Radio Technical Commission for Aeronautics
Encyclopedia
RTCA, Inc. is a volunteer organization that develops technical guidance for use by government regulatory authorities and by industry. Requirements for membership include a fee that is based on information in the application for membership, and an interest in aviation. RTCA is sponsored as a Federal Advisory Committee by the Department of Transportation, Federal Aviation Administration
. Guidance documents are developed and drafted by Special Committee (SC) and are based on a consensus developed within the SC charged with responsibility for the given document. Despite the loosely defined requirements of membership in RTCA, the guidance documents are based on expert technical opinion.
RTCA's objectives include but are not limited to:
Although RTCA is sponsored by the FAA it is not (itself) an agency of the United States Government, hence the reason for its work output (documents) as guidelines, not as requirements.
Federal Aviation Administration
The Federal Aviation Administration is the national aviation authority of the United States. An agency of the United States Department of Transportation, it has authority to regulate and oversee all aspects of civil aviation in the U.S...
. Guidance documents are developed and drafted by Special Committee (SC) and are based on a consensus developed within the SC charged with responsibility for the given document. Despite the loosely defined requirements of membership in RTCA, the guidance documents are based on expert technical opinion.
RTCA's objectives include but are not limited to:
- ensuring the safety and reliability of airborne systems;
- developing minimum operational performance requirements for document-specific systems;
- developing guidelines for use by a regulatory authority, the given authority determines appropriate;
- providing administrative and logistics resources that enable teamwork among the world-wide aviation community (e.g. International Civil Aviation OrganizationInternational Civil Aviation OrganizationThe International Civil Aviation Organization , pronounced , , is a specialized agency of the United Nations. It codifies the principles and techniques of international air navigation and fosters the planning and development of international air transport to ensure safe and orderly growth...
and the International Telecommunication UnionInternational Telecommunication UnionThe International Telecommunication Union is the specialized agency of the United Nations which is responsible for information and communication technologies...
and others).
Although RTCA is sponsored by the FAA it is not (itself) an agency of the United States Government, hence the reason for its work output (documents) as guidelines, not as requirements.