- This GPC is NGA's Aeronautical Analysis, Proficiency Level II (AA-II): 110 questions, 150 minutes, paper-based, English.
- Safety of Navigation and Production each carry 25%, together half of the blueprint.
- AA-II requires valid GPC-F plus at least three total years of GEOINT aeronautical analytic experience.
- After a failed attempt, wait 90 calendar days before retaking; 100 PDUs per three-year cycle maintain credentials.
What This GPC Is (and Is Not)
Several unrelated credentials share the "GPC" acronym, so the first line of any cheat sheet has to pin down which one you are studying. Here, GPC means GEOINT Professional Certification, issued by the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (NGA). The specific credential covered on this page is Aeronautical Analysis, Proficiency Level II (AA-II). It sits above the foundational GPC-F, which is its prerequisite rather than a substitute.
That distinction matters for how you study. AA-II is a government workforce credential for people doing aeronautical GEOINT analysis, not a general-market certification you can buy on a whim. If you need the background on the name itself, see What Does GPC Stand For? and What Is GPC Certification?. For the full study approach, the GPC Study Guide goes deeper than a one-page review can.
Exam Format at a Glance
| Item | AA-II Fact |
|---|---|
| Issuer | National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (NGA) |
| Questions | 110 |
| Time limit | 150 minutes |
| Delivery | Paper-based, English |
| Administration | NGA GPC Program Management Office, authorized assessment sites, approved GPC proctors at government facilities |
| Cost to candidate | Free for eligible candidates |
| Passing standard | Governance Council-approved score; no current numeric AA-II value verified publicly |
| Content handling | Marked U//FOUO; actual assessment content is controlled |
The program permits objectively scored multiple-choice, true/false, matching and fill-in-the-blank items. That is a program-level list, though. It does not tell you the exact item-type mix on AA-II, so do not assume the exam is all one format. Prepare to recognize terminology, apply rules to short scenarios and match concepts to definitions.
Pacing arithmetic is simple: 150 minutes across 110 questions leaves roughly 1.4 minutes per item before any review time. Paper delivery means you will be marking answers by hand and flipping back to questions you skipped, so plan a consistent first pass and a short second pass rather than agonizing over any single item. For the cost side, the GPC Certification Cost breakdown explains why "free" still involves effort and eligibility gatekeeping.
Eligibility Snapshot
Eligibility is the part of this credential that surprises people most. You cannot simply register as a member of the public. The general requirements are:
- An active GEOINT-related role within the National System for Geospatial Intelligence.
- At least one year of GEOINT experience in a Department of Defense work role.
- An active U.S. Government or Commonwealth Partner-equivalent clearance appropriate to the assessment classification.
- Good standing with your employing agency or component.
AA-II adds its own layer on top:
- Valid GPC-F certification.
- At least three total years of GEOINT aeronautical analytic experience.
- Full-performance Aeronautical Analysis tradecraft entry qualifications, met through a relevant diploma, degree or certificate and/or prior professional experience.
No specific commercial training course, association membership or product purchase is mandatory. The full walkthrough lives in GPC Requirements: Eligibility, Prerequisites & How to Qualify.
The Six Domains and Their Weights
The six lines below are the formal AA-II examination core competencies, drawn from the NGA Essential Body of Knowledge for Aeronautical Analysis: Proficiency Level II (January 2023) and confirmed in the March 2025 Program Handbook. They are exam competencies, not preparation-curriculum headings, and the weights total 100%.
| Domain | Weight |
|---|---|
| 1. Safety of Navigation: Aeronautical Governance and Industry | 25% |
| 2. Customer Requirements: Aeronautical Source | 15% |
| 3. Production: Aeronautical GEOINT Production | 25% |
| 4. Quality Assurance: Aeronautical Quality | 13% |
| 5. Data Processing: Aeronautical Data | 10% |
| 6. Customer Operations: Aeronautical Customer Service and Data/Product Access | 12% |
Two domains, Safety of Navigation and Production, make up half of the exam. Together with Customer Requirements, the top three account for 65%. That is the simplest triage rule available: if you are short on time, protect those three. A fuller treatment of each competency is in GPC Exam Domains: Complete Guide to All 6 Content Areas.
