Airbus calls for software upgrade to A320 aircraft : NPR

Airbus on Friday requested airlines take immediate action to upgrade software of its A320 aircraft, warning there could be an issue with flight controls.

The aircraft manufacturer said in a statement it found the issue after an analysis of an incident involving an A320 plane found that “intense solar radiation may corrupt data critical to the functioning of flight controls.”

“Airbus has worked proactively with the aviation authorities to request immediate precautionary action from operators via an Alert Operators Transmission (AOT) in order to implement the available software and/or hardware protection, and ensure the fleet is safe to fly,” the company said.

The company also said “a significant number” of A320 aircraft currently in use may be impacted.

The Federal Aviation Administration issued an Emergency Airworthiness Directive late Friday for certain Airbus A319 and A320/321 airplanes, requiring the replacement or modification of the software. The FAA is ordering operators to perform the upgrade before the airplane flies again, and before Sunday, Nov. 30. The FAA’s action mirrors a previous order from the European Union Aviation Safety Agency, which certificates Airbus airplanes.

Airbus confirmed to NPR that the plane analyzed was JetBlue Flight 1230, which was traveling from Cancun, Mexico to Newark, New Jersey on October 30 when it suddenly dropped in altitude, causing several injuries.

The Airbus A320 family of airplanes is now the most used aircraft, with more than 9,000 planes flying around the world, including 1,600 in the U.S., according to aviation analytics company Cirium. Airbus A320 planes are flown by a number of domestic and international airlines, and the required software update could lead to “operational disruptions to passengers and customers,” Airbus also said.

The required software fix is also taking place during a busy holiday travel weekend, as millions of people are set to return home.

American Airlines told NPR it took “swift action” to address the software issue and as of 6 p.m. CT there were fewer than 150 aircraft remaining to update with software replacement. It expects updates to be completed Friday and Saturday. The airline also said it expects “some delays” but is focused on limiting flight cancellations.

“Still, our overriding priority will always be the safety of our operation. It’s all hands on deck across our airline to address this Airbus software issue and take care of any customers whose flights are affected,” the airline said in a statement on Friday.

Delta Air Lines told NPR in a statement on Friday it expects “any resulting operational impact to be limited.” United Airlines said earlier Friday its aircraft were not affected by the software issue, but told NPR later that six of its aircraft would be impacted. The airline also said it expects “minor disruption to a few flights” and Frontier Airlines said they are currently evaluating the notice from Airbus. Allegiant Air said the airline is doing everything it can to minimize any potential delays or disruptions and will contact impacted passengers directly.

JetBlue told NPR it has started working on affected aircraft and is also trying to minimize disruptions. NPR reached out to Spirit Airlines for comment on Friday but have not received a response.

NPR’s Joel Rose contributed to this report.