AS9100 (Aerospace Quality)

AS9100 defines aerospace-focused quality system requirements, adding risk management, configuration control, and traceability on top of ISO 9001 for flight- and mission-critical hardware.

Overview

AS9100 is a quality management system standard tailored to aerospace, defense, and space manufacturing. It builds on ISO 9001 with added requirements for risk management, configuration control, traceability, supplier oversight, and product safety. An AS9100-certified shop uses documented processes for control of design changes, nonconformance, and corrective actions, and supports tools like FAI (AS9102) and full lot-level traceability.

Use AS9100 suppliers when your parts go on aircraft, spacecraft, UAVs, or defense systems where regulatory compliance, documentation, and auditability are mandatory. You get better control of configuration, change management, and supplier quality, at the cost of more documentation, higher overhead, and potentially longer lead times. This certification does not guarantee technical capability on its own—you still need to vet process expertise, tolerances, and special processes—but it does indicate a mature, audited quality system aligned with aerospace customer and OEM expectations.

Common Materials

  • Aluminum 6061
  • Aluminum 7075
  • Titanium 6Al-4V
  • 17-4 PH stainless steel
  • Inconel 718
  • PEEK

Tolerances

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Applications

  • Flight-critical structural brackets and fittings
  • Aerospace hydraulic and pneumatic manifolds
  • Avionics housings and enclosures
  • Spacecraft and satellite mechanical hardware
  • UAV and eVTOL drivetrain components
  • Engine and APU mounting hardware

When to Choose AS9100 (Aerospace Quality)

Select AS9100-certified suppliers when your part is for aerospace, defense, or space programs that require controlled configuration, traceability, and formal FAIs. This is ideal for flight- or mission-critical hardware, complex assemblies, and any job where OEMs or primes impose AS9100 as a flow-down requirement.

vs ISO 9001 (Quality Management)

Choose AS9100 over a general ISO 9001 shop when your parts are used in manned aircraft, UAVs, or space systems and must meet aerospace customer or regulatory requirements. AS9100 adds aerospace-specific controls for risk, configuration, and product safety that OEMs and primes often mandate in contracts.

vs ISO 13485 (Medical Device Quality)

Prefer AS9100 when your core business is aerospace or defense and you need supply chain controls, FAIs, and configuration management tuned for aircraft and spacecraft hardware. ISO 13485 focuses on medical regulatory needs; AS9100 aligns better with FAA, EASA, and aerospace OEM expectations.

vs IATF 16949 (Automotive Quality)

Select AS9100 when you build lower-volume, higher-complexity, high-liability aerospace components instead of high-volume automotive programs. IATF 16949 optimizes for automotive production and APQP, while AS9100 focuses on aerospace risk management, configuration control, and documentation for flight-critical parts.

vs NADCAP (Special Process)

Use AS9100 when you need an overarching aerospace quality system covering design, machining, assembly, purchasing, and inspection. NADCAP is complementary and specific to special processes like heat treat or coating; AS9100 governs the broader QMS your whole program runs under.

vs ITAR Registered

Choose AS9100 when your primary concern is rigorous aerospace quality and traceability, while ITAR addresses export control and data handling. For defense aerospace work, you often need both, but AS9100 is what drives your quality procedures, FAIs, and product realization controls.

Design Considerations

  • Call out explicit quality requirements on the print and PO: AS9100, FAI to AS9102, traceability level, and any special process certifications required
  • Identify key and critical characteristics on drawings so the AS9100 shop can focus control plans, inspection, and gaging on what actually affects safety and function
  • Avoid copying blanket aerospace notes that aren’t needed for your part; unnecessary special processes, 100% inspection, or over-spec’d certs drive cost and lead time
  • Specify configuration control expectations: revision control, change approval process, and whether you require frozen process or specific routers for recurring parts
  • Define documentation deliverables up front (FAI report, C of C, material and process certs, inspection reports) so the shop can price quality paperwork accurately
  • Standardize your incoming requirements across part families to reduce custom quality clauses, which simplifies supplier compliance and quoting under AS9100 systems