KLM Flight Academy

Phase 1: Capacity Tests (BCO)

Lesson 3 of 6•2 min read•5 exercises

The BCO (Basis Capaciteiten Onderzoek) is the intellectual-capacity phase: around two hours of computer-based testing. It opens with a psychological questionnaire — this does not affect your Phase 1 score, but psychologists read it before your Phase 3 interview, so answer it honestly and consistently rather than strategically.

The five assessments

You take five assessments, and you choose the order yourself in the test portal — start with a strong area to settle your nerves, but never leave your weakest for last, when fatigue is highest.

Mental arithmetic: rapid addition, subtraction, multiplication and division without a calculator, spanning fractions, decimals, percentages, weights and time calculations — all under time pressure.
Number sequences: spotting the pattern in a numerical series and predicting the next number, testing logical-mathematical thinking and concentration.
Analogies: identifying the relationship between a word pair and applying it to a new pair — abstract verbal reasoning and vocabulary.
Syllogisms: drawing strictly logical conclusions from given premises, testing deductive reasoning.
Figure sequences: recognising how visual figures evolve through rotation, displacement or added and removed elements — non-verbal abstract reasoning.

How to prepare

Every one of the five has a direct counterpart on the practice page: Mental Math (with focused modes for fractions, decimals, percentages, time and more), Sequences (in easy, medium and hard variants), Analogies, Syllogisms and Non-Verbal Reasoning. Build a daily routine across all five rather than binging on your favourite, and use your score trends to put practice time where the curve is flattest.

What the test looks like

A worked example from each exercise in this lesson, exactly as the test presents it.

Math: Full

Example: a question from the mix

The Full test draws from all seven math categories — integers, decimals, fractions, time, weight, operators and percentages — one question at a time. Here is a representative decimal item; time and weight questions appear in their own stacked layout.

13.6+2.75

A)16.35

B)15.95

C)16.75

D)17.85

Explanation

Line up the decimal points before adding: 13.60 + 2.75 = 16.35. The wrong options are small offsets of the right answer — four tenths light, four tenths heavy, a point and a half over — so estimating “about sixteen” is not enough; the hundredths have to be right. Because the categories are shuffled, read each question on its own terms before reaching for a method.

Number Sequences: Full Test

Analogies

Syllogisms

Non-Verbal Reasoning

Practice the relevant tests

Assessment-grade exercises to practice the relevant competences.

Math: Full

A mixed practice test combining all math categories — integers, decimals, fractions, time, weight, operators, and percentages — with a per-question timer.

Number Sequences: Full Test

The full progress test for number sequences — a mixed drill combining 30% easy, 40% medium and 30% hard sequence types to mirror the difficulty level of real pilot assessments.

Analogies

Identify the missing term that completes the analogy. Choose the Single Word or Word Combination version. Tests your verbal reasoning and ability to spot relationships between concepts under time pressure.

10 minIntellectual

Statement 1:All apples are fruitStatement 2:No fruit is savoryStatement 3:Some apples are red

All red foods are fruit

No apple is savory

Some fruits are not sweet

No logical answer can be determined from the statements

Syllogisms

Read three statements and pick the conclusion that logically follows. Tests your deductive reasoning under time pressure.

10 minIntellectual

Non-Verbal Reasoning

Spot the rule in a set of abstract figures — pick the odd one out, the option that completes the pattern, or the true rotation of a figure. Tests non-verbal, fluid reasoning under time pressure.

5 minIntellectual

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