RTCA News

• A Message from the President
• RTCA Lauches DO-178C Training Course
• RTCA 2012 Annual Symposium to Examine Industry Challenges
• Be Sure to Update your Addressbook!

Message from the President

The many volunteers who make up the public private partnership that is RTCA certainly have hit the ground running in 2012.  But before looking ahead, we should recognize the development of six new and five revised documents that were approved for publication by the Program Management Committee (PMC) in December.  These documents cover topics ranging from Software Considerations, to ADS-B applications.  The listing and description of available RTCA documents can be found here. Also in December, we said good-bye to our friend, Gilbert Amato, and welcomed a new friend, Abdoulaye N’Diaye, as the new Secretary General of EUROCAE.  Our partnership in the effort to implement harmonized standards continues to be an important priority as we move into 2012. Not even half way through January, we have launched a new Special Committee (SC-226) on aircraft audio systems and equipment, ably co-chaired by Don Hamilton, Alto Technologies and Allan Prince, Cobham Aerospace Communications, with Gregory Frye serving as the DFO.   SC-220, Automatic Flight Guidance and Control Systems will hold their final meeting as will SC-219, Attitude and Heading Reference Systems, both committees positioned to deliver final products to the March 2012 meeting of the PMC. We will be participating in the ICAO Technical Team meeting in France later this month, and the Future Aviation Challenge Team (FACT) meeting in March, supporting the efforts to finalize the details of the Aviation System Block Upgrades in preparation for the November 2012 12th Air Navigation Conference in Montreal.

Chris Hegarty, Chair, Program Management Committee leads the December meeting.   Jim Krodel, Co-Chair of SC-205 briefs the PMC on seven publications they developed.

Also this month, the hundreds of volunteers working on numerous sub-groups of the NextGen Advisory Committee (NAC) are putting in long hours to finalize a set of recommendations for the FAA that will be aired at the NAC’s February 3^rd public meeting (click here for the agenda) at the Florida NextGen Test Bed facility located at Embry Riddle Aeronautical University in Daytona Beach, Florida.  Recommendations will be delivered in the areas of NextGen performance metrics, Metroplex capabilities and priorities and a DataComm roadmap. 

February promises to be just as busy, starting with the NAC meeting, and continuing with meetings of SC-203, Unmanned Aircraft Systems, SC-213, Enhanced Flight Vision Systems/Synthetic Vision Systems, SC-224, Airport Security Access Control Systems, SC-216, Aeronautical Systems Security, SC-206, Aeronautical Information Services Data Link, and SC-225, Small and Medium Sized Rechargeable Lithium Batteries and Battery Systems.

Looking to March, in addition to the numerous Committee activities, RTCA has teamed with The MITRE Aviation Institute and will be holding our first training on the new standards and recommended practices contained in DO-178C, Software Considerations in Airborne Systems and Equipment Certification.Click here for more information on this exciting new offering.

I encourage you to get involved in the many activities ongoing at RTCA.  Together we can have a lasting and positive impact on the shape of the future air transportation system!

RTCA LAUNCHES DO-178C TRAINING COURSE

RTCA, Inc has teamed with The MITRE Aviation Institute to offer “Software Considerations in Airborne Systems and Equipment Certification: RTCA DO-178C Training.” This three-day training course will provide students with an in-depth understanding the requirements and parameters for avionics software development necessary to obtain FAA certification.

This partnership of two public interest organizations combines a world class aviation education resource with the nation’s premier aviation standards body to offer a high quality, comprehensive course. Applying their extensive experience and expertise in software development, project management, safety management systems and quality control programs, instructors John Charles Angermayer (DER) and Kent Hollinger will cover the new standards and recommended practices contained in DO-178C, Software Considerations in Airborne Systems and Equipment Certification. They will also provide a comprehensive overview of Software Tool Qualification Considerations, Formal Methods Supplement To DO-178C, Model-Based Development and Verification Supplement To DO-178C, Object Oriented Technology and Related Techniques Supplement To DO-178C.

“We are very excited to be partnering with The MITRE Aviation Institute to offer training,” explained Margaret Jenny, RTCA President. “As a non-profit organization, RTCA is eager to assist the aviation community in implementing the new standards developed over a six-year period by RTCA Special Committee 205.”

The inaugural course is scheduled for March 20-22, 2012, at RTCA Headquarters in Washington DC. It will also be offered at the RTCA facilities in 2012 on June 26-28, September 18-20, and December 4-6.

For complete details and registration information on the RTCA Training program visit the training course page.

RTCA 2012 Annual Symposium to Examine Industry Challenges

RTCA is pleased to announce that the RTCA 2012 Annual Symposium will be held on June 5 and 6, 2012, at the Washington DC Convention Center. The theme for the annual event is "Working Together to Set Priorities for NextGen Implementation".

"With the constraints being imposed on the Federal Aviation Administration as it goes through the process of implementing NextGen, we are very excited about next year's Annual Symposium and the role it can play in examining these tough questions about prioritizing investments" explained Margaret Jenny, RTCA President.

Watch for exciting announcements about speakers, sessions and opportunities to be involved in this important event.

Be Sure to Update your Address Book!