European planemaker Airbus on Friday ordered airlines to perform an immediate software fix on thousands of A320 family planes, fixing a bug that could cause control problems during flights.
In a statement, the planemaker said analysis of a recent incident had revealed an issue where “intense solar radiation can corrupt data critical to the operation of flight controls” during solar flares.
The problem was found after a JetBlue A320 flying from Mexico’s Cancun International Airport (CUN) to New York’s Newark Liberty International Airport (EWR) on October 30 experienced a sudden drop in altitude, injuring 15 people.
About 6,000 planes worldwide are affected, or just over half of the world’s fleet of the narrow-body airliner, which recently surpassed Boeing’s 737 as the most delivered commercial airliner in history. US operators currently have 1,622 A320 aircraft in service, according to data analytics firm Cirium, although not all are affected by the order.
Fortunately for airlines, the fix appears to be quick — good news for U.S. airlines bracing for the post-holiday rush at the end of Thanksgiving. The fix involves a software update that takes approximately two hours.
American Airlines, which is the largest operator of the A320 family, said 209 of its planes are affected, out of a total in-service fleet of 475 of the type. As of 7 p.m. ET, there were fewer than 150 aircraft still awaiting repair, according to a spokesperson, and the “overwhelming majority” were expected to be finished by Saturday morning.
“Safety will always be our top priority and we thank our customers for their patience during this unexpected event,” the spokesperson said in a statement.
A person familiar with the matter who asked not to be identified called any expected impact on passenger service “minimal.”
Delta Air Lines, which has 305 A320 family aircraft in service, according to Cirium, said it expects the number of affected aircraft to remain relatively low, and had identified fewer than 50 A321neo aircraft that will require repair. The airline plans to finish installing the software update on Saturday morning, a spokesperson said, and expects any operational impact to be “limited.”
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United has 201 A320 family planes in service, but told TPG that only six planes were affected and that it did not expect the issue to affect schedules.
JetBlue, which flies 220 planes, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
While the effects on U.S. airlines may be limited, airlines in other parts of the world faced larger impacts. Colombia’s Avianca said more than 70% of its fleet was affected, according to Reuters, prompting it to close ticket sales for travel until December 8.
Still, despite what may prove to be a limited impact for the largest U.S. airlines, the problem arises during one of the busiest travel weekends of the year, as Americans return home from Thanksgiving.
As always, be sure to check your flight in your airline app for the latest status and stay tuned to TPG for the latest on any travel disruptions caused by this issue.
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