- CAET has no fixed quarterly "testing windows" - it's scheduled on demand through GMetrix or an approved physical proctor.
- Your real deadline clock starts at purchase: you get 90 days to complete testing, not 90 days per attempt.
- Each purchase includes up to three attempts, with a 24-hour wait before attempt two and a two-week wait before attempt three.
- Virtual proctoring costs $119; an approved physical proctor costs $109 - plan your schedule around whichever is available first.
How CAET Scheduling Actually Works
If you're searching for "CAET exam dates 2026" expecting a published calendar of quarterly testing windows, it's worth resetting expectations early. The Aircraft Electronics Association's Level 1 Certified Aircraft Electronics Technician exam isn't administered on fixed national test dates the way some large-scale certification programs are. Instead, the exam is delivered on demand through the Unmanned Safety Institute (USI), with AEA identifying GMetrix as the primary virtual proctoring provider and also permitting approved physical proctors at partner locations.
In practice, this means you choose your own testing date within the constraints of your purchase window, rather than waiting for a specific quarterly opening. That flexibility is genuinely useful for working technicians juggling shift schedules, but it also shifts the scheduling burden onto you: there's no external deadline reminding you to register by a certain date. The deadlines that matter are the ones tied to your own purchase and attempt history, which we cover below.
Registration, Fees & What You're Paying For
Before you can pick a date, you need to register and pay. CAET has no formal prerequisites, so anyone can purchase an attempt without needing sponsorship, coursework, or documented experience - a detail covered more fully in our CAET Requirements guide. Pricing depends on how you're proctored:
- $119 for virtual proctoring through GMetrix, taken remotely from a compliant setup.
- $109 for an approved physical proctor, typically at a testing site or training facility.
That fee isn't a single-shot purchase - it includes up to three attempts at the 100-question, 90-minute exam, with a 70% passing score required. For a full breakdown of how this pricing compares to other certification costs in the industry, see our CAET Certification Cost breakdown.
| Proctoring Type | Fee | Setup |
|---|---|---|
| Virtual (GMetrix) | $119 | Remote, webcam/mic/room scan required |
| Physical (approved proctor) | $109 | In-person at a testing location |
The 90-Day Window and Retake Deadlines
This is where "scheduling" becomes a real deadline problem rather than an abstract one. Once you purchase your exam, you must complete all testing activity within 90 days. That's your hard outer boundary, and it applies regardless of how many attempts you actually use.
Within that 90-day window, the retake structure looks like this:
- First attempt: scheduled whenever you're ready, ideally after working through the eight official topic areas.
- Second attempt: available after a mandatory 24-hour wait if the first attempt doesn't meet the 70% passing score.
- Third attempt: available after a mandatory two-week wait following attempt two.
Do the arithmetic on that and it becomes obvious why waiting until week 11 of your 90 days to take your first attempt is risky: a failed first try followed by a two-week wait before your third attempt can burn through your entire window if you're not careful. Anyone unsure whether they're ready for the exam's format and difficulty should read How Hard Is the CAET Exam? before locking in a date, and check current outcomes data in our CAET Pass Rate breakdown to calibrate expectations realistically.
Key Takeaway
Schedule your first attempt with at least six to eight weeks of buffer remaining in your 90-day window. That leaves enough room for both the 24-hour and two-week retake waits if needed.
Remote Testing Requirements for Exam Day
If you're booking a virtual proctoring slot through GMetrix, your "exam date" is really a reservation for a specific device and environment check, not just a time on a calendar. Missing these requirements can cost you the slot entirely, so confirm them before you schedule:
- A valid government-issued photo ID for identity verification.
- A functioning webcam and microphone for proctoring.
- A room scan showing your testing space is clear of unauthorized materials.
- Compatible proctoring software installed and tested in advance.
- A laptop or desktop computer - Chromebooks and tablets are not supported.
- A non-phone calculator, which is permitted during the exam.
Technicians who typically use a tablet for maintenance documentation should double-check their available hardware well before exam day, since discovering a device incompatibility at your scheduled time can force a costly reschedule.
Virtual vs. Physical Proctoring: Which to Book
Since scheduling flexibility is the whole point of an on-demand exam, your choice between GMetrix virtual proctoring and an approved physical proctor should be driven by whichever gets you a reliable slot fastest, not just by the $10 fee difference.
- Choose virtual proctoring if you have a stable internet connection, a private room, and a compatible laptop or desktop - you can often schedule sooner since you're not dependent on a physical location's calendar.
