Sunday 30NOV
Airlines spent the last 24 hours racing to update the software glitch fix on Airbus A320 jets as a partial recall halted hundreds of flights in Asia and Europe and threatened travel in the US over the weekend.
Airlines that say they have completed the software update include American Airlines, United Airlines, Air India, Delta Air Lines, Wizz Air, Mexico's Volaris, Air Arabia, Saudi Arabia's Flyadeal, and Taiwan's carriers. Many reported no impact on operations.
Friday 28NOV
Airbus said on Friday it has ordered urgent software work on A320 aircraft worldwide after a flight‑control incident linked to solar radiation, in what amounts to one of the largest recalls in the manufacturer’s history and a potential disruptor for holiday travel.
Air Canada posted a statement on its web site, saying: “Air Canada has conducted a thorough review of our A319, A320 and A321 fleets. We can confirm there is no impact to our operations at this time.”
But Air Canada cautioned that some of its airline partners might be impacted and encouraged travellers to check with their airline’s web site directly.
American Airlines and Hungary’s Wizz Air said they had already identified which of their aircraft would need the software fix. United Airlines said it was not affected.
American Airlines, in a statement on Friday, said about 340 of its 480 Airbus A320 aircraft require the software replacement, and it expects the majority of those fixes to be “complete today and tomorrow”, with about two hours required for each plane.
Industry sources told Reuters the action covers about 6,000 aircraft—more than half of the global A320 fleet—and for around two‑thirds of those jets the fix is expected to involve a relatively quick rollback to an earlier, unaffected software version. However, hundreds of aircraft will need hardware modifications to their flight‑control computers, potentially grounding them for weeks and adding to existing maintenance bottlenecks across global fleets.
The move follows an October 30 incident involving a JetBlue A320‑family flight from Cancun to Newark that suffered an uncommanded nose‑down pitch and sudden loss of altitude, injuring several passengers and forcing a diversion to Tampa, Florida.
The European Union Aviation Safety Agency is preparing an emergency airworthiness directive that will make the Airbus instructions mandatory, with other regulators expected to follow. National authorities, including the UK Civil Aviation Authority, have already warned that compliance with the directive could trigger some flight disruptions as airlines cycle aircraft through software updates and any required hardware changes. Airbus acknowledged that the recommendations will lead to “operational interruptions” for airlines and passengers but said the measures are necessary to address a safety‑critical vulnerability.
Open Jaw is following the story and will provide updates on affected carriers as they come in.