Domain-by-Domain Review Notes
The public sources give the competency names and weights, but the underlying assessment content is controlled. The notes below therefore frame what each competency area is about at a conceptual level, based on its title. Treat them as orientation prompts and verify specifics against the EBK itself.
Domain 1: Safety of Navigation: Aeronautical Governance and Industry (25%)
The heaviest-weighted competency pairs safety of navigation with governance and industry context. Expect this area to reward understanding of why aeronautical information matters to safe flight and how governing bodies and industry practices shape what analysts produce.
- Be able to explain the link between aeronautical data accuracy and navigation safety.
- Know the roles of governing organizations and industry standards that influence aeronautical products.
- Review the EBK language for this competency line by line; its wording is the closest public proxy for exam scope.
Domain 2: Customer Requirements: Aeronautical Source (15%)
This area connects what customers need to the source material that can satisfy it.
- Practice translating a stated requirement into the types of aeronautical source data needed.
- Be ready to reason about source suitability, not just source names.
- Understand how requirements drive prioritization of collection and production.
Domain 3: Production: Aeronautical GEOINT Production (25%)
Tied with Safety of Navigation for the largest share, Production covers how aeronautical GEOINT products are built and maintained.
- Know the production workflow end to end, from source to finished product.
- Expect application-style questions, since a Level II analyst is expected to operate at full-performance level.
- Pair production steps with the quality checks that belong at each stage.
Domain 4: Quality Assurance: Aeronautical Quality (13%)
Quality assurance rewards precise vocabulary and process discipline.
- Distinguish between verifying that a product meets specification and validating that it meets the need.
- Know how errors are identified, documented and corrected.
- Connect quality practices back to the safety stakes in Domain 1.
Domain 5: Data Processing: Aeronautical Data (10%)
The smallest competency by weight, but it underpins everything above it.
- Understand how raw aeronautical data is ingested, transformed and prepared for production.
- Be comfortable with data handling concepts that feed directly into Production questions.
- Do not neglect it: at 10% of 110 questions, it is still a meaningful block of items.
Domain 6: Customer Operations: Aeronautical Customer Service and Data/Product Access (12%)
This competency covers how customers receive, access and get support for aeronautical data and products.
- Know the pathways by which data and products reach users.
- Be ready for service-oriented scenarios, such as responding to a customer issue with the right process.
- Link access and dissemination practices to the requirements covered in Domain 2.
Key Takeaway
The domains are not isolated. Requirements (Domain 2) drive Production (Domain 3), Quality Assurance (Domain 4) checks it, and Safety of Navigation (Domain 1) explains why the whole chain matters. Studying them as one connected workflow beats memorizing six separate lists.
Registration and Test-Day Rules
The logistics are strict because the content is controlled. Know these before you walk in:
- Advance registration is required. There is no walk-in testing.
- Valid government-issued photo identification is required.
- Proctors supply the assessment materials. You do not bring your own reference material.
- Personal electronics are prohibited in the testing area.
- Testing occurs at government facilities through authorized assessment sites and approved GPC proctors.
Scheduling specifics can shift with the program office's calendar, so check GPC Exam Dates: Testing Windows, Deadlines & Scheduling and confirm directly with your assessment site rather than relying on a posted date from memory.
Retakes, Renewal and PDUs
Retake rule
If you do not pass, you must wait 90 calendar days before retaking the same assessment. The waiting period applies after each exposure to the assessment, even if you did not complete it. In practical terms, walking out or running out of time still starts the clock, so do not treat a first sitting as a casual trial run.
Renewal cycle
AA-II does not run on its own independent three-year clock. It expires and renews with GPC-F. To keep all held GPC credentials active, you need:
- A total of 100 professional development units (PDUs) earned during the three-year GPC-F cycle.
