About AFCAT 2022
Table of Contents
Through AFCAT, candidates are selected for all the three branches of the IAF which are Flying Branch, Technical Branch, and Ground Duty Branches. The eligibility criteria for different branches vary. Both men and women can apply for all three branches. Cracking this test secures a very responsible and prestigious job for the candidates. IAF is very specific with its eligibility criteria, so all the candidates must read it carefully.
In this article we have, we have discussed every aspect of the AFCAT 2022 Exam in detail. So, all the candidates are suggested to have nice look at this.
AFCAT 2022 Exam Basic Info
The table below lists some basic details of AFCAT 2022:
| Examination Name | Air Force Common Admission Test (AFCAT) |
| Exam Conducting Authority | Indian Air Force (IAF) |
| Exam Conducted at | National Level |
| Offered Posts | Appointed as Commissioned officers in flying, ground duty (technical) and ground duty (non-technical) branches |
| Date of Application Form | December 2021 |
| Mode of the Exam | Written Test |
| Selection Steps | Written Exam, AFSB Interview and Medical Examination |
AFCAT 2022 Important Dates
AFCAT is conducted two times every year and you can find below important dates associated with its various events. AFCAT 1 application form is releasing very soon.
| AFCAT Events | AFCAT 1 2022 (Tentative) | AFCAT 2 2022 (Tentative) |
| Declaration of AFCAT Notification | December 1, 2021 | June 1, 2022 |
| AFCAT Online Application Starting Date | December 1, 2021 | June 1, 2022 |
| Last Date of AFCAT Application | December 31, 2021 | June 30, 2022 |
| AFCAT Exam Date | January 10, 2022 | August 8,9 and 10, 2022 |
| Declaration of AFCAT Result | February 20,21 and 22, 2022 | August 30, 2022 |
| AFSB Interview | March 25, 2022 | September 5, 2022 |
AFCAT Vacancy Details (for 2021)
The AFCAT 2022 official vacancies have not been announced yet. However, the vacancies of AFCAT 1, 2021 and AFCAT 2, 2021 were 235 and 334 respectively. So, based on the previous year’s trends, the vacancies for the year 2022 is likely to increase. However, the number of vacancies will be released along with the AFCAT official notification 2022.
AFCAT 2022 Exam Eligibility Criteria
A candidate needs to fulfill the following criteria that form the mandatory AFCAT Eligibility Criteria to apply for the AFCAT 1 and 2 exam. The AFCAT eligibility criteria have been discussed briefly in the following section:
Age Limit
The Age Limits vary with the post and the caste category of the candidates. The table demonstrated below gives a brief idea of the various AFCAT age limit for different posts.
| Branches | Age Limit |
| Ground Duty (Non-Technical and Technical) Branch | 20 – 26 years for the Unreserved category. |
| Flying branch | Candidates having a Commercial Pilot License is relaxed up to 26 years as its upper age limit.Candidates should be between 20 and 24 years. |
Educational Qualifications
The candidates who are willing to apply must be a citizen of India. Educational Qualification for various posts is different. Candidates must go through the details given below to know about the educational criteria set by IAF. Here are the details as per the posts:
| Branch | Sub-Branch | Educational Qualification |
| Ground Duty Technical Branch | Aeronautical Engineer (Mechanical) | Candidates must have a 10+2-degree certificate with an aggregate of 60 % marks in Physics and Mathematics and an integrated post-graduation/degree in Technology/Engineering. Or, Cleared sections A & B examination of Aeronautical Society of India by actual studies or Associate Membership of Institution of Engineers (India) with minimum aggregate marks of 60 % or equivalent in certain disciplines as prescribed by IAF. |
| Aeronautical Engineer (Electronics): | Passed 10+2 degrees with an aggregate of 60 per cent each in Mathematics and Physics and four years’ degree in Technology/Engineering. Or Cleared Sections A and B of Aeronautical Society of India or Associate Membership of Institution of Engineers (India) or Telecommunication Engineers or Graduate membership examination of the Institution of Electronics with 60 %in disciplines specified by the authority of the examination. | |
| Ground Duty (Non-Technical) branches | Administration: Cleared section A&B examination of Aeronautical Society of India or Associate Membership of Institution of Engineers (India) from a recognized university with an aggregate of 60 percent. Or, Graduation in any discipline with a minimum of 60 per cent. |
Marital Status
- At the time of commencement of the course, the Candidate’s age should be below 25 years of age and he/she must be unmarried.
- Divorcees and Widows/Widowers below 25 years are also not eligible to appear in this examination.
