**SAMPLE SAFETY CHECKLIST**

1.  **Introduction** - The safety checklist is designed to help the FAA
    evaluate those hazards that are unique to unmanned aircraft in
    support of issuing an experimental airworthiness certificate. Some
    safety items only require brief responses and others may not be
    applicable to a specific program. Additional questions and
    supporting documentation will be required during the evaluation
    process. The safety checklist replaces any previous requirement for
    a hazard analysis and the FAA intends to update the safety checklist
    as we gain more experience.

2.  **Aircraft Segment**

    a.  **Airframe**

        1.  Structure - Describe in detail the physical characteristics
            of the UA. Include diagrams and schematics, as necessary.

        2.  Composition - Describe the various materials and where they
            are used in the construction of the UA. Include details of
            the fabrication and construction processes and procedures.

        3.  Describe the capability of the airframe structure to
            withstand expected flight loads and provide data/analysis to
            show that it is flutter free throughout the flight envelope.
            Include any loads or stress analysis that demonstrates
            positive structural margins of safety during flight.

        4.  Identify and describe any unique design characteristic(s)
            such as a hydraulic system, environmental control system,
            parachute, or brakes.

        5.  Measurements

            a.  Wingspan

            b.  Fuselage length

            c.  Body diameter

        6.  Weight

            a.  Empty

            b.  Maximum Gross Take-off Weight

    b.  **UA Performance Characteristics -** Describe the performance of
        the aircraft within the proposed flight envelope. Specifically
        address the following items:

        1.  Maximum Altitude

        2.  Maximum Endurance

        3.  Maximum Range

        4.  Airspeed

            a.  Cruise

            b.  Maximum

        5.  Maximum Rate of Climb

        6.  Maximum Rate of Descent

        7.  Maximum Bank Angle

        8.  Turn Rate Limits

        9.  Identify any performance limitations due to environmental
            and meteorological conditions. Specifically address the
            following items:

            a.  Wind Speed Limitations

                i.  Headwind

                ii. Crosswind

                iii. Gusts

            b.  Minimum Visibility Conditions

            c.  Lighting (For example, daytime flights only)

            d.  Outside Air Temperature (OAT) limits

            e.  In Flight Icing

                i.  Does the proposed operating environment include
                    operations in icing conditions?

                ii. Does the system have an icing detection capability?
                    If so, what indications, if any, does the system
                    provide the UA pilot and how does the system
                    respond?

                iii. Describe any icing protection capability of the UA.
                     Include any test data that demonstrates the
                     performance of the icing protection system.

    c.  **Propulsion System**

        1.  Describe the propulsion system and its ability to provide
            reliable and sufficient power to takeoff, climb, and
            maintain flight at expected mission altitudes.

        2.  Fuel Powered Propulsion Systems

            a.  What type (make and model) of engine is used?

            b.  What type and capacity of fuel is used?

            c.  How is engine performance monitored? What status
                indicators and warnings messages are provided to the
                pilot?

            d.  Describe all potential failure modes and abnormal
                operating conditions.

            e.  How does the system respond, and what safeguards are in
                place to mitigate the risk of engine power loss for each
                of the following?

                i.  Fuel Starvation

                ii. Fuel Contamination

                iii. Failed Signal Input from the Control Station

                iv. Engine Controller Failure

            f.  Does the engine have in-flight restart capabilities? If
                so, describe the manual and/or automatic features of
                this capability.

### Electric Powered Propulsion Systems

g.  What type of motor is used?

h.  What is the power output of the motor?

i.  What current draw range does the motor have?

j.  Does the system have a separate electrical source? If not, how is UA
    power managed?

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d.  **Fuel System**

    1.  Describe the fuel system and how it allows for adequate control
        of the fuel delivery to the engine, and provides for aircrew
        determination of fuel remaining. Provide a system level diagram
        showing the location of the system in the aircraft and the fuel
        flow path.

e.  **Electrical System**

    1.  Describe the electrical system and how it distributes adequate
        power to meet the requirements of the receiving systems. Provide
        a system level diagram showing electrical power distribution
        throughout the aircraft. Specifically address the following
        items:

    2.  How is power generated onboard the aircraft (generator,
        alternator, batteries, etc.)?

        a.  If a limited life power source is used, such as batteries,
            what is the useful life of the power source during normal
            and emergency conditions? How was this determined?

        b.  How are electrical power status and power remaining
            information displayed to the pilot?

