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A continuing problem in naval aviation is how to identify, prior to training, those individuals having the greatest likelihood to succeed in flight training. Since World War II the US Navy has been concerned with the development of selection tests to improve its capability to screen individuals desiring entry into flight training. Improved aviation personnel selection tests could reduce attrition, and consequently, the monetary losses associated with this attrition. Additionally, the Navy would expose fewer flight students to a potentially hazardous training situation. A research methodological problem associated with the development of candidate tests for predictive validation is: How do we design a test that measures abilities relevant for inclusion in validation studies? A methodology, Random Sampling of Domain Variances, was developed as a product of the Augmentation of Human Factors Engineering Technology Efforts Program. This methodology provided the basis for developing a complex visual information task designed to require many basic cognitive processing demands thought to be required in performing aviation display tasks. This complex visual display task should be further evaluated in a cross- validation study and then considered for implementation as a performance-based selection test. The method of Random Sampling of Domain Variances should be considered as a methodological tool in the design of future tests to be selected for validation studies. (sdw)