Airbus requested immediate modifications to thousands of aircraft after discovering that intense radiation from the sun could corrupt data crucial to flight controls.
About 6,000 planes are thought to be affected, about half the European aerospace giant’s global fleet, but it is understood most will be able to undergo a simple software update.
The issue affects the A320 – its best selling aircraft – but also models from the same design fleet, including the A318, A319 and the A321.
Airbus said the problem was discovered following a recent “incident” in the US involving an A320 family aircraft and apologised for disruption to passengers.
The incident, which happened on 30 October, involved a JetBlue Airways A320 making an emergency landing in Florida, after a sudden drop in altitude. At least 15 people were reported to have been injured.
It is understood that on around 5,100 Airbus planes, the issue can be addressed using a relatively simple software update. However, the remaining aircraft which are older versions will need new hardware as well and will need to be taken out of service to be modified.
Airbus said it acknowledged this will lead to “operational disruption to passengers and customers”, and has apologised.
Wizz Air said some of its aircraft were among those that require updates and that it had scheduled the necessary maintenance, while Air India said the directive from Airbus could lead to delays.
British Airways is understood not be be heavily impacted by the issue. Easyjet said it was “expecting this to result in some disruption” and would inform passengers directly.
“Safety is our highest priority and easyJet operates its fleet of aircraft in strict compliance with manufacturers guidelines,” the airline said.
The Civil Aviation Authority [CAA], the UK’s aviation regulator, said the request from Airbus would “likely to mean that unfortunately there may be some disruption and cancellations to flights”.
Giancarlo Buono, director of aviation safety at CAA, added: “We have been made aware of an issue that may affect some of the A320 family of aircraft and the precautionary action that EASA has taken.
“Passengers should check with their airline whether their flights are affected. Airlines have a duty of care to look after passengers when a flight is delayed.”
The problem affecting the aircraft is that intense solar and cosmic radiation at high altitudes can affect the working of the ELAC computer, which controls the elevators and ailerons. These are aerodynamic surfaces that are used to make the aircraft pitch up or down or roll to turn.
The A320 family are what is known as “fly by wire” planes. This means there is no direct mechanical link between the controls in the cockpit and the parts of the aircraft that actually govern flight. The pilot’s actions are interpreted by computers – which actually “fly” the plane.
The manufacturer has issued an alert to airlines, requesting them to take “immediate precautionary action…in order to implement the available software and/or hardware protection and ensure the fleet is safe to fly”.
Following Airbus’s annoucement, the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) confirmed it had also instructed “precautionary action” to some of the global Airbus 320 aircraft fleet.
By BBC News
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