    3.  Describe the source(s) of backup power in the event of loss of
        the primary power source.

        a.  What systems are powered during backup power operation?

        b.  Is there any automatic or manual load shedding?

        c.  How much operational time does the backup power source
            provide? Include the assumptions used to make this
            determination.

    4.  Describe the electrical distribution architecture including all
        busses, regulators, switches, converters, etc.

f.  **Flight Control Surfaces and Actuators**

    1.  Describe the design and operation of the flight control surfaces
        and servos/actuators. Include a diagram showing the location of
        the control surfaces and servos/actuators.

    2.  Describe any potential failure modes and corresponding
        mitigations.

    3.  How does the system respond to a servo failure?

    4.  What indications alert the pilot that a servo is stuck or
        malfunctioning?

g.  **Payloads**

    1.  Describe the payload equipment that will fly on board the
        aircraft. Describe all payload configurations that significantly
        change weight and balance, electrical loads, or flight dynamics.

### Internal

a.  External

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3.  **Control and Communications Segment**

    a.  **Avionics**

        1.  Provide an overall system diagram of the avionics
            architecture. Include the location of all air data sensors,
            antennas, radios, navigation equipment, etc.

    b.  **Navigation**

        1.  How does the UA determine where it is? How does it navigate
            to its intended destination?

        2.  How does the pilot respond to the following directions from
            Air Traffic Control, a visual observer, or other crew
            member?

            a.  Change of aircraft heading

            b.  Change of aircraft altitude

        3.  What are the causes and effects of loss of heading or
            altitude?

        4.  How does the system identify and respond to a loss of the
            primary means of navigation? Is there a backup means of
            navigation? How does the system respond to a loss of the
            secondary means of navigation?

        5.  Describe the procedures to test the altimeter system \[Ref.
            §91.411\].

    c.  **UA Controls**

        1.  Describe how the control surfaces respond to commands from
            the flight control computer.

        2.  Describe how the pilot provides input to the control
            surfaces (e.g., through an external box, waypoint, stick and
            rudder pedals).

        3.  Flight Control Computer

            a.  Does the flight control computer interface with
                auxiliary controls that might cause an unintended
                action?

            b.  Describe the flight control computer interfaces required
                to determine flight status and to issue appropriate
                commands.

    d.  **Autopilot**

        1.  How was the autopilot system developed? What industry or
            regulatory standards were used in the development process?

        2.  Is the autopilot a COTS product? If so name the
            type/manufacturer.

        3.  Describe the procedures you use to install the autopilot.
            How is correct installation verified? Reference any
            documents or procedures provided by the manufacturer and/or
            developed by your company.

        4.  Does the autopilot employ input limit parameters to keep the
            aircraft within structural limits? If so, provide a table of
            these limits. How were these limits validated?

        5.  Where do the autopilot commands reside once they are input
            by the pilot?

        6.  What type of software-in-the-loop (SIL) and
            hardware-in-the-loop (HIL) simulations have been performed?
            What was the outcome of the simulations?

    e.  **Communications**

        1.  Provide a detailed communication system architecture diagram
            that includes functional flows and subsystem performance
            (i.e., data rates, latencies, etc.).

        2.  Describe the communications datalink(s) connecting the UA
            and the control station. Specifically address the following
            items:

            a.  What spectrum will be used for the communications and
                how has the use of this spectrum been coordinated? If
                spectrum approval is not required, under what regulation
                is the use of the frequency authorized?

            b.  What type of signal processing and/or link security
                (i.e. encryption) is employed?

            c.  What is the data link margin in terms of the overall
                link budget at the maximum anticipated distance from the
                control station? How was it determined?

            d.  Is there a radio signal strength and/or health indicator
                or similar display to the pilot? How is the signal
                strength and health value determined and what are the
                threshold values that represent a critically degraded
                signal?

            e.  Does the system employ redundant and/or independent
                communications links? If so, how dissimilar are they?

            f.  For satellite links, estimate the system communications
                latencies associated with using the satellite link for
                aircraft control and for ATC communications.

            g.  What are the potential sources of RF interference within
                the proposed operating area and how are they monitored,
                managed and/or mitigated?

