Airborne software
Systems onboard an unmanned vehicle should comply with the same international standards as commercial aircraft. In the case of airborne software, Eurocae ED12-B (or RTCA DO-178B in the US) are of application.
These standards require a precisely defined and strictly documented development process, from the initial specification of requisites (planning) to final testing (quality assurance).
In adition, a full safety assesment process and harzard analysis has to be performed, identifying all possible risks, determining failure conditions leading to these risks and adopting a mitigation strategy based on the risk severity: catastrophic, hazardous, major, minor or without effect with respect to aircraft, crew and passengers