Possible global chaos in flights: Airbus calls for urgent inspection of more than 6,000 aircraft

The aeronautical giant Airbus announced this Friday an urgent software update for 6,000 A320 model aircraft, following a serious incident that exposed a vulnerability linked to solar radiation, according to Reuters. The decision was made after a plane belonging to the commercial airline JetBlue suffered an unexpected altitude descent, not attributable to the pilots, during a flight between Cancun (Mexico) and New Jersey (USA) on October 30, an incident that caused injuries to several passengers. The plane made an emergency landing in Tampa (Florida, USA). According to the manufacturer, the problem is related to the flight control system, known as ELAC (Elevator & Aileron Computer). Under exceptional conditions, as has now been detected, solar radiation can affect critical data for its operation, compromising the safety of the aircraft. The company, which is the largest manufacturer of civil aircraft in the world, stated that a significant portion of the A320s in use, more than 6,500 aircraft in total from dozens of airlines, could require that repair. An independent directive from regulators established that the update must be performed before each aircraft’s next regular flight. You can also read: https://ab.deultimominuto.net/internacionales/llega-a-venezuela-un-segundo-avion-de-ee-uu-con-migrantes-en-medio-de-la-crisis-de-vuelos/ The failure represents a real problem for Airbus, given that the A320 family is, by far, the company’s best-selling.

“Operational Disruptions”

For around two-thirds of those planes, the solution will be relatively simple: revert the software to a previous version, which involves a brief technical scale of a few hours. However, several hundred could require hardware changes, which would require much more prolonged maintenance and could leave those aircraft grounded for days or weeks. Airbus acknowledged that the measure will cause “operational disruptions” and apologized to passengers and companies, but stressed that safety is its “number one priority.” Cancellations and flight delays are expected this weekend. For some airlines, the impact is already beginning to be seen. In this context, American Airlines announced that of its 480 A320 aircraft, about 340 require the update.