scope:

This document discusses those aspects of airworthiness certification that pertain to the production of software for airborne systems and equipment used on aircraft or engines. In discussing those aspects, the system life cycle and its relationship with the software life cycle is described to aid in the understanding of the certification process. A complete description of the system life cycle processes, including the system safety assessment and validation processes, or aircraft and engine certification process is not intended.

Since certification issues are discussed only in relation to the software life cycle, the operational aspects of the resulting software are not discussed. For example, the certification aspects of user-modifiable data are beyond the scope of this document.

This document does not provide guidelines concerning the structure of the applicant's organization, the relationships between the applicant and its suppliers, or how the responsibilities are divided. Personnel qualification criteria are also beyond the scope of this document.

PURPOSE

The purpose of this document is to provide guidelines for the production of software for airborne systems and equipment that performs its intended function with a level of confidence in safety that complies with airworthiness requirements. These guidelines are in the form of:

- Objectives for software life cycle processes.

- Descriptions of activities and design considerations for achieving those objectives.

- Descriptions of the evidence that indicate that the objectives have been satisfied.