RF Susceptibility – RTCA DO-160

What Is RF Susceptibility — RTCA DO-160?

This test is conducted to evaluate the immunity of the equipment to radiated and transmitted radio frequency fields within the scope of Chapter 20 (“Radio Frequency Susceptibility (Radiated and Conducted)”) of the RTCA DO-160 “Environmental Conditions and Test Procedures for Airborne Equipment” standard. DO-160 is the exact same text as EUROCAE ED-14 and is recognized by ISO as ISO 7137.

Purpose of RF Susceptibility — RTCA DO-160

The purpose is to certify that aviation equipment meets the requirements for assessing the equipment's immunity to radiated and conducted radio frequency fields in flight and ground conditions and to complete equipment qualification.

Which Products Is RF Susceptibility — RTCA DO-160 Applied To?

Avionics units and displays
In-flight electronic equipment
Communication and navigation devices
Cabin and cargo compartment equipment
Sensors and actuators

In Which Sectors Is RF Susceptibility — RTCA DO-160 Used?

AerospaceSpaceDefenceElectronics

Standards Related to RF Susceptibility — RTCA DO-160

RTCA DO-160Environmental conditions and test methods in aviation equipment test

RF Susceptibility — RTCA DO-160 Conditions

Kategoriler: R, S, T, W, Y... depending on aircraft region and exposure
radiant: Field strength defined by antenna in anechoic room
transmitted: Current injection into the cable bundle with BCI (bulk cable injection)
Modulation: CW and pulse modulation; defined in the standard

Equipment for RF Susceptibility — RTCA DO-160

Anechoic chamber and antennas
RF power amplifiers
BCI injection and monitoring probes
Field probe
Function monitoring

Sample Requirements for RF Susceptibility — RTCA DO-160

Category must be defined
The cable bundle layout must be documented
The function-monitoring method must be defined

Duration of RF Susceptibility — RTCA DO-160

Depends on frequency range and category; typically one to three business days.

RF Susceptibility — RTCA DO-160 Procedure

1Categories and levels are determined.
2Field homogeneity or probe calibration is performed.
3Radiative immunity screening is conducted.
4Conducted immunity (BCI) is administered.
5Function is monitored continuously.

RF Susceptibility — RTCA DO-160 Acceptance Criteria

The acceptance criterion is that no functional impairment occurs; No degradation of safety-related functions is permitted.

Evaluation of Results

Radiative and conducted methods test different coupling mechanisms; One does not replace the other.

RF Susceptibility — RTCA DO-160 Report

Applicable standard, revision and Part 20
Selected equipment category and justification
Applied conditions and measurement results
Function monitoring method and observations
Environmental Qualification Form (DO-160 Environmental Qualification Form) entry

Accreditation

EUROLAB holds internationally recognised accreditation obtained from accreditation bodies party to the IAF and ILAC multilateral recognition arrangements, under ISO/IEC 17025 for laboratory testing, ISO/IEC 17020 for inspection and surveillance, and ISO/IEC 17021-1 and ISO/IEC 17065 for system and product certification. This chain ensures the reports and certificates issued are accepted worldwide.

Whether this test can be offered within accredited scope depends on your product and the standard applied; since accreditation is method-based, the scope is confirmed in writing at the quotation stage.

Scope and authorisations

Related Regulations

Aviation equipment qualification requirements
EASA/FAA certification principles

Aerospace Testing — What Does This Testing Field Cover?

The section below describes the field that the RF Susceptibility test belongs to; the conditions and acceptance criteria of this particular test are given in the sections above. The scope specific to your product is confirmed in writing at the quotation stage.

Aerospace testing shows that equipment keeps working in the flight environment and provides evidence for the airworthiness file. In this family the acceptable probability of failure is several orders of magnitude lower than in other sectors; this directly determines the scope of testing and the certification burden.