        3.  What design characteristics or procedures are in place to
            prevent or mitigate the loss of the control datalink due to
            the following:

            a.  Radio Frequency or other interference?

            b.  Flight beyond communications range?

            c.  Antenna masking during turns and pitch angles?

            d.  Loss of control station functionality?

            e.  Loss of UA functionality?

            f.  Atmospheric attenuation?

    f.  **Lost-link and Flight Recovery**

        1.  **Lost link**

            a.  How is it determined that the UA is experiencing lost
                link and how is this displayed to the pilot?

            b.  Describe the operational procedures in the event of a
                lost link.

            c.  Describe how the aircraft will react during takeoff,
                climb, cruise, descent, and landing in the event of a
                lost link.

            d.  How is it determined that the lost link functionality of
                the system is operational?

            e.  How does the UA navigate when in the lost link mode?

            f.  What parameters are used to define the lost link or
                return home point? How is this point selected? How is
                this point entered? What happens when the UA reaches
                this point?

            g.  Under what conditions is a return home mode both
                manually and automatically activated?

        2.  **Flight Recovery System (FRS)**

            a.  Describe the flight recovery systems (FRS) or flight
                recovery capability of the UA.

            b.  Under what conditions is a FRS manually and
                automatically activated?

            c.  What happens to the aircraft when the FRS is activated?
                For example, does the engine run temporarily? Does the
                UA glide or become unstable?

            d.  How do you know the FRS is operational?

            e.  Provide a fault tree diagram, starting with the initial
                condition of normal flight that shows the conditions
                which will trigger the FRS.

            f.  If activated, can the FRS be turned off/shut down if no
                longer required?

            g.  If FRS fails, is there a backup or secondary FRS to
                ensure that no additional hazards are introduced to the
                operational area?

    g.  **Control Station**

        1.  Describe or diagram the control station configuration
            including functional flows. Include screen captures of the
            control station displays.

        2.  Does the pilot have a standardized screen set up at the
            initiation of each phase of flight?

        3.  How accurately can the pilot determine the attitude and
            position of the UA?

        4.  What commands are safeguarded from inadvertent activation
            and how is that achieved (for example, a two step process to
            command "kill engine")?

        5.  What kind of inadvertent input could the pilot enter to
            cause an undesirable outcome (for example: accidentally
            hitting the 'kill engine' command in flight)?

        6.  Are any other programs running on the ground control
            computer?

        7.  What are the possible conditions that would cause a control
            position lock-up?

        8.  Are any of the primary flight controls based on the Windows
            Operating System?

        9.  What alarms or warnings does the system provide to the pilot
            (for example: low fuel or battery, failure of critical
            systems, departure from operational boundary)?

        10. Describe the means of providing primary and backup power to
            the ground control station.

        11. What procedures are in place should the control station lose
            primary and secondary power?

4.  **Ground Support Equipment.** Describe all the support equipment
    that is used on the ground. Include any launch or recovery systems,
    ground data terminals, generators, and power supplies.

5.  **Processes and Procedures**

    a.  **Configuration Management**

        1.  What procedures are in place to manage change configuration?
            Is it documented?

        2.  Describe the procedures used for controlling drawings, test
            procedures, engineering changes, etc.

        3.  Describe the quality assurance system, methods and
            procedures used, and structure within the organization.

    b.  **Software Management**

        1.  In high-level terms, how much of the software was designed
            by the applicant? Identify which areas of the system contain
            vendor software.

        2.  What software development process(es) have been used in the
            development of software components for the aircraft and the
            ground control station, and what software lifecycle data is
            available for review?