- Married candidates above 25 years of age, during their training period, are not allowed to live with family.
Physical and Medical Standards
Candidates should be physically and medically fit to carry out their responsibilities and duties properly.
Type of Commission:
- Permanent Commission (PC) for Men: The elected candidates will have to serve till superannuation in the particular branch that they are allowed in accordance to their rank when they join as a PC officer.
- Short Service Commission (SSC) for Men & Women:
(i) The period of engagement for Flying Branch (Men and Women) SSC Officers is 14 years from the date of Commissioning (Non-extendable).
(ii) A period of 10 years is the Tenure for Ground Duty (Non- technical and Technical) SSC Officers- an extension of four years may be given based on suitability, availability of vacancies, willingness, service requirements and merit.
(iii) Permanent Commission (PC) Grant would be taken into consideration based on suitability, merit, availability of vacancies and willingness service requirements.
AFCAT 2022 Exam Pattern
AFCAT conducts the examination through series of steps. They are discussed as below:
Online Test
- All registered candidates must appear for the AFCAT online test.
- The test comprises questions from Numerical Ability and Reasoning, and Military Aptitude Test General Awareness and Verbal Ability in English.
- The EKT is conducted for the applicants with one of the choices as Technical Branch, comprises questions from Computer Science, Mechanical and Electronics and Electrical.
- The maximum mark allotted to the AFCAT examination is 300.
- The question paper of EKT bears a total of 150 marks.
AFCAT 1 Marking Scheme
- 1 mark will be deducted for every incorrect answer.
- For each correct answer, three marks will be allowed.
- No deducted marks for un-attempted questions will be provided.
Candidates must sit for the Online CBT AFCAT in person. Under no circumstance, another candidate is allowed to assist/appear in the exam.
AFCAT 2022 Exam Pattern is given below:
| Particulars | Details |
| Mode of Exam | Online |
| Type of Questions | MCQs |
| No. of Questions | 100 |
| Duration | 120 min |
| Negative Marking | 1 mark was deducted for incorrect answers |
| Total Weightage | 300 |
AFCAT Interview
Qualified candidates from the AFCAT Exam are called for AFSB Interview. The Interview comprises 3 stages:
Stage I: Officer Intelligence Rating Test along with Discussion Test and Picture Perception Test is conducted on the first day.
Stage II: Selected Candidates are then allowed to proceed with the Psychological Tests on Day 1 (Afternoon) and the Group Tests and Interview begins after the document verification for the next five days.
For Flying Branch: Aspirants applying for the flying branch must appear for the Computerised Pilot Selection System (CPSS).
Final Merit List
The final selection list is prepared upon aggregation of the minimum qualifying marks separately in the written exam and AFSB test. All candidates are placed accordingly based on total marks secured in the AFSB and written examinations.
AFCAT 2022 Syllabus
The syllabus for AFCAT 2022 are as follows:
| Subjects | Topics |
| English | Comprehension, Error Detection, Antonyms and Testing of Vocabulary, Idioms and Phrases, Synonyms |
| General Knowledge | History, Civics, Geography, Politics, Art, Culture, Sports, Defence, Basic Science, Environment, Current Affairs |
| Reasoning and Military Aptitude | Spatial Ability, Verbal Ability, Simple Interest Time and Distance, Ratio and Proportion, etc. |
| Numerical Ability | Time and Work, Decimal Fraction, Profit and Loss, Percentage, etc. |
AFCAT 2022 Application Process
AFCAT Application Form 2022 is made available in online mode only. The AFCAT 2022 Application Form is expected to start in the month of December 2021. The step-by-step AFCAT registration cum application process is mentioned below. The following steps must be followed by a candidate to fill the Application Form. These are:
Step 1: AFCAT Registration 2022
- Go to the official career website of the Indian Air force.
- Click on the Candidates login section.
- A new web page will appear. Fill in the registration details asked for new users like the name; e-mail ID, mobile number, etc.
- Click on submit. A new AFCAT registration ID and password would be sent to the registered Email address.
Note: It is to be noted that the candidate should keep their registered email id and phone number active, throughout the selection process.
Step 2: AFCAT Apply Online
- Fill in the details as per the directions are given on the webpage.
- Select the preference of branch, AFCAT Exam Center, Subject for EKT exam, etc.
- Upload Your signature and Photograph (as per dimensions provided in the notification).
