The advisory follows an unnerving incident on Oct. 30 involving a JetBlue plane flying from Cancun to Newark, New Jersey, that suffered a computer glitch, resulting in a sudden unexpected downward pitch without pilot input. Nobody was injured, and the jet diverted to Tampa, Florida. An investigation revealed that one of the plane’s elevator-aileron computers — known as ELAC 2 — malfunctioned
Airlines across the world cancelled hundreds of flights and scrambled to adjust schedules, as a major Airbus SE software glitch threatened to derail a crucial holiday travel season.
More than 6,500 jets in total may be impacted by the required fix, the European planemaker said Friday. A directive from Europe’s aviation safety regulator said software upgrades must happen before the affected aircrafts’ next regular flights.
Airlines rushed to implement the updates for affected A320 jetliners, grounding flights and upending plans for thousands of travellers, in a rare global recall of Airbus’s top-selling jet.
Colombia’s Avianca SA said more than 70 per cent of its fleet was impacted and that it was halting ticket sales until Dec. 8. Japan’s ANA Holdings Inc. scrapped 95 flights on Saturday, affecting roughly 13,200 passengers.
The urgent software fix, issued by the European Union Aviation Safety Agency late Friday, came after a recent incident involving a JetBlue Airways Corp. jetliner showed that “intense solar radiation” could corrupt data that helps maintain functioning flight controls.
The finding is a significant headache for Airbus, given the A320 family is the company’s by far most widely flown aircraft, with more than 11,000 in operation. The sudden upgrade requirement was unwelcome news for airlines as well, especially those dependent on Airbus as its sole fleet provider.
“Airbus acknowledges these recommendations will lead to operational disruptions to passengers and customers,” the manufacturer said.
In the US, which is experiencing a record-breaking Thanksgiving travel period, operators of some 1,600 A320 family jets sought to implement fixes while keeping disruption to a minimum. Airlines and travellers have already had to contend with disruptions caused by bad weather and the recent government shutdown that prompted a partial reduction in aircraft movement.
American Airlines Group Inc. said that of its 209 impacted planes, fewer than 150 still required the update as of 6 p.m. US Central Standard time Friday.
The advisory follows an unnerving incident on Oct. 30 involving a JetBlue plane flying from Cancun to Newark, New Jersey, that suffered a computer glitch, resulting in a sudden unexpected downward pitch without pilot input. Nobody was injured, and the jet diverted to Tampa, Florida. An investigation revealed that one of the plane’s elevator-aileron computers — known as ELAC 2 — malfunctioned.
“Preliminary technical assessment done by Airbus identified a malfunction of the affected ELAC as a possible contributing factor,” the European flight safety regulator said. “This condition, if not corrected, could lead in the worst-case scenario to an uncommanded elevator movement that may result in exceeding the aircraft’s structural capability.”
According to people familiar with the situation, most of the jets can receive an uncomplicated update from the cockpit with minimal downtime. But about 1,000 older jets will need an actual hardware upgrade and will have to be grounded for the duration of the maintenance, said the people, asking not to be identified, discussing non-public findings.
Hungarian discount carrier Wizz Air Holdings Plc, which has an Airbus-only fleet of around 250 aircraft, warned some flights would be affected over the weekend as it “immediately scheduled” maintenance for its planes.
Services were cancelled in Australia and New Zealand on Saturday, causing travel disruption, as Qantas Airways Ltd. subsidiary Jetstar and Air New Zealand Ltd. grounded some of their A320s for the software upgrade.
The UK Civil Aviation Authority said that airlines flying the affected aircraft will in some cases have to change software over the days ahead or remain on the ground from Sunday, though only some UK airlines are affected. British Airways Plc, the biggest carrier in the UK with a fleet of almost 150 A320 family jets, won’t experience any passenger impact, the regulator said.
Hungarian discount carrier Wizz Air Holdings Plc, which has an Airbus-only fleet of around 250 aircraft, warned some flights would be affected over the weekend as it “immediately scheduled” maintenance for its planes.
Services were cancelled in Australia and New Zealand on Saturday, causing travel disruption, as Qantas Airways Ltd. subsidiary Jetstar and Air New Zealand Ltd. grounded some of their A320s for the software upgrade.
The UK Civil Aviation Authority said that airlines flying the affected aircraft will in some cases have to change software over the days ahead or remain on the ground from Sunday, though only some UK airlines are affected.
British Airways Plc, the biggest carrier in the UK with a fleet of almost 150 A320 family jets, won’t experience any passenger impact, the regulator said.
Bloomberg