before your O&P. Avoid this by scheduling all three tests close together.

Can I take all three tests on the same day?

There is no regulatory bar, and testing centers will schedule it if slots allow. Whether it is wise is another question: three tests in one day is four hours of examination plus check-in, and fatigue on the third test is real. If you do it, put General first while you are fresh on the computational material, and be honest with yourself about whether you are prepared for all three or merely for two.

What happens if I run out of time?

The test ends and is scored on what you have submitted, with unanswered questions counting as incorrect. This is why the working method matters: make a fast first pass answering everything you know, flag anything that needs thought, then come back. And never leave a question blank at the end — a guess costs nothing more than a blank does, and on a three-option question it is worth roughly a third of a mark on average.

ACS subject areas covered here

These are the FAA Mechanic ACS areas this guide maps to. Each page breaks the area down and carries free practice questions with worked rationales.

• Fundamentals of Electricity and Electronics (AM.I.A)
• Weight and Balance (AM.I.C)
• Mathematics (AM.I.H)
• Metallic Structures (AM.II.A)
• Reciprocating Engines (AM.III.A)
• Turbine Engines (AM.III.B)

Primary sources

• FAA Aviation Mechanic Airman Certification Standards FAA-S-ACS-1 (PDF)
• PSI Aviation Testing — Schedule an FAA Knowledge Test
• 14 CFR §65.75 — Knowledge Requirements (eCFR)

Related guides

• FAA Mechanic ACS Explained — What Is the Airman Certification Standards?
• How to Become an FAA Aircraft Mechanic (A&P Certificate Guide)
• FAA A&P Oral and Practical Test — What to Expect from the DME Exam
• FAA General Knowledge Test Prep (A&P) — Free Practice Questions
• Airframe Written Test Questions (FAA A&P) — Free Practice Bank
• Powerplant Written Test Questions (FAA A&P) — Free Practice Bank