        3.  How will updates to system software (including COTS
            software) be implemented?

        4.  Provide a description of the software requirements and the
            functional allocation between hardware and software.

        5.  How is software verified, validated and tested for the
            system?

        6.  How is vendor software development overseen?

        7.  How is software load control implemented for the system to
            ensure that the correct software components are loaded onto
            the system?

        8.  What software quality assurance processes are used in the
            development of the system software? If software is vendor
            provided, vendor control must be addressed.

        9.  What procedures are in place to manage change configuration?
            How are these documented?

6.  **Operations**

    a.  **National Airspace System (NAS) Integration & Interaction**

        1.  Surveillance and Aircraft Visibility

            a.  Is the UA equipped with an operable Mode-C or Mode-S
                transponder?

            b.  What functions and/or settings of the transponder can be
                changed by the pilot?

            c.  Describe the transponder test procedures.

            d.  Does the UA have a high-visibility paint scheme that
                enables other pilots to see and avoid the UA and enables
                the observer(s) to visually acquire and track the UA?

            e.  What characteristics of the aircraft shape or structure
                increase its ability to be seen and tracked?

            f.  Does the UA have anti-collision lights?

                i.  What are the procedures if the lights are
                    inoperative?

            g.  Does the UA have position lights?

                i.  What are the procedures if the lights are
                    inoperative?

        2.  Air Traffic Control (ATC) and Crewmember Communications

            a.  How does the pilot communicate with ATC?

            b.  How does the pilot communicate with other users of the
                airspace?

            c.  Describe the communications equipment (i.e., radios),
                including any equipment on the aircraft.

            d.  Is there an inter-communication system that allows for
                communication between the pilot(s), ground support
                personnel, crewmembers, and observers?

            e.  What procedures have been established in the event of
                intercom failure?

        3.  Sense and Avoid.

            a.  Describe the method(s) in place for sense and avoid, and
                if applicable, identify the members of the flight crew
                that hold this responsibility.

            b.  What are the minimum traffic detection capabilities in
                azimuth and elevation?

            c.  Describe the procedures that will be implemented should
                an aircraft enter the operating area.

        4.  Chase Aircraft Operations.

            a.  Describe the roles and responsibilities of the chase
                aircraft crew.

> **NOTE: Chase aircraft pilots must not concurrently perform either
> observer or UA pilot duties while operating the chase aircraft.**

i.  Pilot

ii. Observers

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b.  Describe any special training that the chase aircraft crew will
    receive.

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b.  **Flight Phases**

    1.  Preflight/Taxi Operations

        a.  Describe the entire flight planning process, to include how
            weather briefings and updates are obtained.

        b.  Describe your coordination procedures with ATC prior to
            takeoff by addressing at a minimum:

            i.  NOTAMs

            ii. Filing the Flight Plan

            iii. Transponder Codes

        c.  Describe UAS preflight activities and the system and support
            equipment required by addressing at a minimum:

            i.  The process by which the system is prepared for flight

            ii. The systems required to prepare the system for flight

            iii. What critical process points are established, such as
                 system configuration files needed to establish flight
                 controls calibration?

        d.  Describe how mapping updates are performed on the CS?

        e.  Describe the flightline/operations safety program, if any.

        f.  How do you ensure the area is clear for taxi?

        g.  Describe the procedures to ensure the engine isn't started
            in a manner that could cause injury to ground personnel?

    2.  Take off/Launch

        a.  Provide a description of system equipment required for this
            operation. Identify unique system performance and
            procedures.

    3.  Flight

        a.  Identify the components of the system, including support
            equipment that is required for the UA to conduct safe flight
            operations. Information presented in response to this item
            should address at a minimum:

            i.  The process by which the system is operated during
                flight

            ii. The systems required to operate the system during flight

            iii. Critical process points that are established

        b.  Describe the method for switching between pilot-controlled
            (manual) and autonomous flight modes. At what points during
            the flight will this happen?

        c.  What indication does the pilot have that they are in control
            of the aircraft?

        d.  How are changes made to the flight plan during flight?

        e.  Describe the procedures in the event of lost communication
            with ATC (if applicable).

