ETSO authorization
DO-160G qualification report support for an ETSO authorization
This review examines the DO-160G environmental qualification report supporting an EASA European Technical Standard Order authorization. The report records how the article was tested against environmental conditions, and its category codes declare the range of exposure it was qualified to. A certification specialist checks that the declared categories, the test limits actually applied, and the installation assumptions the article will be used under all agree with each other and with the invoked ETSO. It runs after qualification testing, before the report is filed into the package. You receive a gap assessment, an evidence map from category to test data, and a closure plan for mismatched or missing conditions.
When this review is needed
- Qualification testing is complete and the supplier wants the report checked before it enters the package.
- The declared category codes need confirming against the environment the article will actually see installed.
- Test limits recorded in the lab data must be reconciled with the categories the report claims.
- The article is being requalified after a design change and only affected conditions were retested.
The problem
The DO-160G report has to say three things consistently: which environmental categories the article claims, what the test actually subjected it to, and what installation environment those categories cover. Those three drift apart easily. A category is declared for a wider range than the test applied, a test section is skipped because it was assumed not applicable, or the installation the report assumes is narrower than where the article will be fielded. The category code string reads clean, but the data behind a letter does not always match it.
What gets reviewed
- The declared DO-160G category codes against the sections the article was tested to
- Test limits and levels recorded in the lab data against the categories claimed
- Environmental sections marked not applicable and the justification for each
- Installation assumptions in the report against the intended field environment
- Requalification coverage where a design change triggered retest of affected sections
- Consistency between the qualification report and the compliance matrix entries
Scope this review
Tell us the asset, the event, and the evidence in scope, and we will outline a focused first engagement.
Identify what is missing against the means of compliance.
What gets validated
- Each declared category code is backed by test data at the levels that category defines
- Sections marked not applicable carry a justification the article's function supports
- The installation environment assumed in the report bounds the intended use
- Requalification after a change retested every section the change could affect
- The category string in the report matches what the compliance matrix cites
Evidence normally required
- The DO-160G qualification report and its category code declaration
- The lab test data and setup records behind each environmental section
- The article's intended installation and environmental usage definition
- The invoked ETSO and the environmental conditions it requires
- The change description if the report covers a requalification
Common discrepancies
- A category declared for a wider range than the recorded test applied
- Sections marked not applicable without justification the function supports
- Installation assumptions narrower than the article's intended field use
- A requalification that retested some but not all affected sections
What is at stake
A category claimed beyond what the test supports is a finding that pulls the whole environmental section back into question. If the installation environment exceeds what was qualified, the article is not covered where it is used, and correcting that can mean retesting to a higher category, which needs lab time and samples the program has to find late.
How the work runs
Read the category string
List every declared DO-160G category and the section of the standard it comes from.
Match the test data
Confirm the lab data supports each category at the levels that category defines.
Check the assumptions
Compare the report's installation and applicability assumptions against the intended field environment.
Close the mismatches
Deliver a gap assessment and a closure plan for categories or sections that need retest or restatement.
What the buyer receives
- A gap assessment of categories or sections not supported by the test data
- An evidence map from each declared category to the lab data behind it
- A closure plan for the sections needing retest or a corrected declaration
Who uses the output
- Compliance managers filing the environmental section of the package
- Certification leads confirming the article is qualified for its use
- Engineers scoping any retest the review identifies
How the work fits into the transaction or program
Environmental qualification is one of the load-bearing sections of an ETSO package, and its category codes travel with the article into every installation. Reconciling the declared categories with the test data and the intended environment before filing means the article is covered where it is fielded, rather than carrying a category string that a careful reader can pull apart.
Start with a single asset
Reduce finding cycles by checking the package first.
Aircraft-specific considerations
DO-160G categories map to the physical location and severity an article sees on the aircraft, so a unit qualified for a benign avionics-bay environment is not covered in an exposed or vibration-heavy zone. The review scopes the installation assumptions to the zones the article is intended for, because a category adequate in one location understates the exposure in another.
Jurisdiction-specific considerations
EASA accepts DO-160G as an environmental means of compliance for an ETSO, but reads the declared categories against the conditions the invoked ETSO requires. The review checks that the report's categories meet those required conditions, not merely that testing was performed, because a passed test to the wrong category does not satisfy the requirement.
Regulatory limits
The review evaluates the supplier's qualification report. It does not perform environmental testing, accept the report on EASA's behalf, or determine that the article is qualified in the authority's judgment. The authority retains acceptance of the qualification evidence.
What this review does not cover
- Performing or witnessing the environmental testing
- Accepting the qualification report on the authority's behalf
- Defining the article's installation environment
Specific to this review
- A DO-160G category code string can read complete while a single letter overstates what the test data supports, so each category is verified against its own section data.
- Sections marked not applicable are a frequent weak point, because the justification is often assumed rather than tied to the article's function.
- A requalification driven by a design change only covers the sections retested, so an untested section that the change could affect leaves a hole under an otherwise current report.
Sources
European Union / EASA. EASA design and production certification, STCs, ETSO authorizations, and EASA Form 1 release.
RTCA. Environmental qualification test categories and procedures referenced by TSO and equipment qualification.
RTCA. Objectives and lifecycle data for airborne software assurance, by design assurance level (DAL A-E).
U.S. Government (eCFR). Type certificates, STCs (Subpart E), TSO authorizations (Subpart O), PMA (Subpart K), and export airworthiness approvals (Subpart L).
Frequently asked questions
Can you review a report where some sections are marked not applicable?
Yes. Sections marked not applicable are a common source of findings. The review confirms each not-applicable call is justified by the article's function and installation, rather than assumed, so the omission holds up when the authority reads it.
Relevant glossary terms
Related pages
Where this fits
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