Airbus issues major A320 recall after recent mid-air incident

"Airbus said on Friday it was ordering an immediate software change on a significant number of its bestselling A320 family of aircraft in a move that industry sources said would bring disruption to half the global fleet, or thousands of jets. The move must be carried out before the next routine flight, according to a separate bulletin to airlines seen by Reuters, with the UK's civil aviation authority warning of some disruption and cancellations to flights over the coming days."

"Airbus said in a statement a recent incident involving an A320-family aircraft had revealed that intense solar radiation may corrupt data critical to the functioning of flight controls. Airbus acknowledges these recommendations will lead to operational disruptions to passengers and customers, it said. Industry sources said the incident that triggered the unexpected repair action involved a JetBlue flight from Cancun, Mexico, to Newark, New Jersey, on 30 October, in which several passengers were hurt after a sharp loss of altitude."

"For about two-thirds of the affected jets, the recall will result in a relatively brief grounding as airlines revert to a previous software version, industry sources said. Still, that comes at a time of intense demands on airline repair shops, already plagued by shortages of maintenance capacity and the grounding of hundreds of Airbus jets due to long waiting times for separate engine repairs or inspections. Hundreds of the affected jets may also have to have hardware changed, threatening much longer waits, the sources said."

Airbus ordered an immediate software change for a significant number of A320-family aircraft after a recent incident indicated intense solar radiation can corrupt data critical to flight control functions. The update must be applied before the next routine flight, and regulators warned of disruptions and cancellations during a busy travel weekend. The triggering incident involved a JetBlue A320 flight on Oct. 30 that suffered a sudden uncommanded altitude drop and emergency landing, injuring several passengers and prompting an FAA investigation. Two-thirds of affected jets will revert to a previous software version, causing brief groundings; hundreds may require hardware changes, extending delays amid constrained maintenance capacity.

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