The most distinctive feature of the field is TRACEABILITY. Which melt an aircraft part came from, in which heat treatment furnace and with which cycle it was processed, which operator made the weld and which inspector approved it are all recorded. The test report is one link in this chain; if the chain is broken, the report carries no value on its own.

Environmental qualification runs through RTCA DO-160, with categories selected according to the equipment's MOUNTING LOCATION in the aircraft. A device mounted on the cockpit panel and one mounted inside the wing pass the same section under different categories. When reading a DO-160 report it is therefore essential to know which sections were applied at which categories.

On the software and complex hardware side the approach changes entirely: the evidence is not testing but PROCESS ASSURANCE. DO-178C for software and DO-254 for complex electronic hardware define how the development process is to be run and which evidence is to be produced. Every step, from requirement to code, from testing of the code to coverage analysis, must be traceable. Testing software does not make it certifiable; the process record does.

A separate body of work applies on the material and special process side. AWS D17.1 is used for welding, SAE AMS 2750 for pyrometry in heat treatment and NAS 410 for non-destructive testing personnel. For special processes (heat treatment, coating, welding, NDT, bonding) NADCAP accreditation is effectively mandatory in the supply chain; without NADCAP it is not possible to sell parts to many OEMs.

On the quality system side the AS/EN 9100 series is used: 9100 for manufacturers, 9110 for maintenance organisations and 9120 for distributors. Without these certificates it is practically impossible to enter the aerospace supply chain, and audits are markedly more detailed than in other sectors.

Counterfeit part risk is a subject peculiar to the field. Separate standards and verification methods (visual inspection, X-ray, decapsulation and internal structure examination, XRF) are used to detect counterfeit or reworked parts in the electronic component supply chain.

Space applications add further layers: outgassing in vacuum, radiation tolerance, long-duration thermal vacuum cycling and assessment of single event effects.

Method groups in this field

Environmental qualification
RTCA DO-160 sections: temperature and altitude, vibration, shock, humidity, sand and dust, fungus, salt fog, fluid susceptibility, icing, lightning.
Electromagnetic
The EMC sections of DO-160; MIL-STD-461 and MIL-STD-704 power characteristics on military platforms.
Software and hardware assurance
DO-178C software life cycle and DO-254 hardware design assurance evidence; requirement traceability and coverage analysis.
Materials and welding
Welding qualification under AWS D17.1, mechanical testing of materials, metallography and non-destructive examination.
Special process control
SAE AMS 2750 pyrometry, coating and heat treatment process verification, preparation for NADCAP audits.
Space environment
Thermal vacuum cycling, outgassing, radiation tolerance and acoustic/vibration qualification.

Commonly confused in this field

There is no such document as a "DO-160 certificate"; DO-160 is a test specification and its output is a qualification report.
The selection of sections and categories comes from the customer's equipment specification; the laboratory cannot make that selection on its own.
DO-178C and DO-254 cannot be satisfied by testing; the evidence is the traceability of the development process.
An AS9100 certificate is not a product approval; it is a quality system certificate and part approval runs separately.
For special processes, work carried out without NADCAP is not accepted in the supply chain even when it is technically correct.
MIL-STD-810 and DO-160 are often confused: one is a military and the other a civil aviation specification, and their profiles differ.

Which decisions these results support

Airworthiness and TSO/ETSO files
Entry into the aerospace supply chain and supplier approval
Special process approval and NADCAP preparation
Determining the impact of a design change on qualification
Managing counterfeit part risk and component verification

Related Tests

Frequently Asked Questions About RF Susceptibility — RTCA DO-160

How is the equipment category determined?

The category is selected based on the equipment's mounting location on the aircraft (pressurized/non-pressurized, heated/unheated area) and aircraft type. Category selection directly determines the test conditions and is declared in the qualification form.

Is there any difference between DO-160 and ED-14?

No. RTCA DO-160 and EUROCAE ED-14 are exactly the same text; the two are considered equivalent.