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A great question's been asked: Is there any U.S. / FAA regulation that could apply for aviation software?

This is interesting to me as a programmer and aviation enthusiast, but being based in the UK, I'd like to know if there any EASA regulations surrounding the creation of software for use in the aviation industry?

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  • $\begingroup$ I think you should specify which branch of aviation you mean. For example I work in company which develop software for airline. Single airline has many departments and each of it works on different regulations (operations, ground handling, scheduling, continuing airworthiness etc). You may also mean A/C installed equipment software. There is no simple answer on whether there are regulations for aviations software or not. It depends on aviation branch. $\endgroup$
    – Arkadiusz Iwanowski
    Commented Nov 13, 2014 at 11:27

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If we speak about airborne software, the main document is the RTCA/EUROCAE DO-178/ED-12 currently at the "C" version: Software Considerations in Airborne Systems and Equipment Certification: if you want to certify (and thus commercialize) your software for flight, this is the main document to read.

Depending on the scope of the software and the design/development process there might be different supplements (see here):

  • DO-330 Software Tool Qualification Considerations
  • DO-331 Model-Based Development and Verification Supplement to DO-178C and DO-278
  • DO-332 Object-Oriented Technology and Related Techniques Supplement to DO-178C and DO-278A
  • DO-333 Formal Methods Supplement to DO-178C and DO-278A

It has been prepared by the RTCA/EUROCAE joint committee and approved by both FAA and EASA under different names, but the content is the same.

As @Greg mentions, these documents are not freely available

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  • $\begingroup$ The DO and ED documents you refer to are RTCA resp. EUROCAE documents, not FAA/EASA. Also they are standards, not regulations. $\endgroup$
    – DeltaLima ♦
    Commented Apr 17, 2014 at 11:35
  • $\begingroup$ @DeltaLima I say that are the "main document to read". Also they are not coding standards. $\endgroup$
    – Federico
    Commented Apr 17, 2014 at 11:43
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Two relevant standards from EUROCAE (European Organisation for Civil Aviation Equipment) are:

  • ED-109A / Guidelines for CNS/ATM Systems Software Integrity Assurance
  • ED-153 / Guidelines for ANS Software Safety Assurance

Unfortunately these documents are not freely available. However, you can find some information about the contents of these documents from other sites, such as LDRA.

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    $\begingroup$ These are standards, not regulations. $\endgroup$
    – DeltaLima ♦
    Commented Apr 17, 2014 at 11:33
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EASA has published a memorandum with guidance on how to comply with the certification requirements. It is based on EUROCAE ED-12B/RTCA DO-178B, but is more specific.

It is called EASA CM - SWCEH – 002 and you can find it here.

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If you asked about the regulation my answer would be FAR25 25.1301 and 25.1309 for large aircraft software. DO-178C is recommended as a means of compliance by AC20-115D. Software review and approval guidline can refere to FAA Order8110.49 A and EASA CM-CEHSW-002.

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