Topics / Standards and assurance
ARP4754A, ARP4754B and the software evidence underneath.
Keep the aircraft and system development basis distinct from software verification. Trace the allocated promise into the software evidence that supports it.
Confirm the applicable edition and level.
SAE lists ARP4754B, revised in December 2023, with ARP4754A as a historical revision. Its scope addresses aircraft and system development, including requirements validation and design verification. It points to DO-178C for detailed software development guidance.
Source: SAE: ARP4754B. Scope and edition reviewed 3 October 2026.
A project already using an earlier basis needs an applicability decision through its certification and contractual process. Updating a web reference does not change that agreement.
Keep the system promise visible in a software change.
Illustrative example
A stale input reaches a control decision.
A software edit changes a freshness check. The review needs the system-level expectation for stale data, the allocated software behavior and the relevant verification. A passing unit test of the new comparison does not establish that the system-level response remains acceptable.
- Retain the originating system requirement and allocation.
- Identify the software delta and affected dependencies.
- Attach current evidence for the allocated behavior.
- Keep system-level assumptions and unanswered questions explicit.
Where Proof can contribute.
Proof connects requirement layers to code, hazards and evidence. That can reduce the work of reconstructing a software change’s contribution to a larger argument. It does not replace aircraft safety assessment, a certification plan or the responsible authority.
A useful pilot selects one allocated requirement and asks the assurance reviewer whether the connected record improves the review. This is an evidence-management trial, not an ARP4754 conformity claim.
Try it on your software
Connect one system promise to a software change.
Bring the applicable project basis and the evidence your reviewer currently reconstructs.