Functional safety course in avionics
Online course of 300 hours in functional safety in avionics. 6 modules covering safety in aeronautical systems, functional hazard assessment, preliminary and system safety analysis, common cause analysis, software and hardware assurance and a final project, with an assigned technical tutor.
Functional safety course in avionics — studying from Canada
Canada has a substantial aerospace sector, anchored in Montréal and Québec City, with major manufacturers and suppliers such as Bombardier, Pratt & Whitney Canada and CAE. Ontario's Greater Toronto and Ottawa regions host avionics, satellite and space technology firms, while the Canadian Space Agency coordinates national space programmes, including robotics for the International Space Station. Urban air mobility and drone operations are emerging under Transport Canada's regulatory framework. Engineers in this area typically work on airframe design, systems integration, certification and space mission support.
Fees for Canada: 1,150 CA$ (Canadian dollar), with instalments and employer sponsorship available.
Relevant bodies in Canada
Typical roles
Questions from Canada
How are fees shown for Canadian learners?
All fees on this site are displayed in Canadian dollars (CAD). Instalment plans are available, and employer sponsorship can be discussed.
Are SEIUM programmes official Canadian degrees?
No. SEIUM qualifications are private awards issued by SEIUM Institute and are not official degrees recognised by Canadian federal or provincial authorities.
Take the controls.
Run a real engineering trade-off from this field. Move the sliders, watch the model react in real time and beat the challenge.
What you will be able to do
Understand the CS-25.1309 safety framework and the relationship between ARP4754B and ARP4761A.
Produce functional hazard assessments with justified severity criteria.
Build fault trees and calculate failure condition probabilities.
Carry out common cause, zonal and particular risks analyses.
Allocate development assurance levels to functions and items.
Integrate safety requirements with the DO-178C and DO-254 processes.
Write a complete safety assessment of an avionics system.
Who it's for
- System safety engineers.
- Reliability and safety analysts.
- Certification engineers who review safety assessments.
- Avionics systems engineers.
- Failure analysis specialists.
- Development assurance managers.
- Engineering or science graduates seeking to join aircraft manufacturers.
What you'll work with
- SAE ARP4761A / EUROCAE ED-135 (safety assessment process for civil aircraft)
- SAE ARP4754B / EUROCAE ED-79B (development of civil aircraft and systems)
- EASA CS-25.1309 and AMC 25.1309 (equipment, systems and installations)
- RTCA DO-178C / EUROCAE ED-12C (airborne software)
- RTCA DO-254 / EUROCAE ED-80 (airborne electronic hardware)
- FAA AC 25.1309-1A (system design and analysis)
- MIL-STD-882E (system safety)
- Isograph FaultTree+
- Ansys medini analyze
- ReliaSoft BlockSim
- Item Toolkit
- Cameo Safety and Reliability Analyzer
6 modules
1.1Concepts of hazard, risk and failure condition1.2Severity classification: catastrophic to no safety effect1.3Quantitative probability objectives per flight hour1.4Requirements of CS-25.1309 and AMC 25.13091.5Relationship between ARP4754B and ARP4761A1.6FDAL and IDAL development assurance levels1.7Latent failures and exposure times1.8Lessons from accidents caused by systems1.9Safety culture in design organisations1.10Case study: failure classification of a braking system
2.1Identification of aircraft and system functions2.2Preparing the FHA worksheet2.3Effects on crew, occupants and aircraft2.4Flight phases and environmental conditions2.5Severity assignment and justification2.6Hypotheses and assumptions of the assessment2.7Derivation of safety requirements2.8Independent review of the FHA2.9Common mistakes in functional assessments2.10Workshop: FHA of a flap control system
3.1Structure of the PSSA and SSA3.2Fault trees and logic gates3.3Calculating top-event probabilities3.4Dependence diagrams and minimal cut sets3.5Markov analysis for repairable systems3.6FMEA and FMES of avionics equipment3.7DAL allocation to functions and items3.8Functional and development independence3.9Verification of quantitative objectives3.10Lab: fault tree of an air data system
4.1Zonal safety analysis4.2Particular risks analysis4.3Common mode analysis and checklist4.4Common cause failures in redundancies4.5Rotor burst and impact damage4.6Effects of lightning and HIRF environments4.7Hardware and software dissimilarity4.8Physical and electrical segregation of wiring4.9Integrating results into the SSA4.10Case study: zonal analysis of an avionics bay
5.1Software levels according to DO-178C5.2Hardware design objectives according to DO-2545.3Software contribution to failure conditions5.4Monitors, protections and monitoring architectures5.5Development errors versus random failures5.6Safety in multicore-based systems5.7Qualified tools according to DO-3305.8Management of open problems and their impact5.9Coordination with the certification authority5.10Practical exercise: DAL allocation in flight controls
6.1Definition of the system under study6.2Aircraft- and system-level FHA6.3Proposed architecture and assumptions6.4PSSA with fault trees6.5Associated common cause analysis6.6Allocation of development assurance levels6.7Safety requirements verification plan6.8Draft system safety assessment6.9Report and presentation6.10Final project: final review with the tutor
How you'll learn
100% online training on the SEIUM campus, with downloadable material, recorded classes and an assigned technical tutor. There are no fixed timetables: you progress at your own pace within the intake, so you can combine it with your job.
Each module combines theory, guided reading of the original standard and applied exercises. The working software is Isograph FaultTree+, Ansys medini analyze, ReliaSoft BlockSim, Item Toolkit and Cameo Safety and Reliability Analyzer, in free, academic or evaluation versions. Testing is studied on real procedures for the functional hazard assessment of a braking system, the fault tree of an air data system and the common mode analysis of a redundant architecture. Assessment is continuous by module, plus the final project.
Standards covered: SAE ARP4761A / EUROCAE ED-135, SAE ARP4754B / EUROCAE ED-79B, EASA CS-25.1309 and AMC 25.1309, RTCA DO-178C / EUROCAE ED-12C, RTCA DO-254 / EUROCAE ED-80, FAA AC 25.1309-1A, MIL-STD-882E.
Build it end to end
Your final project follows the real engineering workflow, step by step, reviewed by your tutor.
Where this takes you
Requirements
- No prior qualification is required.
- An internet connection and a computer capable of running the programme software.
- English sufficient to read technical standards.
Ready to start?
Send your application today. Our admissions team replies within 72 hours with your study plan and funding options.
Frequently asked questions
The programme totals 300 hours over 3 months. You set your own pace within each intake, and your tutor helps you plan the workload around your job.
You work with Isograph FaultTree+, Ansys medini analyze, ReliaSoft BlockSim, Item Toolkit and Cameo Safety and Reliability Analyzer, using free, academic or evaluation versions. Your tutor indicates the free alternative wherever one exists.
A SEIUM Institute certificate, awarded on passing the continuous assessment and the final project. It is SEIUM's own qualification, not an official state degree; its recognition depends on the programme completed and the regulations of each country.
Yes. Modules passed are recognised in a higher programme in the same area (postgraduate diploma or master's). Ask about the recognition policy when you enrol.
No prior qualification is required: you only need an internet connection, a computer able to run the programme software and English sufficient to read technical standards.
Start dates are set by SEIUM's faculty for each intake. Our admissions team will confirm the next available date when you apply.
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