- Good standing.
- The required Certification Management System renewal submission.
Plan PDU collection across the cycle instead of cramming in the final months. Whether the effort pays off for your career is covered in Is the GPC Certification Worth It?, and role-level context is in GPC Jobs.
Scheduling Your Review by Weight
If you are building a calendar, let the blueprint set the order. This sample plan front-loads the two 25% domains and keeps the connected workflow in view. Adjust the length to your own timeline and experience.
Safety of Navigation (25%)
- Read the EBK's Safety of Navigation competency statements closely.
- Write a one-paragraph explanation of how governance and industry shape aeronautical products.
Production (25%)
- Map the production workflow from source to finished product.
- Draft original practice questions on each stage and answer them cold.
Customer Requirements (15%) and Quality Assurance (13%)
- Trace one requirement through sourcing, production and quality review.
- List quality terms and define each in your own words.
Customer Operations (12%) and Data Processing (10%)
- Review access, dissemination and customer-service processes.
- Connect data processing steps back to Production.
Integration and timed practice
- Take full-length timed sets against a 150-minute limit.
- Re-study the domains where you miss the most, weighted by blueprint share.
For a sense of how demanding this load is relative to other exams, see How Hard Is the GPC Exam?. When you are ready to drill questions, the GPC practice tests on this site are built around the six AA-II competencies, and you can start with the main practice test site to check where your gaps are.
Sources, Limits and What Not to Trust
Good preparation starts with knowing which documents are authoritative. The primary public sources for this cheat sheet are:
- NGA, Essential Body of Knowledge, GEOINT Professional Certification, Aeronautical Analysis: Proficiency Level II (January 19, 2023, release NGA-U-2023-00519), which defines scope and the six competencies.
- NGA, GEOINT Professional Certification Program Handbook (March 11, 2025, release NGA-U-2025-01871), which covers eligibility (pages 7-8), AA-II question count and timing (page 11) and confirms the six-competency blueprint in Appendix J (printed page 42).
- The NGA program page that indexes current program, maintenance and document updates.
One version caveat is worth flagging. The Aeronautical Analysis Job Task Analysis Executive Summary (release NGA-U-2025-01690) describes broader workforce tasks, but it does not publish a replacement weighted examination blueprint. So the 2023 EBK competencies and the 2025 handbook confirmation remain the reference for weights.
Facts you will not find verified publicly
- A numeric AA-II passing score. Passing is set against a Governance Council-approved score. See GPC Passing Score for how to think about this without guessing.
- A pass rate. None was verified in the retrieved public sources, which is why GPC Pass Rate stays qualitative.
- Salary figures tied specifically to AA-II. Compensation depends on role, grade and employer; the GPC Salary Guide discusses it without inventing numbers.
Frequently Asked Questions
The AA-II assessment has 110 questions with a 150-minute time limit. It is paper-based and delivered in English, administered at government facilities by approved GPC proctors.
Safety of Navigation: Aeronautical Governance and Industry and Production: Aeronautical GEOINT Production each carry 25%, making them jointly the largest. Customer Requirements follows at 15%, then Quality Assurance at 13%, Customer Operations at 12% and Data Processing at 10%.
Yes. AA-II requires valid GPC-F certification, at least three total years of GEOINT aeronautical analytic experience, and full-performance Aeronautical Analysis tradecraft entry qualifications. Because AA-II renews with GPC-F, keeping GPC-F valid also keeps AA-II valid.
Passing is determined against a score approved by the Governance Council. No current numeric AA-II passing score was verified in the retrieved public sources, so any specific number you see elsewhere should be treated with caution.
You must wait 90 calendar days before retaking the same assessment. The wait applies after each exposure, even if you did not complete the assessment, so treat every sitting as a real attempt.
For a broader orientation to the credential and its career context, start with GPC Certification and GPC Training, then return here as your quick-reference page in the final days before your assessment.