FAA Ground School Practice Test

If ATC advises a pilot flying on a heading of 090 degrees that traffic is located at "3 o'clock, 2 miles, westbound," where should the pilot look?

1. North

2. West

3. South

4. East

The correct answer is: South

In this scenario, when ATC describes the traffic's position as "3 o'clock," it indicates the location relative to the pilot's current heading. The pilot flying on a heading of 090 degrees is facing east. The term "3 o'clock" refers to the direction directly to the left of the aircraft's heading. To visualize this, think of the aircraft's orientation as a clock face, with the nose of the aircraft at 12 o'clock (straight ahead). Therefore, "3 o'clock" is located to the left of the nose, which translates to the south direction. The additional detail about the traffic being "2 miles, westbound" provides further context about the direction in which that other aircraft is flying, but the critical direction for the pilot to look is determined solely by the relative position described by "3 o'clock." Thus, the correct answer is that the pilot should look south.