Comparative Analysis of Airbags for Motorcyclists

1. Introduction

The Spanish National Association of Two-Wheeler Companies (ANESDOR), with the collaboration of Spain's Directorate-General for Traffic (DGT), publishes a catalogue of airbags for motorcyclists in which manufacturers and distributors declare that their products comply with its Technical Recommendations Guide. As consulted on 5 October 2026, the catalogue lists 20 brands and 68 models. The platform itself warns that ANESDOR and the DGT are not responsible for the accuracy of the information: each manufacturer or distributor is accountable for what it declares.

In this article we group those brands and models by the certification they declare and explain what each one requires. Because AIROBAG certifies its airbags to EN 1621-4 and is an interested party, every figure comes with its source: the catalogue itself, Regulation (EU) 2016/425, or the technical documents for each test.

2. Regulatory framework: Regulation (EU) 2016/425

Motorcycle airbags are Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) and are governed by Regulation (EU) 2016/425. To sell them in the European Union with CE marking, the manufacturer needs, among other requirements:

• An EU type-examination (Module B) carried out by a notified body, that is, an organisation designated by a Member State and notified to the European Commission, listed in the NANDO database.
• An EU declaration of conformity and the product's technical documentation, which the manufacturer must keep for 10 years (Article 8(3)).

The Regulation grants a presumption of conformity to products made in accordance with a harmonised standard whose reference has been published in the Official Journal of the European Union (Article 14). Today, none of the certification routes for motorcycle airbags is a harmonised standard: the current list of harmonised PPE standards (Implementing Decision (EU) 2026/1279) includes standards for motorcyclists' gloves, boots and garments, but no part of EN 1621. That is why, whatever the route, the airbag must pass the examination of a notified body.

What changes from one route to another is the test used to demonstrate protection, and there the differences are large.

3. The catalogue by certification

According to the catalogue, products are certified through three routes:

• The European standard EN 1621-4, approved by the European Committee for Standardization (CEN) in 2012 and published in 2013. It is the only CEN standard for motorcycle airbags and applies to mechanically activated airbags.
• The CRITT AMC-013 protocol (and its AMC-012 version), a private specification of the French laboratory CRITT Sport Loisirs, which is a notified body.
• The CERTOTTICA M.115 protocol, a private specification of an Italian laboratory, used by two brands that only make electronically activated airbags.

Source: ANESDOR catalogue, consulted on 5 October 2026. Data declared by each manufacturer or distributor.

In summary: 3 brands and 16 models declare EN 1621-4; 2 brands and 13 models, CERTOTTICA M.115; and 15 brands and 39 models, the CRITT AMC-012/013 protocol. One figure stands out: of the 26 mechanically activated models in the catalogue, 10 are certified with the private protocol even though they could be tested against the European standard.

4. Technical comparison of the certifications

4.1 EN 1621-4 vs. CRITT AMC-013

Both tests drop the same mass (5 kg) with the same energy (50 J) onto the inflated airbag. What changes is how much of that impact is allowed to reach the body:

Converted to the same unit using Newton's second law (5 kg × 500 × 9.81 m/s²), the AMC-013 limit is equivalent to about 24.5 kN: roughly 4 times more permissive than EN 1621-4 Level 1 and roughly 8 times more than Level 2. To put the figure in context: the back-protector standard EN 1621-2 does not allow any single impact above 24 kN even at Level 1, its lowest level of protection.

AMC-013 adds a time criterion that the European standard does not have: it limits how long the acceleration may stay above 80 g. That criterion limits the duration of the impact, not its peak, so it does not make up for the difference in the threshold. The test geometry also differs (flat disc vs. round-edged bar, flat plate vs. domed anvil), which is why the figures are not one-to-one equivalents. We explain this in detail in EN 1621-4 vs. AMC-013: technical comparison of airbag test methods.

4.2 The case of CERTOTTICA M.115 (electronic airbags)

Alpinestars and Dainese are brands with a long track record and heavy investment in R&D, and their systems detect a crash using sensors and algorithms. EN 1621-4 applies only to mechanically activated airbags, and the CEN standard for electronic ones (EN 1621-5) has not yet been published. That is why these products are certified to a private specification, M.115 from the Italian laboratory CERTOTTICA. An electronic airbag not declaring EN 1621-4 is not the manufacturer's choice: today there is no CEN standard to test it against.

5. Analysis by brand group

Group A · EN 1621-4: AIROBAG, HIT-AIR and MOTOAIRBAG

These are three of the longest-established brands in the motorcycle airbag market and the only ones in the catalogue that declare the CEN European standard. All their models are mechanically activated: the airbag inflates when the rider separates from the motorcycle and pulls the tether, with no batteries or electronics, and after a crash it can be reused by replacing the gas cartridge.

Group B · CERTOTTICA M.115: ALPINESTARS and DAINESE

High-end products with electronic technology, benchmarks in racing. They cannot be certified to EN 1621-4 because that standard does not cover electronic activation; their certificate is based on a private specification until the corresponding CEN standard is published.

Group C · CRITT AMC-012/013: 15 brands

This is the majority route in the catalogue: 15 of the 20 brands and 39 of the 68 models. It includes electronic models and also 10 mechanical models (from Aspar Air, Bering, Helite and Rock Tool) that could be tested against EN 1621-4. The certificate is issued by a notified body and the sale is legal throughout the European Union. But the AMC-013 pass threshold is between 4 and 8 times more permissive than that of the European standard. This does not mean that an airbag with an AMC certificate is bad: it may be a good product. It means that its certificate requires less and therefore proves less.

6. Conclusions and recommendations

The ANESDOR catalogue is a valuable transparency tool, but it is most useful when buyers understand that being in the catalogue does not mean offering the same protection. All three routes allow legal sale, but they do not require the same thing, and no label explains this to the buyer.

Before buying an airbag, we recommend checking the triad standard + laboratory + document:

• Standard: look on the label and in the manual for the reference "EN 1621-4" and the level achieved (1 or 2; Level 2 is the most demanding). Check that the certificate covers both chest and back.
• Laboratory: confirm that the certificate was issued by a notified body listed in the European Commission's NANDO database.
• Document: ask for the certificate and verify its authenticity with the issuing body. If the product states "AMC", "CRITT" or another protocol, ask the manufacturer for the test report and what force was measured, in kN.

According to the catalogue, the only brands declaring the European standard EN 1621-4 are AIROBAG, HIT-AIR and MOTOAIRBAG. Electronic airbags from top-tier brands can be a valid option, on the understanding that their CEN standard is still pending.

For PPE that protects vital organs, the difference between a more demanding and a less demanding certification can weigh on the outcome of a crash. An airbag certified to EN 1621-4 and a helmet approved to ECE 22.06 represent today the most demanding certified protection available to a motorcyclist.

Sources: ANESDOR catalogue of airbags for motorcyclists (airbag.anesdor.com, consulted on 5 October 2026) · Regulation (EU) 2016/425 · Implementing Decision (EU) 2026/1279 on harmonised standards for PPE · EN 1621-4 (CEN, 2013) · EN 1621-2 (CEN, 2014) · CRITT AMC-013 protocol · CERTOTTICA M.115 protocol.