- Choose a physical proctor if you're near an AEA-affiliated training center or maintenance shop that offers proctoring, especially if your home or work internet setup can't reliably support a webcam-based room scan for the full 90 minutes.
Either path leads to the same exam content and passing threshold, so this decision is purely logistical - pick whichever removes friction from your actual test date.
Building Your Own 2026 Testing Timeline
Because there's no external testing calendar dictating when you sit for CAET, the most useful "exam date" planning you can do is mapping your own study progress against the eight official domains before you ever purchase an attempt. Our CAET Exam Domains Guide breaks each of these down in depth, but here's how a realistic pre-purchase timeline might look heading into a scheduled test date.
Foundational Systems
- Domain 1: Maintenance Procedures & Regulatory Requirements
- Domain 2: Basic Electrical Theory & Systems
Avionics Core
- Domain 3: CNS - Communication, Navigation & Surveillance Systems
- Domain 4: Flight Instrument & Pitot-Static Systems
Data & Installation
- Domain 5: Digital Databus Systems
- Domain 6: Aircraft Wiring, Hardware & Installation
Shop Practices & Review
- Domain 7: Tools, Test Equipment & Measurement Techniques
- Domain 8: Safety, Housekeeping & Best Practices
- Purchase your exam and schedule your first attempt date with buffer remaining
This spacing matters because the domains build on each other unevenly - wiring and databus knowledge (Domains 5 and 6) tends to take longer to internalize than the regulatory and housekeeping material in Domains 1 and 8. Scheduling your test date only after working through a full pass of all eight areas, rather than rushing to book a slot early, protects your attempt count within the 90-day purchase window. For a deeper look at study sequencing and resource selection, see the CAET Study Guide.
Why Domain Order Affects Your Scheduling Decision
Candidates who schedule their first attempt before comfortably handling wiring diagrams and digital databus questions often end up using their retake waits - the 24-hour and two-week delays - simply to catch up on material they should have covered before booking. Front-load the technical domains and leave regulatory/safety review for the final week before your test date.
- Domains 5 and 6 typically require the most hands-on familiarity
- Domains 1 and 8 are strong candidates for last-week review
Renewal Timing and the Three-Year Cycle
Your relationship with "exam dates" doesn't end once you pass. CAET certification renews every three years, and that renewal has its own timing considerations worth building into your calendar now, not two months before expiration.
To maintain certification, you need 18 Continuing Education Hours (CEHs) accumulated during the three-year cycle. Alternatively, earning an approved higher CAET credential or passing the online recertification exam also satisfies that cycle's requirement. Because CEHs need to be accumulated over time rather than crammed at the last minute, it's worth tracking your renewal date the same way you tracked your original 90-day testing window - mark it early, and don't let it sneak up on you.
If you're still deciding whether the credential is worth pursuing in the first place, our ROI analysis and CAET Salary Guide lay out the practical case in more detail than scheduling logistics alone can.
Practicing Before You Book Your Date
Whichever date you eventually schedule, the exam itself is unforgiving of guesswork: 100 multiple-choice questions in 90 minutes leaves roughly 54 seconds per question on average, so familiarity with the question style matters as much as raw content knowledge. Running full-length timed simulations on our CAET practice test platform before you commit to a real testing date is the single best way to know whether you're ready to book. If your simulated scores are hovering near the 70% passing score covered in our Passing Score guide, give yourself another week or two rather than scheduling immediately.
For a fast pre-exam refresher once your date is set, the CAET Cheat Sheet condenses the eight domains into a single review page - useful in the final 48 hours before your scheduled attempt. And if you want a broader library of practice questions modeled on the real exam's format, the full practice test suite is built specifically around these eight domains rather than generic aviation trivia.
FAQ
No. CAET is delivered on demand through GMetrix virtual proctoring or an approved physical proctor rather than on a fixed calendar of testing dates, so you schedule your own appointment whenever you're ready.
You have 90 days from purchase to complete all testing activity, including any retakes, so plan your first attempt date with enough buffer to accommodate the mandatory waiting periods if needed.
There's a mandatory 24-hour wait before your second attempt and a two-week wait before your third attempt, all within the same 90-day purchase window.
No. GMetrix's remote proctoring setup requires a laptop or desktop computer with a webcam, microphone, and room scan; Chromebooks and tablets are unsupported.
Yes, CAET certification renews every three years. You'll need 18 Continuing Education Hours, an approved higher CAET credential, or a passed online recertification exam to maintain it, so it's worth tracking that renewal date well in advance.