Leanna Rierson is an independent consultant in software, complex electronic hardware, and integrated module avionics (IMA) development for safety-critical systems, with emphasis on civil aviation. She has more than 20 years of experience in the software and aviation industry. Rierson spent nine years as a software and avionics specialist at the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA)-five of those in the position of chief scientific and technical advisor for aircraft computer software. Rierson has published numerous papers, led many national and international engineering teams and workshops, and developed courses, policies, handbooks, and guidance material for the FAA. She served as a subgroup cochair and editorial team leader on the RTCA special committee that wrote DO-178C and six other related documents. Rierson has taught DO-178B, and now DO-178C, to hundreds of professionals. She is an FAA Designated Engineering Representative (DER) with Level A authority in the software and complex hardware technical areas. She has worked with numerous aircraft and avionics companies, including Boeing, Cessna, Learjet, Embraer, Rockwell Collins, GE Aviation, Honeywell, and numerous others. She is currently working part-time for the Rockwell Collins avionics certification team.

Introduction: Introduction and Overview. Context of Safety-Critical Software Development: Software in the Context of the System. Software in the Context of the System Safety Assessment. Developing Safety-Critical Software Using DO-178C: Overview of DO-178C and Supporting Documents. Software Planning. Software Requirements. Software Design. Software Implementation: Coding and Integration. Software Verification. Software Configuration Management. Software Quality Assurance. Certification Liaison. Tool Qualification and DO-178C Supplements: DO-330 and Software Tool Qualification. DO-331 and Model-Based Development and Verification. DO-332 and Object-Oriented Technology and Related Techniques. DO-333 and Formal Methods. Special Topics: Noncovered Code (Dead, Extraneous, and Deactivated Code). Field-Loadable Software. User-Modifiable Software. Real-Time Operating Systems. Software Partitioning. Configuration Data. Aeronautical Data. Software Reuse. Reverse Engineering. Outsourcing and Offshoring Software Life Cycle Activities. Appendices. Index.