Auditing Techniques for Aviation

Overview

Original, vendor-neutral training in the craft of auditing for aviation organisations: principles and independence, planning, evidence-gathering techniques, findings and reporting, and corrective action. Grounded in ISO 19011, ICAO Annex 19 / Doc 9859 and EASA Part-CAMO / Part-145 compliance monitoring.

Course content is maintained against the latest applicable regulatory amendments reviewed as of 21 June 2026.

Syllabus

20 modules, completed in order — each with its keywords and objective.

1. 1

   Welcome and how this course works

   scopestructureassessment

   Objective: Orient to the course scope, structure and assessment for the craft of auditing.

2. 2

   Why we audit

   purpose of auditassuranceimprovementconfidence

   Objective: Explain why organisations audit and the assurance and improvement that auditing delivers.

3. 3

   The regulatory landscape

   ISO 19011ICAO Annex 19Doc 9859Part-CAMOPart-145

   Objective: Locate auditing within the regulatory landscape of ICAO, EASA and ISO 19011.

4. 4

   Management systems, SMS and compliance monitoring

   management systemSMScompliance monitoringassurance

   Objective: Describe how compliance monitoring and SMS interact within an organisation's management system.

5. 5

   Types of audit and key terminology

   internal/external auditfirst/second/third partyterminology

   Objective: Distinguish the types of audit and use the key terminology correctly.

6. 6

   Audit principles and independence

   integrityobjectivityindependenceevidence-basedconfidentiality

   Objective: Apply the audit principles and safeguard auditor independence and objectivity.

7. 7

   The audit lifecycle

   programmeplanningconductreportingfollow-up

   Objective: Describe the audit lifecycle from programme through follow-up.

8. 8

   Risk-based auditing versus tick-box compliance

   risk-based auditsampling efforttick-boxprioritisation

   Objective: Contrast risk-based auditing with tick-box compliance and target effort where risk is highest.

9. 9

   Planning: objectives, scope and criteria

   objectivesscopecriteriareferences

   Objective: Set clear audit objectives, scope and criteria for an assignment.

10. 10

    Preparation and the audit plan

    audit planlogisticsdocument reviewschedule

    Objective: Prepare an audit and produce a workable audit plan.

11. 11

    Checklists and audit questions

    checklistopen questionspromptscoverage

    Objective: Build effective checklists and audit questions that ensure coverage without becoming tick-boxes.

12. 12

    Sampling and its limitations

    samplingrepresentativenessconfidencelimitations

    Objective: Choose appropriate samples and state the limitations of sampling in findings.

13. 13

    Gathering and testing audit evidence

    evidencecorroborationsufficiencyobjective evidence

    Objective: Gather and test sufficient, corroborated objective evidence.

14. 14

    Technique: effective interviewing

    interviewingopen questionslisteningrapport

    Objective: Conduct effective audit interviews that elicit reliable evidence.

15. 15

    Technique: observation and tracing a process

    observationprocess tracingwalkthroughforward/back tracing

    Objective: Use observation and process tracing to verify how work is really done.

16. 16

    Conducting the audit: opening, closing and conduct

    opening meetingconductclosing meetingprofessionalism

    Objective: Conduct an audit professionally through opening, fieldwork and closing meetings.

17. 17

    Findings and non-conformities

    non-conformityfinding statementgradingrequirement

    Objective: Write clear findings that state the requirement, the evidence and the non-conformity.

18. 18

    The audit report

    audit reportstructureclarityconclusions

    Objective: Produce a clear, balanced audit report with supportable conclusions.

19. 19

    Root cause analysis and corrective action

    root causecorrective actioncontainmentRCA tools

    Objective: Drive root-cause analysis and effective corrective action from findings.

20. 20

    Follow-up, closure and continual improvement

    verificationclosureeffectivenesscontinual improvement

    Objective: Verify corrective action, close findings and feed continual improvement.

Final assessment

• Format: 12 multiple-choice questions drawn from the course question bank, with the options shuffled each attempt.
• Pass mark: 75%.
• Certificate: issued automatically on passing, according to CAMO.A.200, 145.A.200.