Global Aviation Disruption: Technical Fault in Airbus A320 Series Grounds Thousands of Flights Worldwide
For the first time in Airbus’s 55-year history, a large-scale operational shutdown was enforced worldwide after a technical malfunction was detected in the A320 series.
As a precautionary measure, aviation authorities instructed airlines to immediately implement critical software updates, resulting in more than 6,000 flight cancellations and delays across multiple countries, including India.
The issue intensified scrutiny following a recent JetBlue Airlines incident, wherein an aircraft reportedly plunged abruptly during flight.
This triggered widespread inspections of the highly used A320 family of aircraft, including A319, A320, A320neo, and A321 models.
India’s Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), acting on a safety directive from the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA), ordered urgent upgrades to the Elevator-Aileron Computer (ELAC), a key component of the aircraft’s flight control system.
The directive mandates both software upgrades and hardware replacements to be completed by November 30. As per DGCA, 338 flights in India were affected during the update process.
By Saturday, 5:30 PM, DGCA reported that software upgrades were completed on 270 out of 338 affected aircraft.
Authorities emphasised that no compromise on aviation safety would be tolerated, directing airlines and maintenance teams to accelerate compliance.
Airlines Report Progress
Air India announced on the social media platform X that more than 40% of the required updates have already been completed across its fleet, with no flight cancellations reported.
IndiGo confirmed that upgrades have been completed on 160 of its 200 A320-series aircraft, with checks continuing on the remaining 40. The airline stated that while some delays occurred, no flights were cancelled.
Delta Airlines reported that fewer than 50 A321neo aircraft in its fleet were affected, whereas United Airlines said only six aircraft required updates.
The Technical Core
The Elevator-Aileron Computer manages aircraft direction, stability, and balance during flight. Experts noted that intense solar radiation may interfere with critical data processed by the ELAC, potentially causing inaccurate altitude and directional readings.
Two-Tier Repair Strategy
To resolve the issue, Airbus has initiated two parallel corrective measures:
- Software reinstallation on nearly 4,000 aircraft—a process expected to take approximately two hours per plane.
- Complete hardware replacement on nearly 1,000 older aircraft where software fixes alone are insufficient. Due to limited spare parts and maintenance capacity, these aircraft are likely to remain grounded for weeks.
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