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Airlines around the world cancelled hundreds of flights on Saturday after Airbus ordered an urgent software fix for its popular A320 jet family, raising fears of major disruptions during a peak holiday travel period.
The European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) issued the directive late Friday. It said A320-series aircraft must receive a software update before their next flight due to a risk that “intense solar radiation” could corrupt data that supports key flight controls.
Airbus said more than 6,500 jets may be affected across global fleets. The A320 family is Airbus’s best-selling aircraft, with over 11,000 jets in service worldwide.
“This recommendation will cause disruption for passengers and customers,” Airbus said in a statement.
The company stressed that safety remains its top priority.
Airlines scramble as passengers face disruptions
Airlines moved fast to ground jets, adjust schedules, and warn customers. In Colombia, Avianca said over 70% of its fleet was affected and paused ticket sales until December 8. Japan’s ANA Holdings cancelled 95 flights, affecting 13,200 passengers in one day.
In the U.S., where Thanksgiving travel is breaking records, airlines managing 1,600 A320-family jets tried to complete fixes while limiting delays. American Airlines said fewer than 150 out of 209 aircraft still needed updates by Friday evening.
The disruption comes on top of weather delays and a recent partial government shutdown that reduced aircraft movement.
Glitch linked to JetBlue incident
The recall followed an October 30 incident involving a JetBlue A320 flying from Cancun to Newark. The aircraft suddenly pitched downward without pilot input after one of its elevator-aileron computers (ELAC 2) malfunctioned. No one was injured, and the plane diverted to Tampa.
“Preliminary technical assessment identified a malfunction of the affected ELAC as a possible contributing factor,” EASA said.
The regulator warned that, if not corrected, the issue could, in the worst case, cause “uncommanded elevator movement” strong enough to exceed the aircraft’s structural limits.
Older jets face longer downtime
Most A320s can receive a cockpit-based software update with little downtime, people familiar with the matter said. But about 1,000 older aircraft require hardware changes, meaning they must be grounded for longer maintenance.
Wizz Air, which operates an Airbus-only fleet of about 250 jets, said some flights would be affected as it “immediately scheduled” upgrades.
In Australia and New Zealand, Jetstar and Air New Zealand grounded aircraft and canceled services. The UK Civil Aviation Authority said affected airlines must complete upgrades in the coming days or leave jets grounded. British Airways, with nearly 150 A320-family jets, said passengers will not face disruptions.
FlightAware data showed major global delays on Saturday:
- China Southern: 452 flights (20%) delayed
- EasyJet: 323 flights (21%) disrupted
- Wider implications for aviation
The A320 competes directly with Boeing’s 737 family, both are the backbone of modern commercial aviation. Airbus is already managing engine problems linked to Pratt & Whitney-powered A320neo jets, which have grounded hundreds of aircraft this year.
The A320’s fly-by-wire technology, introduced in the late 1980s, relies heavily on software to keep aircraft within safe flight limits. Software problems have been a sensitive issue since Boeing’s 737 Max crashes, which were caused by faulty MCAS software.
The new Airbus fix covers both A320neo and classic A320 models.
Despite the disruption, airlines said most passengers should expect schedules to stabilize once urgent upgrades are complete.
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