    4.  Landing/Recovery

        a.  Provide a description of system equipment required for this
            operation. Identify unique system performance and
            procedures.

    5.  Post Flight

        a.  This subsection intends to identify the parts of the system,
            to include support equipment required for the UAS to conduct
            safe operations. Information presented in response to this
            item should address at a minimum:

            i.  The process by which the system is operated post-flight

            ii. The systems required to operate the system post-flight

            iii. Critical process points that are established

        b.  Describe the process for a post flight inspection.

        c.  Describe the process for incident/accident reporting.

c.  **Operating Areas**

    1.  How do you ensure there is no unusual ground activity under the
        flight operations area? For example, are there any weekend
        events scheduled? Are there housing areas or public gathering
        places?

    2.  Identify any military or civilian routes through the proposed
        operational area.

    3.  Identify the proposed operating area on an aeronautical chart.
        The proposed area needs to define lateral boundaries and
        requested altitudes.

d.  **Flight Envelope and Test Plans**

    1.  Describe the conditions under which flight envelopes will be
        tested. How close will operations be to any populated areas,
        major highways, etc?

    2.  Describe how you plan to meet test objectives under the proposed
        flight envelop and operating area. Include test plans, if
        possible.

e.  **Operating History**

    1.  Describe the operational history of the UAS. Include details of
        the following items:

        a.  Total number of flights and flight hours on the UA.

        b.  Any system failures, incidents, accidents, or emergencies,
            and the resultant system modifications or corrective
            actions.

f.  **Manuals**

    1.  Is there an operating manual for the aircraft?

    2.  Does the manual have a section with all of the aircraft
        limitations in one location?

    3.  Does the operating manual have bolded or underlined procedures
        for emergencies for memory item steps?

    4.  Is there an operational checklist for all phases of the
        operation?

    5.  Are there separate checklist items for Normal, Abnormal, or
        Emergency procedures?

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7.  **Organizational Considerations**

    a.  **Pilot/Crew Qualifications/Training Reference**: 14 CFR part
        61 - Certification: Pilots and Flight Instructors, part 63 --
        Flight Crew Members other than Pilots, part 65 -- Airmen other
        than Flight Crew Members.

        1.  Crew

            a.  Is there a crew resource management training program? If
                so, describe the program.

        2.  Pilot

            a.  Do the pilots have a current pilot certificate? If so,
                what type of pilot certificate?

            b.  Do the pilots have a current medical certificate? If so,
                what class of medical certificate?

            c.  Describe all physical limitations that might prevent the
                pilot from getting a current pilot or medical
                certificate. Describe in detail and reference any
                procedures that show the pilots are properly trained. Is
                there an established formal training curriculum for all
                pilots including PIC, Supplemental, or Chase pilots(s)?

            d.  Is the pilot type rated for the aircraft being flown?

        3.  Observer

            a.  Do the observers have a current pilot certificate? If
                so, what type of pilot certificate?

            b.  Do the observers have a current medical certificate? If
                so, what class of medical certificate?

            c.  Describe all physical limitations that might prevent the
                observer from getting a current medical certificate.

            d.  Does the observer understand the applicable aviation
                regulations such as, see and avoid, clear of clouds, and
                right of way rules?

            e.  Is the observer a current pilot or have a training
                curriculum? Is there an established formal training
                curriculum for all observers? If so, please provide it
                during the site visit.

            f.  Describe in detail how the observer is properly trained
                to be an effective member of the flight team.

            g.  Does the observer understand:

                i.  Proper communications and phraseology?

                ii. Proper visual scan techniques?

                iii. Standard flight operations at non-towered airports?

                iv. Containment areas and how to determine whether the
                    UA is operating within that area?

    b.  **Maintenance**

        1.  Provide an inspection and maintenance program (Reference 14
            CFR part 43 Appendix D).

        2.  Provide information on system unique maintenance activities,
            such as maintenance of a pneumatic launcher system.

End of Safety Checklist