- Click on submit.
| Particulars | Details |
| Education level | Choose one from the list: |
| Select graduation level | As per the above options choose one from the list: |
| Select a qualification degree | For Group A, B, D choose from the followingFor Option C: Enter B Com etc. |
| Duration of the Course in years | This should be inserted in numeric form |
| Name of the college | A maximum of 50 characters should be used to enter this detail. |
| Name of University | The highest limit is 50 characters |
| Date of graduation | This should be in dd/mm/yyyy format |
| Enter percentage obtained in Class 12 | Candidates should enter it in numeric digit |
| Aggregate/gross percentage | In numeric digit |
Course preference: Applicants need to select, Ground Duty (Technical/ Non-Technical), Flying. Candidates who have Post-Graduation/Graduation in Technology/Engineering must appear in EKT. The Authority of examination reserves the right to allow branches to the applicants as per their vacancies and suitability irrespective of the choices entered preferred by the candidates.
- SSB/AFSB appeared candidates: Candidates need to choose whether failed/not appeared/passed for SSB/AFSB interview. Besides, they need to enter the number of days, location of appearance in examination and the batch number.
- Source of information for AFCAT: Candidates need to insert the source from where they came to know about the information related to the AFCAT exam.
- GATE Score: Candidates need to insert their valid GATE score and the year when they have appeared in the exam.
- Communication details: Enter correspondence address or permanent address in AFCAT application form 2022.
- In the permanent address section, the applicants need to enter the full address, PIN code, railway station near them, select State/Union Territories, select city, Aadhaar Card number, landline number.
- In the section of correspondence address, candidates need to enter the full address, nearest Railway station, Pin Code, State, City.
- Upload documents: Scanned images of the signature, left thumb impression and photograph need to be uploaded in good resolution. However, the instructions for uploading the documents are: The images should be in JPG/JPEG. The size of each file should be between 10 KB to 50KB
- Declaration by the candidate: The candidate needs to click on the checkbox of the declaration after reading it to proceed further.
- Select exam city: Candidates need to select the Exam Centres according to their own preferences. However, the maximum preference limit is 5 locations.
Step 3: Paying AFCAT Exam Fees 2022
- Fill in other personal details asked in the form and proceed to the next step.
- Upload high quality scanned images of Passport size photograph, signature, and right thumb impression in the specified format.
- Once done, proceed to the application fee payment option via online or offline mode.
- The application fee of INR 250 must be made via debit card/credit card or net banking. For offline payment, download challan and make payment at HDFC/Axis bank.
- Carefully ‘PREVIEW’ your application before clicking on the ‘SUBMIT’ button.
- Take a printout of the filled application form.
AFCAT 2022 Exam Admit Card
The AFCAT Admit Card 2022 will be available on the official website of the IAF soon.
The Admit Card will be available online at the IAF’s official website. Aspirants who have registered and wish to take the AFCAT must first download their admit card from the official website.
AFCAT aspirants can download their Admit Cards through the candidates’ login tab. The candidates who are already registered can download the Admit Card by entering the prescribed credentials. However, the candidate is not supposed to send the hard copy of the admit via postal/courier service.
AFCAT 2022 Exam Centres
AFCAT have lots of Examination Centres that are situated all across India. They are listed as below:
| State | AFCAT Exam Centers |
| Andaman & Nicobar Islands | Port Blair |
| Andhra Pradesh | Vijayawada |
| Assam | Guwahati Silchar |
| Bihar | Patna |
| Chandigarh | Chandigarh/Mohali |
| Chhattisgarh | Raipur |
| Delhi | Delhi |
| Gujarat | Anand/Vadodara |
| Gujarat | Rajkot |
| Haryana | Karnal |
| Himachal Pradesh | Shimla |
| Jammu and Kashmir | Jammu |
| Karnataka | Bengaluru |
| Madhya Pradesh | Bhopal |
| Madhya Pradesh | Indore |
| Maharashtra | Mumbai |
| Maharashtra | Nagpur |
| Meghalaya | Barapani/Shillong |
| Odisha | Bhubaneshwar |
| Punjab | Ludhiana |
| Rajasthan | Jaipur |
| Tamil Nadu | Chennai |
| Telangana | Hyderabad |
| Uttar Pradesh | Bareilly |
| Uttar Pradesh | Lucknow |
| Uttar Pradesh | Varanasi |
| Uttarakhand | Dehradun |
| West Bengal | Barrackpore/Kolkata |
Conclusion
This article discusses AFCAT 2022 Exam in detail. Every candidate is suggested to go through the aforementioned information very carefully. It is hoped that the contents of this article result to be helpful to all the candidates.
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