This SAE Aerospace Standard (AS) establishes guidelines for the use of IEEE-1394-2008 Beta (formerly IEEE-1394b) as a data bus network in military and aerospace vehicles. It encompasses the data bus cable and its interface electronics for a system utilizing S400 over copper medium over extended lengths. This document contains extensions/restrictions to "off-the-shelf" IEEE-1394 standards, and assumes that the reader already has a working knowledge of IEEE-1394.

This document does not identify specific environmental requirements (electromagnetic compatibility, temperature, vibration, etc.); such requirements will be vehicle-specific and even LRU-specific. However, the hardware requirements and examples contained herein do address many of the environmental conditions that military and aerospace vehicles may experience. One should refer to the appropriate sections of MIL-STD-461E for their particular LRU, and utilize handbooks such as MIL HDBK-454A and MIL-HDBK-5400 for guidance.