APT is pleased to announce that Leslie Alford, APT’s senior airworthiness engineer, has agreed to co-teach the Development and Certification of Complex Software Intensive Avionics Systems with Adkins Global, LTD of the United Kingdom (UK) and the UK Civil Aviation Agency (CAA).
This 40-hour course will be taught several times a year in the UK and other locations, as requested. The course is designed as part of the University of the West of England’s Master of Science in Aerospace and once accredited, will be the foundational training for the UK Ministry of Defence’s engineering team. On completion of this module, students will be able to:
- Understand the fundamentals of developing avionics systems and the associated certification and approval criteria including compliance against certification standards including ARP 4754/4754A and 4761, RTCA’s DO-178B/C, DO-254, and DO-200B.
- Apply tools, techniques, and processes that are pertinent to the development and certification of avionics systems.
- Understand the assessment requirements for determining the criticality of avionics systems and to develop appropriate processes in accordance with the criticality of the avionics system and “system of systems.”
- To address System, Software and Complex Hardware architecture considerations appropriate to the criticality of the avionics system and “system of systems”.
- Understand the lifecycle criteria and development processes pertinent to the development of avionics, Systems, Software and Complex Hardware from requirements definition, design, implementation, and validation to subsequent certification.
- Apply civil process in a military context / environment.
Leslie is the RTCA/DO-178C Executive Secretary in the Forum for Avionics Software (FAS) committee and has been a contributing leader of this since 1985. Contributions have included the SAE E-36 committee CFR 33 update for data loading of engine controls. Leslie has been acclaimed by the Federal Aviation Agency (FAA) with creating the Software Designated Engineering Representative (DER) authorization criteria and performing that role since 1987. As a Software Civil and Military Technical Fellow with Boeing, she contributed to software engineering standards, policies, and training material; developed the official position on evolving software certification regulatory guidance; and was active in developing & documenting alternative certification approaches and the associated rationale and judgment. She has been responsible for working with foreign certification agencies to resolve guidance interpretation issues affecting the certification approval of the Boeing 777. Leslie has held certification credentials with the FAA, Canada, and the JAA (now EASA) prior to retirement and her move to APT.